APPEARANCE AND CONSTRUCTION (15 of 15 Points Possible) 5 x 50 robusto with a killer dark corojo wrapper. I wish all cigars were this attractive. The feel of this wrapper is like suede, ultra smooth. The color is a milk chocolate brown and it has a solid feel in the hand. The prelight aroma and draw lead me to believe that this might be a spicy one. As I toasted the foot, it gave off a heavenly aroma. The smell of this cigar is potent and probably not a good choice for smoking indoors. I smoked it outside and enjoyed smell in the air immensly.
FLAVOR (20 of 25 Points Possible) Great medium flavor and a little complexity. It started out with a black tea flavor and developed strength and complexity as it burned. I tasted cedar, cocoa, a little sweetness, and some pepper. The sweet cocoa flavor was a treat at about the halfway mark. All along the black tea was in the background. I let it die at around 1.5 inches left when it started to get a tad bitter.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS (22 of 25 Points Possible) Nothing of note with the draw or burn, except to say that they were good. The smoke was very very dry. I drank 3 glasses of water with this baby. There is a pretty good balance of strength to flavor in this cigar. It could use a little more richness as it is a pretty potent little robusto. With a little more richness this cigar would be absolutely intoxicating.
OVERALL IMPRESSION (30 of 35 Points Possible) Pretty good cigar. I liked it a little more than the havana series even though the havana features my favorite wrapper. This one is a good choice if you like medium flavor and full power.
I just smoked a Monarca and it kicked my ass. I like a strong cigar (LGC SR, ElRicoHabano, a few others) but this one was just brutal. It was like smoking a cobra. You had the head in your mouth and it was biting away while the tail whipped around to smack you in the face. The construction was solid, with a dryish looking wrapper. Draw was good, neither easy nor tight.
The flavor was sharp but pure and the aroma was tangy and assertive. I also found that it got too out of control at the end to smoke it to the nub. But I coldn't anyway because it got rough. This is not a cigar to give to a Macanudo-phile unless you want to see said smoker shrivel up like the Wicked Witch of the East in a downpour.
I'm man enough to say this cigar was the boss of me.
I actually got stuck with 2 boxes of these a while back. Some glitch in the computers from the place I ordered from, and I got sent and billed for 2 boxes.
These are ok. Construction is really nice. I have to say though, people keep saying these are almost Cuban. That's crap. These are nothign close. Decent smokes for NC's though.
A bit strong, but not strong in a good way. A bit harsh i thought...even after nearly a year resting. Definitely not a cigar for chumps. Overall though, one of the better NC's.
I have some two year old Camacho Diploma Robs and they are yummy. Nice fat flavor bombs. I have yet to smoke a bad Camacho, the Diploma's and Corojo's being the best. Hard to believe these are the same guys who make Baccarat!
Then watch this... http://projectboil.pixel10.co.uk/posting/Posting.html Thanx to Oscuro XX for posting this link... ----------------------------- "Un día sin los puros es como un día sin el sol." "A day without cigars is like a day without sun."
Posts: 3237 | Location: South Jersey | Registered: May 20, 2002
you guys should try the 2004 Liberty 11/18. I only had one, but it was one Hell of a cigar! A great cigar that I didn't want to end. I am considering a box, but for $235.00, I'm just not sure. Maybe I'll just get a few singles and smoke them on special occasions.
Eddie
Posts: 877 | Location: San Francisco, CA USA | Registered: October 15, 2003
Hey Stoge, they are worth getting. I have heard however, that the Amendment series is a bit more mild. I haven't tried them, but if they are anything like the 04s, then they will be da bomb!
Eddie
Posts: 877 | Location: San Francisco, CA USA | Registered: October 15, 2003
Tonight I sparked a Diploma that Dbaranska sent. Good solid smoke. This one is a little more full and creamy than the monarca. I thought it was more earth and less cocoa and pepper. The monarcas are pretty spicy. The diploma is much much smoother. It is potent too.
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Now as far as my experience goes, I have not had a Camacho that I really enjoyed. Very powerful but i've found them harsh. Except for the Liberty that i had that was bland and had a huge stem all the way through it. Both diplomas i had i couldn't even get a decent draw. IMO they have some serious construction issues...
But hey, if someone is going to pick out the bad sticks from the humidor, it's going to be me. (I'm the one that found 2 stems in my last PAM 64)
OK, now I'm confused. I lit up another monarca today that I swear to god could have been a cuban. The flavor was earthy as with the others but very buttery with hints of chocolate covered cherries and pepper. To be honest it reminded me of a RASS but was rolled better and the wrapper was nicer. I think I might just buy a box of these and see what happens.
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quote: I have not had a Camacho that I really enjoyed. Very powerful but i've found them harsh. Except for the Liberty that i had that was bland and had a huge stem all the way through it. Both diplomas i had i couldn't even get a decent draw. IMO they have some serious construction issues...
That's too bad. I can't say I've experienced *any* construction problems with the diploma. It's one of my standard cigars. As for the taste, I find them powerful but not at all harsh. But then again I think I'm one of those people that has no tastebuds. If it isn't a strong cigar, I can't taste much of anything.
I did smoke one of the gigantic Camacho diademas once, just for novelty's sake. I think that cigar definitely had a poor draw, but at the time I put it down to the weirdness inherent in that shape.
~ masher
B.A.S.E. #0004 <(O)>
Posts: 267 | Location: Denver, Colorado, USA | Registered: June 08, 2004
quote:Originally posted by pmpimbura: OK, now I'm confused. I lit up another monarca today that I swear to god could have been a cuban. The flavor was earthy as with the others but very buttery with hints of chocolate covered cherries and pepper. To be honest it reminded me of a RASS but was rolled better and the wrapper was nicer.
I hate to say it, but I have to question your CC source if you can honestly say this. I happen to have been stuck with 2 boxes of monarcas...so I have alot of experience with this particular stick. They are decent for NC's...but the difference between a RASS and a monarca is like comparing a Philly blunt to a PAM.
Sobek, to each his own I guess. Sources were given by some pretty reputable members once upon a time. I am new to camachos and havnt tried all that many. Granted, I have probably had as many good sticks as bad and only a couple great ones but IMO these are definitely one of the better N/C's. It took me a while to get into them but I think they have recently helped my palate mature. I find myself craving the power of sticks like JDN, camacho, and to a lesser extent padron in place of smoking cubans exclusively. A few of the camachos I have had have been every bit as enjoyable as a cuban but in a different way if that makes sense.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Pmpimbura,
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I highly agree PMP. Instead of smoking CCs for the most part, I resort to the Camacho Diplomas and the Padrons and such. I enjoy them very much and help satisfy my craving for the dark side. Those Diplomas can be every bit as good as a Cuban.
Posts: 877 | Location: San Francisco, CA USA | Registered: October 15, 2003
quote:Originally posted by InfrnalSky: Those Diplomas can be every bit as good as a Cuban.
That's a big statement. In the old days, this post would have been followed by 10 pages of flames.
PMP
JDN and Camacho are not strength. They are crude and harsh, which comes across as strength. A PSD3 or BBF is strength.
I will agree that Camachos are one of the better NC's. I stock some myself. But if I smoke any CC before i grab a camacho...there is no way I even finish 1/4 of a camacho before putting it out. To me, any cigar you can't smoke in succession to a quality CC puts it in a class far below.
