Partagas Lusitanias Country: Cuba Vitola de Galera: Prominente (Double corona) Size: 7 5/8" (194mm) x 49
This was my 4th Lusitania over the period of a little more than 1 year. According to my notes they have been pretty consistent in all aspects. Made a great pair with Chivas Regal.
Appearance/construction: 13 /15. Looks very good except for a vein or two. Rich and dark Colorado wrapper with not perfectly smooth surface and some, but not too much oils. A rather tightly packed and well constructed stick. I had to roll and squeeze it with my fingers for a while, and the wrapper stayed together; only the edge of the rolled leaf rose slightly in one or two places on the spiral. On many other cigars the wrapper cracked or even unraveled when I did that.
The ash had a smooth shape and white color - actually it was hardly darker than my snow-white hot tub (that was the closest thing around I could compare to ). Interestingly, only the surface of ash was white like that, apparently owing to wrapper (maybe the binder, too), whereas inside, the filler left a very dark gray ash. It held together for about 1.5" for two times.
Quite good appearance and construction. Score points deducted for veins and less than perfect smoothness.
Flavor: 24 /25
Pre-light smell was pretty strong (not too strong though) very inviting especially at the foot, making me sniff it again and again. Pre-light draw had a little spice and very nice pine/fir-tree tones. As I lit it up, the first puffs seemed to be quite bland, but that was just for a few seconds. A burst of cedary and leathery flavors followed immediately, which stayed to the end. There was little to none spice in the first and second 1/3s. At times I could feel the aroma of wood being lathed or polished, when the friction causes it to come near smoldering. If you've been to woodworks, you know what I'm talking about. Also, a couple times I felt coffee overtones. The last third brought more spice. That's pretty much all about flavors. I should add that every time I sipped my Chivas, the next 2-3 puffs were bringing more concentrated and better felt flavors. It wasn't changing the taste of cigar – just making it more intense. To me the body was medium to full, and the strength was medium.
What a great smoke. I deducted a point only because the complexity could've been a little more (but do not think I consider Lusi a non-complex cigar).
Smoking characteristics: 23 /25 Almost a perfect burn after thoroughly toasting and lighting it with cedar spills. No fixing needed ever.
Draw was somewhat tighter than I like, but opened up in the last third. When I first clipped the head and tried the draw, I found out it's tight. I clipped a little more, but it didn't help much. So I rolled and squeezed the stick between my fingers for a while, until I felt it got better.
Overall – quite good. Score points deducted for tighter than needed draw, even after struggling to loosen it.
Overall Impression: 33 /35 A fantastic 70-75 minutes smoke, suitable for any time of the day – given you have that much time to enjoy it.
Total: 93/100
Those of you who have a full CA or Insider subscription – do you know if Lusitania has been rated and what score it got?
------- "And it is not just a business. It’s a love affair." Paul B.K. Garmirian about making cigars
Lusitanias ratings for the last 5 years. Since CA doesn't list box codes, no idea what the born on date was, I just assume current production unless otherwise noted.
Feb 2007- 92 Feb 2005- 88 Oct 2003- 93 Dec 2002- 87 Oct 2001- 88
------------------- "Every prohibitionist movement is essentially about power and profit, dressed up as health and morality." - Joe Jackson
Posts: 296 | Location: Las Vegas, NV | Registered: June 18, 2004
Originally posted by V.O.: Looks like CA are a stricter judge than me
Bullsh!t, I say. Lusis, for me, have been the most consistently flavorful double corona from Havana during the post-boom years. While Hoyo DC seems hit or miss, Lusis always seem to hit the spot..especially if you buy them in cabs of 50. If you've never opened a sealed cab of Lusis, treat yourself, man. Seeing 50 of these dark beauties resting in a cedar cab is a sight -- and smell -- worth experiencing.
Originally posted by V.O.: Looks like CA are a stricter judge than me
Bullsh!t, I say. Lusis, for me, have been the most consistently flavorful double corona from Havana during the post-boom years. While Hoyo DC seems hit or miss, Lusis always seem to hit the spot..especially if you buy them in cabs of 50. If you've never opened a sealed cab of Lusis, treat yourself, man. Seeing 50 of these dark beauties resting in a cedar cab is a sight -- and smell -- worth experiencing.
That's what I'm saying - consistent and flavorful.
I've seen the cab of 50, though didn't "play" with it. The ones I smoke are from dressbox of 25.
BTW, Steve, another Lusi box code that I found out today: BGE FEB 06. A friend treated me one from that dressbox of 25 more than a year ago. Not very different than the one I reviewed as far as I can remember. He still has the box and I asked him the code while chatting with him on the phone. Hope he didn't screw up the letters - his English is only a little better than my Chinese
------- "And it is not just a business. It’s a love affair." Paul B.K. Garmirian about making cigars
Thanks V.O., great review. Lusitania has always been a favorite of mine..interesting you mention the somewhat tight draw. Something I have noticed quite a bit with this cigar.
Originally posted by V.O.: BTW, Steve, another Lusi box code that I found out today: BGE FEB 06. A friend treated me one from that dressbox of 25 more than a year ago. Not very different than the one I reviewed as far as I can remember. He still has the box and I asked him the code while chatting with him on the phone. Hope he didn't screw up the letters - his English is only a little better than my Chinese
"Bud spelers of the word unight, and remumber: cabron is most abundent elemant in hte youknwverse"
Steve if you are interested in buying a box I would recommend box code GSO FEB 07. They are out freaking standing. The darkest, oiliest lusis I have ever seen. Unfortunately I only found this box code in boxes of 25, no cabs. Also only one vendor I use has this box code so it might be difficult to find. But it is worth stocking up. They are the best Lusis in years according to some.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Ram2711,
Posts: 47 | Location: Miami | Registered: July 16, 2004
Originally posted by Ram2711: Steve if you are interested in buying a box I would recommend box code GSO FEB 07. They are out freaking standing. The darkest, oiliest lusis I have ever seen. Unfortunately I only found this box code in dress boxes of 25 no cabs. Also only one vendor I use has this box code so it might be difficult to find. But it is worth stocking up. They are the best Lusis in years according to some.
"Bud spelers of the word unight, and remumber: cabron is most abundent elemant in hte youknwverse"
Nice Review V.O. I've been wanting to try this cigar for quite sometime, but just never seem to find the time to do so. I finally lit one up and it did not disappoint. Here are my personal thoughts:
Appearance: 9/10 - The wrapper is nice and oily. The construction was very good, except the cigar felt a little light. I later found out that it is slightly underpacked.
Brun/Draw: 8/10 - The prelight draw was perfect. Burn and draw were both great. The ash did not hold on over an inch probably due to the cigar being slightly underpacked. The burn had some issues right after the ash drops, but not a big deal.
Taste: 10/10 - The cigar was straight forward cedary with a bit of pepper for the most part with the definitive Partagas woodiness. In the last third, the flavor changed to a toasty vanilla bean. The taste was very rich especially after a relight.
Overall: 9/10 - Definitely the best DC I've had. Even though it's a big cigar, never did I become bored with it in the 2 hours it took to smoke it. The switch of flavors in the last third was simply phenomenal. Although at the end, there were slight tastes of bitterness, probably due to the tar build up.
I had my first one of these guys on Sat. during final four...the 4th cighar of that day for me...and I can't believe you got through it so quickly...I spent about a little less than double the amount of time, and loved every minute of it.
quote:
No fixing needed ever
Absolutley on the money VO...no touching up whatsoever, in fact the cigar was hypnotic in a way. I love when a cigar just grabs your attention like that and doesn't let you go...I left about an inch and a half on it and never had to re-light it either...this is definately a top-5 for me so far...Nice review...
Thanks for the timely review, VO. I recently did a split with a co-worker. I really want to give one a shot, but since the box code is LSM JUN 07, I am trying to hold out!
"Knowing is not enough, you must apply; willing is not enough, you must do." - Bruce Lee
Posts: 776 | Location: Signal Hill, CA | Registered: April 26, 2007
). Interestingly, only the surface of ash was white like that, apparently owing to wrapper (maybe the binder, too), whereas inside, the filler left a very dark gray ash. It held together for about 1.5" for two times.
