Ordered a box of the Mad Magic Mountains from the JR 12 days special. Honestly, a lump of coal in my stocking would have been a better Christmas present. I read a bunch here about how great these cigars are so I was excited to get the box for $30 ("Toffee flavor", "cocoa", et etc.)

What the heck? These things are by far the most tasteless cigars I have ever smoked. At first I thought I must have had a head cold or something because I simply couldn't taste ANYTHING. I let 'em sit for a while and went back to them today. Again, nothing. No taste, zero, nada, niltch. Am I missing something here?

Interestingly enough - when I got the cigars I called JRs because although there is a "maduro" sticker on the box, it labeled "H2000 wrapper". JR's website say the Nat. are H2000 and the Mads. are Costa Rican. Clearly the cigars I received are Mads because they are very dark. But the JR rep told me on the phone that "this is a misprint on the website. The Maduros are not Costa Rican". What is up with that? I've seen reps from JRs post on forums that the MM are Costa Rican.

Guilow- I tend to agree. It is amazing that these cigars are made by the same folks who make the Rocky Patel vintage (out of much the same tobaccos, but man, what a difference!)
For my money- the best thing about the MMs is the box, JMHO
Pmag

Completely agree about the MM's. A painted maduro that tastes like crap.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Id,

The maduro wrapper is from Costa Rica

I should have tried the JR sampler first. I still cannot for the life me understand how so many folks here gave such good reviews on these air muffins.

Thanks Idesign-
they do age well, although they ain't bad right of the truck either.

I like the MM's in H2000. I keep a couple of boxes around and they are good, especially with 6 months on the box.

I highly recommend letting them sit a month at least before smoking them, I find cigars from JR's, especially Plasencia cigars like MM and Mayorga are very moist right out of the box. If you got them for the JR's 12 Days of x-mas you haven't even had them a month. Let them sit in your lowest humidity humidor and forget about them. When you do remember they are there you will be pleasantly surprised.

Keep in mind this is a $2 cigar. If you were expecting PAM or Opus flavor you will be disappointed. But they deliver a nice smoke for that price. I smoke these as commuter sticks, surfing sticks and occasionally while watching TV.

This definitely isn't my main cigar when I want something nice, nor do I whip out an MM for special occasions!

Give them some time and keep in mind the price range. You might just change your mind.

Damn, Binder! I understand you enjoying them as a commuter stick, maybe even a surfing stick. But you have them elevated all the way up to occasional TV stick status? That's crazzzy yo!

Pmag, I couldn't agree more. They really suprised me. I'll have to make sure I keep them in stock.

quote:

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Originally posted by Lew Rothman:
The maduro wrapper is from Costa Rica

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Whoa! I wonder if that was the real Lew? If you are lurking around Lew, welcome to CA!

For Lew - If the Maddie wrapper is from Cost Rica why do the boxes say "H2000 Wrapper" on them? (and no, I'm not mistaking them for naturals).

BinDer - Good suggestion. You are right about these things being soft. They are in fact VERY soft. If you squeeze it it hardly bounces back at all. I will store these for a while and see. But for $2/stick - I would much rather smoke a HDM Dbl Mad Roth for my commuting/surfing/scuba diving smoke.

Wow, I guess I missed the news about a BIG earthquake. With Guilow surfing, I guess California, Nevada, and Utah have fallen into the Atlantic!

Surfs Up in Colorado!

Speaking of which... my sister and family just moved into your area of the world... Colorado Springs.

.

quote:

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Originally posted by Guilow:
BinDer - Good suggestion. You are right about these things being soft. They are in fact VERY soft. If you squeeze it it hardly bounces back at all. I will store these for a while and see. But for $2/stick - I would much rather smoke a HDM Dbl Mad Roth for my commuting/surfing/scuba diving smoke.

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Definitely sounds like they are moist. I keep my humidors around 65-67% so after a month or so they are firm with a good draw and the band is a little loose.

I don't know why but the Mayorgas and Mancinis seem very wet when shipped. I don't know if JR's keeps their humidity slightly higher so cigars stay humidified in transit or if they are shipped "fresh rolled" and don't get time to dry properly from the factory.

I make sure all Mayorgas have at least 6 months on them and MM's at least a month before smoking them.

As for the surfing comment...I meant web surfing. Now how exactly do you smoke a cigar while scuba diving? In the right gear with a helmet it could be done, but it would have to be a very short cigar and you'd be smelling it long after it was gone.

BinDer,
Interesting - I bought some Mayorgas the day before the MMs on the JR 12 day special. They are Nats. and I like 'em right out of the box. They are not nearly as soft as the MMs.

In the Mayorga the best line is the High Octane Trios cigars. I prefer them in this order: Trios, Robusto and then Churchill. This blend is supposedly a lot stronger but in reality is just a bit spicier and more complex.

They seem to be better out of the box than the Mancinis but I still prefer them with 6-12 months rest. I always know when my Mayorgas have sat long enough when the band is a little loose and slides easily.

In either case, they are both decent inexpensive cigars. Anytime you have a cigar that inexpensive, they can't be holding on to them too long at the factory to age them. I think they need the extra time to reach their potential.

Just curious Guilow: Could it be that you just don't like Honduran cigars? To me MM's typify Honduran cigar flavor, while the Mayorgas are exemplary of Nicaraguan flavors. Perhaps you just don't like Honduran tobacco much?!?!

BinDer,
I love Honduran tobacco. One of my top three smokes is the Punch GP Rancho. I also smoke a lot of HDMs too. The problem I have with the MMs is they are have NO taste. If I could squeeze a little Honduran flavor that would be great. I'm not having a problem getting a good amount of smoke, but these things are the food equivalent of eating rice cakes.

I've tucked 'em away in the back of my Mini for a nice little winter hibernation.

I still have a box in my humidor with three Magic Mountain H2000 left. I bought the box in the summer of 2002 from JR. They had received a fairly good score in one of the issues of Cigar Aficionado and the low price made me want to try them. I found them very good but I also noticed a further improvement over the time in the humidor. I will probably buy another box soon.

Guilow time to pull those Mancinis out and give us an update! It's been at least a month now!

I bought a box from the 12 days of Christmas sale. They came with plume, look nice and were little soggy. I let them sit and they were OK, nothing spectacular but like I always say "Dont expect too much and you wont get let down."! They are just fine for the money but I have better smokes for my taste for that price point. Mine are under filled and have too many burn issues, even in the maduro (I dont have the H2k).

BinDer,
Funny you should mention it, I just smoked one yesterday morning on my morning drive to work. I'd been intending to post an update. Thanks for the reminder.

While it was slightly better, I don't hold out much hope. The construction and burn were fine. Actually, they look so good they make your mouth water. I supposed that contributes to unreasonable expectations for a cheap cigar. But the key problem is that they still lack taste and they are far too mild for my preference. I get a reasonable amount of smoke and they don't have that synthetic taste you get from cigars that are too wet. I'm guessing it's the wrapper that is the problem. This is the first "Costa Rican" wrapper I've tasted (check that - haven't 'tasted', rather 'smoked').

My final verdict: Never again. I'm giving these to a buddy that'll smoke anything that he can get for free. For me, life is too short (as well as my time availble to smoke) to waste time on subpar smokes.