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Ok, so for anyone that follows me on Twitter, or any number of the cigar forums knows that I was not happy with the way the Drac/Boris rolled out. I had mentioned I was boycotting Tatuaje, and a few retailers, simply because of the way things had been going down, with price gouging, and a few other things. I am writing this review, because I simply felt it necessary. I bought 3 dracs and 3 Boris, just because I stumbled upon them. I started smoking the Drac with an open mind, simply because I enjoyed most Tatuaje's, and being as limited as this cigar is, I really wanted to keep an open mind regarding this cigar. Let's see how it went!

Pre-Light: The first thing I noticed was that this particular cigar that I photographed was rolled pretty well, although it felt a little soft as I ran my fingers down the length of it. I clipped the torpedo shaped head, and took a pre-light draw. The first thing I noticed was that it was I got a little bit of fruity taste, with a little bit of peppermint like taste on the finish. I clipped this cigar with my trusty Palio, and lit it up with the ever so trusty, Ronson Jetlite.



1/3: As I toasted up this cigar, and took a few puffs, the first thing I noticed was that I was getting a little bit of a blast of a candy/peppermint flavor, along with some white peppery spice. The draw was pretty much effortless, and the smoke was billowing nicely. The finish on this cigar was heavy, and very long. The taste of fruity/peppermint held on to my tongue like it didn't want to let go. At this point, the peppermint/fruity flavor is not a bad flavor, but overall not something I enjoy usually. As I finish up the first portion of this cigar, some of the typical Tatuaje peppery flavors were ones that I was enjoying, but this taste of fruit/peppermint on the finish was not all that great.



2/3: As I moved on to the second portion of this cigar, the burn was starting to canoe, and I attempted to correct it. At this point, I am not really happy with the way the burn is moving along, but as long as I am getting the nice Tatuaje peppery spice flavors, I will keep smoking. I was still getting a consistent peppermint flavor. The smoke was billowing really nicely, and the smoke smelled great. The burn just would NOT correct itself, and before I got to the last portion of the cigar, I had to correct the burn 2-3 times. One of my biggest pet peeves on any cigar is one that won't burn at least FAIRLY straight. This cigar didn't burn worth a crap. It kept wanting to canoe, and I made SURE that I lit it correctly. At this point, I am getting frustrated with it, but I keep with it, just because I want to see if there are any changes coming.



3/3: As I finish up this cigar, I got more of the typical Tatuaje spice, which came on stronger than the last couple sections. The peppermint flavors and finish started to die down a bit, and I was starting to really enjoy this cigars flavors, with the diminishing of the peppermint flavors. The smoke is billowing great, and the burn seems to have straightened itself out quite a bit.



Overall Impression: Ok, so as many of you have noticed, I mentioned I was boycotting Tatuaje and a few retailers because of the way they handled the Drac/Boris rollout. I am using this review to say a couple things. As I sat here smoking this cigar, I realized one thing. Pete did what he could to release this Limited Edition cigar, and make it fair. I, however, did not agree with the way a number of retailers handled the release, and gouged people. That being said, I decided I won't be boycotting Tatuaje products, as Pete still makes great sticks that are not Limited Edition, and he has said himself that there were problems with this release, and he is working to correct it for next year. I will be boycotting certain retailers though, that had bogus ways of "allowing" people to get the Drac/Boris.

Ok, now, since that disclaimer is over, on to the impression of this cigar. Overall, this cigar is not one for me. I did get some flavors that I enjoyed, and the typical Tatuaje spice was there, but the peppermint/fruity flavors were not good at all. I have one more that I will let sit until next halloween, and we'll see how it does next year. This semi fresh Drac, however, was not something I will hunt out anymore of this year.

Smoke Em If you Got Em, Buy Em if You Don't!

Full Review with pics here:

http://www.cigarchoice.net/?p=302
Scott
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Thanks for the review Scott!!
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Anytime! :-)
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Thanks for the review, was able to pick up a box this morning. I think I will let these rest a bit before putting the flame to one.
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From the sound of it, Scott, this did not live up to its hype for you. Hopefully it will improve with age, both in taste and burn.

Thanks for the review.
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Thanks for the review.
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Thank you for the review!

I have read a few reviews and they seemed to be mixed. Some say they are one of the best sticks Pete makes and others say they aren't worth the hype. I hope they turn out good...
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Thanks for the review. I hope they get better with some age!!
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i smoked one today as well, being it was Halloween and seemed appropriate...found it to be fairly tasty, with the typical tat start of a blast of spice...then mellowing out in the middle...good ash that held up well...more spice came back near the end...dont know that i would continually buy these cigars at the price point, ($ 20/stick with retailer mark up and taxes) but glad i got some being a limited edition
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wow, so these actually really are just made with leaves of tobacco and are capable of being totally mediocre or bad, just like other cigars? Cool.... thought I was going crazy there for a while......

All kidding aside, thanks for the "honest to yourself" review.
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I always try to be honest. I smoked two of these back to back and both had burn issues, and tastes I didn't enjoy.
Scott
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Thanks for the excellent review, Scott.
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I have to agree with you. This was an awkward cigar with flavors that didn't seem to mesh well. It was a big pass in my book.
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Anthony welcome to the forum. :-)
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Welcome brotha! I just checked out your blog. Like it!
Scott
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