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Aladino Palmas. Smoked this and an Aladino Vintage Rothschild yesterday. The lonsdale was not the winner.
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Did the cigars have a loose draw? That was the case when I tried one of the lonsdales. In fact, it's the reason I stopped buying anything made by the Eiroas. The draws were always like sucking air through a straw, and the cigars would burn hot and fast and start tasting nasty around the halfway point. It sucks, too, because they had some really great blends.
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Mark, this one had a great draw. Only my second Aladino fo I can't speak for them in general, but no issues with the two I smoked last week.
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Padron 1964 Anniversary Series corona natural (6" x 42). Last one from a box from...2014? 2015?

I won a box of these on the Famous auction site years ago for a RIDICULOUSLY low price (less than $170). I honestly was kinda underwhelmed by them and only held onto them to give them away to other BOTL. Now that I think about it, I think I've only smoked 4-5 cigars from this box, and this is the last one.

It's a pretty good smoke. A bit of a crooked burn. Good draw. Good enough flavors, but not much depth. I feel like this is a NC that definitely does not improve with age. One thing I noticed is that drinking wine with this cigar makes the flavor pop a little more. If you took the band off this cigar and I smoked it blind, I'd be a buyer at under $10. I guess that's why I'm not in love with this cigar. It's good, but it just ain't worth the coin. :-)
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Maybe you'll find another crazy inexpensive box, Mark.
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Charter Oak maduro lonsdale (6.25" x 46)

SOLID smoke. Good construction, burn, and draw. Straight medium as far as 'strength' goes, pretty typical maduro flavors of cocoa/coffee/coconut. Coconut becomes more pronounced around the halfway point.

Not a cigar you would give as a gift, but definitely above yard 'gar status. At around $5/stick retail, a pretty good value.

I'll put it this way (and yooz guys will know exactly what I'm talkin' about): this is one of those cigars that you buy a few of at the local cigar lounge, because they're decent smokes and you wanna support the place that lets you smoke. :-)
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Absolutely. :-)
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Man O' War corona (6 X 44)

This one has been resting nekkid in the humi for well over a year, so I feel like what I'm tasting is legit.

It's just OK, and that's only until just past halfway.

I remember being sorta infatuated with ol' AJ Fernandez when he first began producing cigars. And there are still a few of his smokes that I enjoy regularly. But I feel like production quotas have taken a bite out of quality. And when I say quality, I mean properly aged/fermented tobaccos.

Much like Drew Estate, Tabacalera Fernandez is pretty top notch in terms of construction. I rarely smoke an AJ cigar that is poorly constructed. But there is really no legitimate reason that a Nicaraguan cigar, without cellophane, resting for over a year at 62 to 65 percent humidity, should have a heavy chemical/ammonia aftertaste by around the halfway point. The only reason that happens, IMO, is from using underfermented tobacco.
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I have really gotten into the Herrera Esteli maduro's lately. I don't know if it's the particular box but they have been fantastic and I usually don't go for a maduro. I have always been a fan of the original and I think it's the best size for the blend overall anyway.
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Plasencia Reserva Original corona

This cigar is 6.5" x 44, so I'm calling it a lonsdale.

The Reserva Original line has an interesting history. They used to be called Reserva Organica and were touted as the only organic cigar on the market. They were also, as far as I remember, only available from Famous Smoke Shop. I used to smoke the sh*t outta the torpedoes and they were one of my favorite cigars. There was also a short lived 'Edicion Limitada 2001' that came in boxes of 15, were a bit more pricey than the regular line, and were, no joke, one of the best cigars I've ever smoked. Looking at the Plasencia website, these are no longer called 'organic.' It may be a legal thing, or maybe they aren't organic anymore. Who knows.

This cigar tastes different from the original blend. There's a bit more 'strength', and it's not as smooth as the old ones. Construction/burn/draw are all top notch. Zero burn corrections required, which is honestly quite amazing. As far as flavor goes, it's a pretty straightforward tobacco flavor. The originals had a nutty/woodsy flavor that I enjoyed very much.

This was not a bad smoke, but to my palate the blend is definitely different. I still have a few of the old Reserva Organicas left. I may have to do a comparison. :-)
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Merchant's Queen de Luxe (7" X 42)

A resurrected brand from days of old, according to my Google search. Cigar Page has introduced this reboot in several sizes of bundled cigars. And the sizes are all great, IMO. Nothing over a 50 ring gauge! Noice.

And, like a sucka, I clicked on the link and ordered 15 cigars (three 5 packs).

Visually, these are nice looking cigars. Maduro wrapper. Box pressed. They obviously didn't use sh*tty wrapper tobacco on these babies. The wrappers are dark and fairly uniform in color. This cigar is heavy in the hand, but has a great draw, which tells me that they put some effort into the construction of this line.

First few draws...straight tobacco, but with a slight (but not unpleasant) grassy flavor that you wouldn't normally associate with a maduro wrap cigar. Not a bad start. Looking at the info on Cigar Page, this blend is a San Andres wrapper and fillers from Ometepe, Jalapa, and Esteli.

About 1" in...typical maduro flavors coming in. Cocoa, coconut. Medium "strength". A little bit of a woodsy flavor in the nose exhale.

Around 2" in...straight CIGAR flavor is dominant, with the coconut more present on the finish. The woodsy nose exhale is still there.

Around halfway...dominant flavors are still the same, but the "strength" has increased a bit, as well as the woodsy flavor in the nose exhale. A couple of minor burn corrections.

A little past halfway...dominant flavors are still the same, but an unpleasant chemical/ammonia flavor has come in on the finish. That tells me it's time to tap out. Let 'er die at around 2.5."

Final thoughts...this might be a great cigar with a few months of humi time. I stripped a few of their cello, and they are currently sleeping. I will very likely revisit, because this was a great smoke until a little past the halfway point. :-)
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Record Bond #3 (7" X 42)

Another old obscure brand resurrected by the folks at Cigar Page (?). I grabbed these at the same time as the Merchant's Queen. The sizes of the two brands are identical. *Side note* It's nice to see new cigar brands that aren't completely comprised of horse d*ck sized cigars.

Nice looking cigar with a shiny wrapper. Draw is *just* a little tight, but that's to be expected since this cigar has only dryboxed for 2 days. According to CP, the wrapper is Ecuador Habano and the fillers are from Pennsylvania, Condega, and Esteli. Sounds like it should be a unique blend.

First few draws...straight tobacco on the draw, floral through the nose. A bit of a unique spicy flavor that I really can't describe. It leaves a very unique spice type flavor and a nice tangy sensation on the palate between draws. Just on the full side of medium "strength."

About 1" in...no burn corrections so far, which is nice. Very light gray ash that fell off in my lap. :-) Dominant flavors and aromas are the same. The tangy sensation on the palate has become more intense. It's so intense, in fact, that it makes me curious about the blend and how this taste sensation is actually happening.

About 2" in...man, I am digging this cigar. It is tasting good and smelling good. No real twists and turns in the flavor. No burn corrections, either. That palate coating tangy sensation is still present, and that's not a bad thing. "Strength" has stayed at a solid medium.

Around halfway...still no burn corrections, which is a feat in and of itself. Main flavors and aromas are still the same, with a faint "baking spice" flavor coming in on the nose exhale. The palate coating tangy sensation has become a little bit annoying, honestly. It was cool and unique at first, but it has required me to take a sip of water after every 2 or 3 puffs. Sort of like drinking an extremely dry red wine.

A little past halfway...burn is still almost perfect (I'm impressed). The palate coating sensation is still there, and still a little annoying, but I guess it's just one of those things you encounter when smoking hundreds of cigars. :-) Maybe if I found a good beverage to accompany this cigar, it wouldn't be an issue. Main flavors are similar, but the "strength" has decreased a little bit. A little smoother.

Toward the end...I poured a small glass of sparkling wine, and it really made an improvement! :-) I gotta say, even with the slightly annoying mouthfeel, that I am really liking this cigar. I've decided that this is a cigar that I need to pair with champagne or sparkling wine. :-)

I let this cigar die at around 1.5".

Final thoughts...overall, I really liked this cigar. I am looking forward to smoking another one after a few months of humi time. I'll make sure I have a glass of bubbly to go with it. :-)
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Some recent lonsdales getting smoked around here:

Rojas KSG Red

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LGC MdO No. 4

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Damn for some $85 boxes of these again.....

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Now it’s more like $85/stick. :-) Savoring the bit I have left.
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Sad and insane simultaneously.
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Kiki Momo Connecticut lonsdale.

I'm in a cigar group on Facebook, and in between all the Chads flexing their watches and Cohibas, the noobs asking noob questions, and the scammers selling fake CCs, there were a lot of rave reviews of a new cigar company called Kiki Momo. So I figured I'd give 'em a shot. Ordered a few fivers, one of which were these CT wrap lonsdales. I gotta be honest, I am not a fan of Kiki so far. One of the 5 packs were rolled so tight that when I screwed the PerfecDraw in, the cigars popped open like a can of biscuits. All of them. Another was a 5 pack of obviously enhanced maduros that I'm probably not even gonna smoke.

Then we come to these CT wrap lonsdales, and I'm honestly amazed at how good this cigar is. I wasn't expecting much, but this is a nice smoke. Mild but lots of flavor, really good burn. Nothing groundbreaking in the flavor department. I mean there's only so much you can do with a blend like this. But a damn good mild cigar.

Will I buy any more? Nope.
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Smoking another Siboney Reserve lonsdale from Aganorsa.

Is it possible for a cigar to smell better than it tastes? I mean, this cigar tastes great, but the aroma coming from the foot of this thing is absolutely amazing. Not only would your wife NOT complain about the smell of these things, she would probably tell you that it smells OK! No BS! :-)

All jokes aside, solid smoke. This is the only size I've tried, because I decided I was sick of 50+ ring gauge cigars. This specific cigar has been nekkid in the humi for at least a year. Decent burn, a couple of corrections required. Full side of medium "strength." Starts off a bit woodsy, then pretty typical Nicaraguan spice flavors. No major flavor changes except the transition from wood to spice.

No ammonia, even at the nub, which I feel like I should make a point of saying.
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Exactly!!!
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Smoking another Siboney Reserve lonsdale. Great smokes. I have 5 or 6 boxes of them, and I think I should get 5 or 6 more.
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