cigar review
BRAND: Gurkha
NAME: Legend
TYPE: Robusto
LENGTH/RING GAUGE: 6 x 50
WRAPPER: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro
DATE OF PURCHASE: 2/22/2006
DATE OF RATING: 6/2/2007
TIME IN HUMIDOR: 15.5
LOOK AND FEEL: 89
FLAVOR AND AROMA: 89
BURN: 91
OVERALL SCORE: 89.7
AGING POTENTIAL SCORE: B = this cigar should age well over the first 5 years and is likely to develop further complexity and nuances
STORAGE CONDITIONS: These cigars have been resting, sans cello, in a section of my Elie Bleu humidor, which is in my closet and stays at around 68-70%RH and during the past 6 months has varied between 66-71 degrees F.
These cigars have been laying comfortably for 15.5 months. This is the fourth and final review of this batch of cigars.
These cigars have been laying comfortably for 15.5 months. This is the fourth and final review of this batch of cigars.
TASTING NOTES: Over a year of aging has not disturbed one of my favorite things about this cigar: its aroma. Even though these have sat in my humidor without their cello constraints for 15.5 months, they still exude a palpable aroma of musky barnyard.
The fine Connecticut broadleaf wrapper leaf has settled into a milk-chocolate brown shade and sports some jagged, medium sized veins.
The shaft of the cigar is firm throughout and only slightly more supple at the foot. The cigar eagerly awaited my trim and I didn’t dally too long before I used my Palió cutter to clip away the cap.
The filler tobacco used to create this cigar includes an 8-year-old Dominican long-filler and Cameroon binder, which makes for an interesting blend.
After the cigar starts with a blast of sweet spice, it settles into herbaceous flavors, which remind me of green grass and hay.
The first cigar of this batch suffered from serious burn issues, however, since then, the burn has been decent, though not stellar. This specimen burns evenly, albeit casts a blistered burn line. The draw is even and smooth. The darkly striated white ash drops on its own accord into my ashtray at about the 1-inch mark. It presents as a firm pellet in the tray.
Just past the one-third mark, I experienced rich wood and tobacco flavors and just a bit of pepper spice that lit my tongue.
The second half of the smoke brought more tobacco flavors in a medium-full-bodied package. This cigar exhibited the best burn characteristics of the batch. It burned even throughout and developed no tunnels.
Overall, this cigar, though not too complex, still delivered nice rich flavors throughout and had a consistent burn. Overall, the Gurkha Legend is well constructed and I believe this cigar will age well for up to 5 years. The tobacco showed signs that it will continue to age successfully.
~Doc
The fine Connecticut broadleaf wrapper leaf has settled into a milk-chocolate brown shade and sports some jagged, medium sized veins.
The shaft of the cigar is firm throughout and only slightly more supple at the foot. The cigar eagerly awaited my trim and I didn’t dally too long before I used my Palió cutter to clip away the cap.
The filler tobacco used to create this cigar includes an 8-year-old Dominican long-filler and Cameroon binder, which makes for an interesting blend.
After the cigar starts with a blast of sweet spice, it settles into herbaceous flavors, which remind me of green grass and hay.
The first cigar of this batch suffered from serious burn issues, however, since then, the burn has been decent, though not stellar. This specimen burns evenly, albeit casts a blistered burn line. The draw is even and smooth. The darkly striated white ash drops on its own accord into my ashtray at about the 1-inch mark. It presents as a firm pellet in the tray.
Just past the one-third mark, I experienced rich wood and tobacco flavors and just a bit of pepper spice that lit my tongue.
The second half of the smoke brought more tobacco flavors in a medium-full-bodied package. This cigar exhibited the best burn characteristics of the batch. It burned even throughout and developed no tunnels.
Overall, this cigar, though not too complex, still delivered nice rich flavors throughout and had a consistent burn. Overall, the Gurkha Legend is well constructed and I believe this cigar will age well for up to 5 years. The tobacco showed signs that it will continue to age successfully.
~Doc
Gurkha: Legend, Robusto
Monday, June 4, 2007
