I was excited to try this cigar from the moment of its announcement. Plum Pudding is easily my go-to English blend and I was eager to try something that felt novel in the cigar world too. And while (spoiler!) I ultimately liked it okay I guess, I don't feel that this cigar captures the platonic ideal that a Plum Pudding immediately conjures in his mind.
Upon inspecting the cigar, I noticed that the pipe tobacco packed in the filler is concentrated more to one side. Not entirely, but enough to be noticeable. After lighting, the cigar began to canoe in under 2 minutes, with the side containing a heavier supply of pipe tobacco burning slower than the rest. Not the best first impression.
Those first couple minutes tasted like neither cigar nor pipe; my brain was telling me it noted hints of rubber and salt. They mellow out, mind you, but you have to endure the initial sensory confusion to find the flavor in the cigar. Once the essences caught their stride and the smoke began to actually impress me, I only had about an inch remaining and the smoke was heating up. The draw was too easy from the get-go and it burned quickly.
My assessment: I think it should have been made differently, in both content and form. Until I looked it up, due to the loose rolling and the canoeing, I'd have assumed it was machine made, though supposedly it isn't. Plum Pudding is one of the best tobaccos in the American market, and yet it was tucked into the cigar leaves of an unknown commodity and rolled too loosely. I feel like this was a mistake. You wouldn't want a waygu beef burger served on a great value bun clad in miracle whip.
I assume that this was done to try to land the SPC's sticks at under $15, but I feel like that was a mistake too. There are numerous fantastic smokes for under 15 and in all reality, it's the most competitive space in the market. I think this would be a time to analyze what companies like Ashton do: they specify and ensure quality and they demand a higher price for their curated product, while Arturo Fuente does all the cigar making. This blend needs - nay, deserves - a similar partnership to ensure that they can surround Plum Pudding with aged leaves picked just for that collaboration.
A Maduro wrapper would have better suited the flavor of the English blend therein, but so would a different rolling technique. Were it rolled more like a Hemingway Short Story (packed much tighter and nearly penciled at the lighting end), I think the draw would have been tighter, the leaf would've burned more evenly, and that if paired with the right fillers, the sensory amalgamation would've emphasized the Plum Pudding that drove so many of us to this particular stick in the first place.
As both a Plum Pudding fan and a cigar fan, I left this experience disappointed, but decidedly hopeful. This is their first crack at it, and in that regard they made something special. I can't say it's an experience I'm looking to repeat without changes being made, but it's worth having tried. For me: 3.5 on a 5 scale.
Upon inspecting the cigar, I noticed that the pipe tobacco packed in the filler is concentrated more to one side. Not entirely, but enough to be noticeable. After lighting, the cigar began to canoe in under 2 minutes, with the side containing a heavier supply of pipe tobacco burning slower than the rest. Not the best first impression.
Those first couple minutes tasted like neither cigar nor pipe; my brain was telling me it noted hints of rubber and salt. They mellow out, mind you, but you have to endure the initial sensory confusion to find the flavor in the cigar. Once the essences caught their stride and the smoke began to actually impress me, I only had about an inch remaining and the smoke was heating up. The draw was too easy from the get-go and it burned quickly.
My assessment: I think it should have been made differently, in both content and form. Until I looked it up, due to the loose rolling and the canoeing, I'd have assumed it was machine made, though supposedly it isn't. Plum Pudding is one of the best tobaccos in the American market, and yet it was tucked into the cigar leaves of an unknown commodity and rolled too loosely. I feel like this was a mistake. You wouldn't want a waygu beef burger served on a great value bun clad in miracle whip.
I assume that this was done to try to land the SPC's sticks at under $15, but I feel like that was a mistake too. There are numerous fantastic smokes for under 15 and in all reality, it's the most competitive space in the market. I think this would be a time to analyze what companies like Ashton do: they specify and ensure quality and they demand a higher price for their curated product, while Arturo Fuente does all the cigar making. This blend needs - nay, deserves - a similar partnership to ensure that they can surround Plum Pudding with aged leaves picked just for that collaboration.
A Maduro wrapper would have better suited the flavor of the English blend therein, but so would a different rolling technique. Were it rolled more like a Hemingway Short Story (packed much tighter and nearly penciled at the lighting end), I think the draw would have been tighter, the leaf would've burned more evenly, and that if paired with the right fillers, the sensory amalgamation would've emphasized the Plum Pudding that drove so many of us to this particular stick in the first place.
As both a Plum Pudding fan and a cigar fan, I left this experience disappointed, but decidedly hopeful. This is their first crack at it, and in that regard they made something special. I can't say it's an experience I'm looking to repeat without changes being made, but it's worth having tried. For me: 3.5 on a 5 scale.
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