Kind of a pricey day. Started with a Bolivar Corona Junior, which I usually love. I noticed this one was a bit squishy, but didn't think much until I lit up and it immediately started burning like a rocket. Further examination revealed that about half the stick had almost no filler -- you could flatten it like a pancake. Tossed that one. Then lit up a Tat Miami (Seleccion de Cazador) Noella. Perfect construction, but weirdly tasteless. Could barely get an aroma from it. Surprising given the reputation these have, and how much I enjoy other Tat Brown Label offerings (granted, the ones I've liked have all been Brown Label Nicaragua, not Brown Label Miami). But these were brand new to me, so maybe they just need more aging time. Or chalk it up to the vagaries of the day's elements, meteorological or bio-chemical. Regretfully tossed that one too, and then lit up a 2nd Bolivar CJ. It was a bit loosely packed too, burning on the hot and fast side, but nothing like the other, and down to the nub was a pleasant corrective.
Been reading Hacker's 'Ultimate Cigar Book,' which is great, and thinking a lot about what he says on pg. 93: "Unfortunately, in an effort to increase production, the learning curve has been dramatically accelerated in some countries and, especially in Cuba, many rollers are being given complex shapes to make after only five years' experience. This is why we sometimes get cigars that are rolled too tightly, packed too loosely, or made undersized."
Not that a petite corona is a complex shape, but I sure as hell couldn't roll one.