Gurkha Grand Age perfecto
$3 (CBid), Size: 6", Ring: 60
Cameroon wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, Nicaraguan and Peruvian fillers
The Grand Age is proclaimed as Gurkha's first cigar with a Cameroon wrapper, and this wrapper's a beauty: Dark, glossy, and some veins, with an aroma of wood and coffee. While smoking, the burn needed fixing a couple times, but the ash was solid and silvery, dropping after 2 inches. The smoke was thick and lush.
The cigar sprang to life immediately, with warm and spicy wood flavors at the start, similar to a Cusano CC. After the first inch, a leathery undertone arrived and stayed for the rest of the smoke. Hints of roast red peppers came in mid-cigar, then mellowed again to the basic wood-leather flavor (similar to an Indian Tabac Cameroon Legend). The last third brought a spicy ligero flavor to the fore. This was a tasty cigar.
Alas, there were some problems from the outset, mainly dealing with the aforementioned Cameroon wrapper. My cigar was split near the cap before cutting, and the problems got worse. After cutting, a section of wrapper, near the cap, split off, leaving the binder showing. I was able to position my lips enough while drawing on the cigar to alleviate some of the problems.
Then, one-third into the cigar, the wrapper started splitting and flaking in other areas. I tried to moisten the wrapper more around those areas to keep the wrapper from completely flaking off. As the smoke went on, the cigar's wrapper gradually deteriorated, splitting and cracking, until, in the final third, I had sizable fissures in the cigar, enough to kill the draw and end the smoke. I had to give it up almost an inch earlier than I would have liked.
Sometimes, bad things happen to good cigars. It's doubly hard when it happens to an expensive cigar, even if you get it cheap. It may have been comical to watch me struggle to keep this cigar together long enough to smoke it, but the flavors were well worth the effort. I'd love to try this one again, if it will have me.
Update, 1/13/08 : The next Grand Age I smoked was fine, construction-wise. I believe the difference was dry-boxing it for a couple days prior to smoking. And it was still delicious!
Velvet Cigar smoked a Grand Age in May 2007.
Showing posts with label Gurkha. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gurkha. Show all posts
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Friday, December 7, 2007
Sherpa Founder's Choice 2002
Sherpa Founder's Choice 2002 toro
$13/5 pk., Size: 6", Ring: 50
Sumatran wrapper, Dominican binder, Nicaraguan filler.
I must admit, I had some expectations of this cigar: It's a Gurkha sub-brand, it's made by Carlos Toraño, it should be good. The wrapper was a tawny color, smooth, but telegraphing some serious veins, and a pre-light sniff was greeted with the smell of dry grass.
I punched away 60% of the cap, and did a quick draw test. The Sherpa has the loosest draw I've had yet, like the cigar wasn't even there. So, I whipped out the Quantum to get it toasting, and the cigar obliged quickly and politely.
The first inch was harsh and grassy, with some hints of grass and a medium grassy finish. I was being mindful not to pull too hard, given that the draw was so loose, and still got some harshness. After the first inch, the flavor rounded off a bit to a smooth grass flavor, with an aftertaste of lawn clippings. I think you get the picture.
So, I'm an inch and a half into the cigar, and I decide that, like a true Sherpa, I would finish the journey. Just for you, dear reader. No sacrifice is too great.
Alas, just as I was getting to the two-inch point, the cigar extinguished itself. It hadn't even dropped ash yet. So, I took it as a sign of God's infinite mercy and let it be.
As I was squeezing and rolling the cigar, to get the band off, the wrapper flaked off into oblivion. So, I decided to do a little post-mortem on the extinguished Sherpa. Contrary to the predominant flavoring, I can attest to there being tobacco in the cigar, as well as some long, hard, twig-like stems. I just chucked the corpse after the autopsy, band and all.
Somewhere, out there, is a man who loves a grassy cigar. All I can say is, "Buddy, the Sherpa is just for you."
$13/5 pk., Size: 6", Ring: 50
Sumatran wrapper, Dominican binder, Nicaraguan filler.
I must admit, I had some expectations of this cigar: It's a Gurkha sub-brand, it's made by Carlos Toraño, it should be good. The wrapper was a tawny color, smooth, but telegraphing some serious veins, and a pre-light sniff was greeted with the smell of dry grass.
I punched away 60% of the cap, and did a quick draw test. The Sherpa has the loosest draw I've had yet, like the cigar wasn't even there. So, I whipped out the Quantum to get it toasting, and the cigar obliged quickly and politely.
The first inch was harsh and grassy, with some hints of grass and a medium grassy finish. I was being mindful not to pull too hard, given that the draw was so loose, and still got some harshness. After the first inch, the flavor rounded off a bit to a smooth grass flavor, with an aftertaste of lawn clippings. I think you get the picture.
So, I'm an inch and a half into the cigar, and I decide that, like a true Sherpa, I would finish the journey. Just for you, dear reader. No sacrifice is too great.
Alas, just as I was getting to the two-inch point, the cigar extinguished itself. It hadn't even dropped ash yet. So, I took it as a sign of God's infinite mercy and let it be.
As I was squeezing and rolling the cigar, to get the band off, the wrapper flaked off into oblivion. So, I decided to do a little post-mortem on the extinguished Sherpa. Contrary to the predominant flavoring, I can attest to there being tobacco in the cigar, as well as some long, hard, twig-like stems. I just chucked the corpse after the autopsy, band and all.
Somewhere, out there, is a man who loves a grassy cigar. All I can say is, "Buddy, the Sherpa is just for you."
Monday, November 26, 2007
Gurkha G-Series, Blend no. 44
Gurkha G-Series, Blend no. 44 cigarello
$16 for a tin of 10, Size: 4", Ring: 24ish
It's getting cold outside, so it's time to look for quicker smokes. I found a tin of these Gurkha cigarellos at the local shop and decided to give them a shot. These are long-filler, which isn't quite a challenge for such a short cigar.
The first one out of the tin had a draw tighter than slurping a milkshake through a coffee stirrer. The inch I smoked before abandoning hope was nicely flavored, medium-bodied with cedar and cocoa notes and subtle spice. The second cigarello from the tin was as tight as the first, even after a light massage and poking through it with an unwound paperclip. I smoked about an inch of it before giving up. 'Tis a shame, as it was a flavorful smoke, what little I could get.
The third time's a charm, and finally got one out of the tin that would draw. It's a nice-bodied, robust smoke that lasts about 20 - 30 minutes.
$16 for a tin of 10, Size: 4", Ring: 24ish
It's getting cold outside, so it's time to look for quicker smokes. I found a tin of these Gurkha cigarellos at the local shop and decided to give them a shot. These are long-filler, which isn't quite a challenge for such a short cigar.
The first one out of the tin had a draw tighter than slurping a milkshake through a coffee stirrer. The inch I smoked before abandoning hope was nicely flavored, medium-bodied with cedar and cocoa notes and subtle spice. The second cigarello from the tin was as tight as the first, even after a light massage and poking through it with an unwound paperclip. I smoked about an inch of it before giving up. 'Tis a shame, as it was a flavorful smoke, what little I could get.
The third time's a charm, and finally got one out of the tin that would draw. It's a nice-bodied, robust smoke that lasts about 20 - 30 minutes.
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