I took AVB up on the offer he posted for the 3-pak of the new K. Hansotia blends and was able to smoke each one over the weekend. Each pack came with one each of the Symphony Robusto (6x50), Signature “101” (7.1x54), and Gold Collectors Edition (7.1x52). On Saturday night things were quiet so I decided to smoke the Symphony. The wrapper on this cigar was very delicate looking, the Connecticut shade leaf was finely veined and looked as if just touching it would split. The cigar had a creamy taste through the first inch or so and then the flavor kicked in. It had a slightly spicy taste with earthy undertones that lasted throughout the remainder of the smoke. The burn was even till the end and never needed a touch up and the ash was firm and white and the draw was effortless. I really enjoyed this cigar and smoked it to the point where I could not hold it any longer it was one of those smokes that you don’t want to end.
Sunday night I tried the Gold Collectors Edition. The cigar had a dark Connecticut shade wrapper and was heavier veined than the symphony it was well constructed and had a smooth draw. The burn needed to be touched up only once and I think if I had just let it go it would have straightened itself out. The cigar started out with a very light pepper taste with traces of cedar (cigar was wrapped with cedar) as it progressed the pepper taste balanced out with strong earthy flavors. The ash was firm and held on for a good 2 inches before falling off.
On Monday I lit up the Signature. If you smoke one of these make sure you have some time on your hands this thing was very slow burning almost to the point where I thought it had gone out. It has a dark oily maduro wrapper and seemed to be very well constructed. When I first lit this cigar it didn’t produce a lot of smoke even though the draw seemed good and there wasn’t as much flavor as there had been with the Collectors Edition but after about one inch the flavor took off. It was hard to pinpoint any one flavor, you could detect hints of pepper, leather, cedar and a slight nuttiness. It burned uneven for a while but then evened itself out and stayed that way until the end. The ash was dark and firm and it had a very good draw producing large amounts of smoke.
Having never had anything from this line I was surprised at how much I enjoyed these cigars and would have to say that of the three the Symphony was my favorite followed by the Signature. All were constructed well and the pre light aroma of both the symphony and the signature reminded me of a Monte #2. I would recommend any one of these.
Sunday night I tried the Gold Collectors Edition. The cigar had a dark Connecticut shade wrapper and was heavier veined than the symphony it was well constructed and had a smooth draw. The burn needed to be touched up only once and I think if I had just let it go it would have straightened itself out. The cigar started out with a very light pepper taste with traces of cedar (cigar was wrapped with cedar) as it progressed the pepper taste balanced out with strong earthy flavors. The ash was firm and held on for a good 2 inches before falling off.
On Monday I lit up the Signature. If you smoke one of these make sure you have some time on your hands this thing was very slow burning almost to the point where I thought it had gone out. It has a dark oily maduro wrapper and seemed to be very well constructed. When I first lit this cigar it didn’t produce a lot of smoke even though the draw seemed good and there wasn’t as much flavor as there had been with the Collectors Edition but after about one inch the flavor took off. It was hard to pinpoint any one flavor, you could detect hints of pepper, leather, cedar and a slight nuttiness. It burned uneven for a while but then evened itself out and stayed that way until the end. The ash was dark and firm and it had a very good draw producing large amounts of smoke.
Having never had anything from this line I was surprised at how much I enjoyed these cigars and would have to say that of the three the Symphony was my favorite followed by the Signature. All were constructed well and the pre light aroma of both the symphony and the signature reminded me of a Monte #2. I would recommend any one of these.
I'm partial to the Signature myself but it does take a long time to smoke. I had a Symphony last night myself which only confirmed I have to get more of all 3