ManInBlack
New Member
- Joined
- Mar 12, 2009
- Messages
- 162
Padron Family Reserve No.45 Maduro
This is my first review. I am much more acquainted with CCs than I am with NCs. So, I have been making a concerted effort of late to expand my horizons in the world of NCs. After reading some of the terrific review threads here (I have particularly enjoyed the blind review threads), and after receiving some specific recommendations from CP members, I have been enjoying many new (to me) cigars. Some I have really enjoyed, others not so much. I am very quickly finding that I love the Padrons, especially the 1964 and 1926 series. So, when a nearly full box of the Family Reserve No.45 Maduro appeared in the BST thread, I jumped on it. I figured that this cigar would make a good subject for my first review.
After letting the box rest in my humidor for nearly a month, I decided to smoke one of these the other day on my front porch. I brewed myself some coffee and settled in with some reading that I had to get through last week. The construction of this cigar was what I have come to expect of the Padron 1964 and 1926 series. The cigar was box pressed and very firm throughout. There was no sponginess at all in this cigar. The wrapper was dark and without any prominent veins. Its texture was a bit coarser than some of the very smooth wrappers you see on many cigars. I have observed this slightly coarser wrapper on several Padrons that I have smoked. I do not count this as a flaw in the cigar. It just seems to be characteristic of Padrons (at least from my limited experience). When I rubbed the cigar lightly between my fingers, I could feel the oils in the wrapper. Straight out of the box, the cigar had a very appealing smell to it.
Although I have grown very accustomed to clipping my cigars with a double guillotine cutter, I have found that I prefer to punch the box pressed Padrons (except, of course, for the figurados and torpedoes). The shape of the head on these cigars seems to call for a punch rather than a clip. So, after punching the cigar, I took a pre-light draw and found it to be exactly to my liking, free with just the right amount of resistance.
My impression from the first few puffs on this cigar was of a strong tobacco flavour. It reminded me of some of the other Padrons I have smoked (especially serie 1926 #9 and #6), but it was intensified and a bit spicier. There was none of the intense peppery taste that I have found and disliked in some of the NCs that I have smoked. But, there was definitely spice in the first third of this cigar.
The second third of the cigar announced itself with a sweetness that I had not tasted in the first third. I suppose this must be the flavour that many refer to as cocoa. I was getting great amounts of smoke from the cigar that I would describe as very smooth and balanced. The spiciness of the first third subsided in the second third. I could just taste it at the end of my exhale. I was truly enjoying the cigar by this point. I have learned that what I really look for in a cigar is strong balanced flavour without any strong peppery notes. This cigar was fitting the bill to a tee!
As I started to feel the heat of the cigar on my fingers, the flavours began to build. I was again getting some of the stronger flavours of the first third of the cigar. But now they were infused with that sweetness that had developed in the second third. The cocoa flavour became more pronounced and replaced the spiciness at the end of my exhale that I had tasted during the second third of the cigar. I can tell you that I was not looking forward to reaching the end of this smoke!
By the time that my fingers simply could not take the heat any longer, I had been smoking this cigar for over an hour and a half. If you are already a fan of the Padron 1964 or 1926 series (and really, who wouldn’t be?), or if you have not yet tried them but like strong and balanced flavours in your cigars without any of the overpowering pepper that some people seem to like very much, then I would certainly encourage you to try this cigar. It is, without question, one of the best NCs that I have smoked. I have a feeling that my box will not last long at all!
This is my first review. I am much more acquainted with CCs than I am with NCs. So, I have been making a concerted effort of late to expand my horizons in the world of NCs. After reading some of the terrific review threads here (I have particularly enjoyed the blind review threads), and after receiving some specific recommendations from CP members, I have been enjoying many new (to me) cigars. Some I have really enjoyed, others not so much. I am very quickly finding that I love the Padrons, especially the 1964 and 1926 series. So, when a nearly full box of the Family Reserve No.45 Maduro appeared in the BST thread, I jumped on it. I figured that this cigar would make a good subject for my first review.
After letting the box rest in my humidor for nearly a month, I decided to smoke one of these the other day on my front porch. I brewed myself some coffee and settled in with some reading that I had to get through last week. The construction of this cigar was what I have come to expect of the Padron 1964 and 1926 series. The cigar was box pressed and very firm throughout. There was no sponginess at all in this cigar. The wrapper was dark and without any prominent veins. Its texture was a bit coarser than some of the very smooth wrappers you see on many cigars. I have observed this slightly coarser wrapper on several Padrons that I have smoked. I do not count this as a flaw in the cigar. It just seems to be characteristic of Padrons (at least from my limited experience). When I rubbed the cigar lightly between my fingers, I could feel the oils in the wrapper. Straight out of the box, the cigar had a very appealing smell to it.
Although I have grown very accustomed to clipping my cigars with a double guillotine cutter, I have found that I prefer to punch the box pressed Padrons (except, of course, for the figurados and torpedoes). The shape of the head on these cigars seems to call for a punch rather than a clip. So, after punching the cigar, I took a pre-light draw and found it to be exactly to my liking, free with just the right amount of resistance.
My impression from the first few puffs on this cigar was of a strong tobacco flavour. It reminded me of some of the other Padrons I have smoked (especially serie 1926 #9 and #6), but it was intensified and a bit spicier. There was none of the intense peppery taste that I have found and disliked in some of the NCs that I have smoked. But, there was definitely spice in the first third of this cigar.
The second third of the cigar announced itself with a sweetness that I had not tasted in the first third. I suppose this must be the flavour that many refer to as cocoa. I was getting great amounts of smoke from the cigar that I would describe as very smooth and balanced. The spiciness of the first third subsided in the second third. I could just taste it at the end of my exhale. I was truly enjoying the cigar by this point. I have learned that what I really look for in a cigar is strong balanced flavour without any strong peppery notes. This cigar was fitting the bill to a tee!
As I started to feel the heat of the cigar on my fingers, the flavours began to build. I was again getting some of the stronger flavours of the first third of the cigar. But now they were infused with that sweetness that had developed in the second third. The cocoa flavour became more pronounced and replaced the spiciness at the end of my exhale that I had tasted during the second third of the cigar. I can tell you that I was not looking forward to reaching the end of this smoke!
By the time that my fingers simply could not take the heat any longer, I had been smoking this cigar for over an hour and a half. If you are already a fan of the Padron 1964 or 1926 series (and really, who wouldn’t be?), or if you have not yet tried them but like strong and balanced flavours in your cigars without any of the overpowering pepper that some people seem to like very much, then I would certainly encourage you to try this cigar. It is, without question, one of the best NCs that I have smoked. I have a feeling that my box will not last long at all!
