Just like in Highlander, there can be only one. And that one could very well be the Por Larrañaga Magnifico.
It has been called "The most beautiful cigar in the world", and I certainly agree with that sentiment. Specially produced in 2007 for Hunters & Frankau, the U.K. agent for Cuban cigars, it is a replica of the famous Por Larrañaga Magnum (albeit 2mm shorter). The original Magnum is thought (by those who know more then I do) to be the greatest cigars ever made, all the way until it ceased production in the '70s.
A man by the name of Simon Chase (marketing director of Hunters & Frankau store in the U.K.) decided to bring the Por Larrañaga Magnum back to life in the form of a "Regional Edition" (which as you may or may not know, are all the rage in Cuban cigars at the moment).
There was just one tiny problem.
Chase could not use the name "Magnum" because H. Upmann was already using it on their Magnum 48s and Magnum 50 (Edicion Limitada 2005). So, he was forced to use the slightly less historic (but slightly more pretentious) "Magnifico".
Only 1,400 numbered boxes were produced (1,000 10 count boxes and 400 25 count boxes), and the stunning gold leaf bands are a replica of one used by Por Larrañaga almost 100 years ago. (Although there are some rumblings that there may have been a "Second Release" of 100 more humidors of 50 making 5000 more cigars...I have not been able to confirm that has of yet).
So, lets get to it, shall we?
* Country of Origin: Cuba
* Wrapper: Cuba
* Binder: Cuba
* Filler: Cuba
* Size: 6.75 Inches (Double Robusto)
* Ring Gauge: 50
* Est. Price: $35.00 (MSRP-if you can find them at all)
As mentioned above, the gold leaf band with raised lettering on this cigar is quite simply the best I have ever seen. In fact, it is not even close. The wrapper is a (ahem) golden brown, and if gold had a smell, I bet it would smell like this wrapper. Unfortunately, gold does not have a smell (that I know of) so it had to settle for smelling like Cinnamon and chocolate, with a hint of pepper...
After lighting the cigar, there was an intense amount of pepper for about 20 puffs, but after that, it calmed considerably...Then other flavors started coming through...Oak, earth, and that wonderful Cuban Sweetness that is so hard to describe, but so easy to detect...
At the start of the 2nd Third, the pepper calmed down even more, and I started getting a great floral taste, which combined with the creamy oak to produce an absolutely HEAVENLY taste...it lasted for almost the entire 2nd third, but suddenly turned bitter for about 10 puffs, then went back to the aforementioned taste...very odd, but I was just happy to get the flavor back...
The last third was was about the creamy finish...just great flavors of oak, creamy sweetness and pepper that continued until the very end...no harshness at all, even at the nub, and it had one of the better finishes I have tasted in a while...interestingly, the floral taste disappeared after about the end of the 2nd third, and never came back...
Final Notes:
* The stick turned a bit bitter in the 2nd 3rd for about 10 puffs, then went away totally...I can only chalk that up to the youth of the cigar...
* The final smoking time was one hour and 52 minutes...
* The draw was wonderful all the way through, but the burn was just ok...I had to touch it up a few times during the smoke, but nothing major...
* The wrapper was a bit odd in that it had small bumps running down the lenth of the cigar...did not hurt anything, but I did notice it...
The Bottom Line: This is probably one of the best tasting "young" cuban cigars I have had...It definitely needs time to develop, but even now you can taste the quality and the potential for greatness. I predict in 5 years, people will be naming this cigar as one of the best in the past half decade. And if you run across one (or more) of them in the future, do NOT hesitate to buy (ALMOST regardless of price)...this stick embodies everything great about cigars.
Final Score: 93
It has been called "The most beautiful cigar in the world", and I certainly agree with that sentiment. Specially produced in 2007 for Hunters & Frankau, the U.K. agent for Cuban cigars, it is a replica of the famous Por Larrañaga Magnum (albeit 2mm shorter). The original Magnum is thought (by those who know more then I do) to be the greatest cigars ever made, all the way until it ceased production in the '70s.
A man by the name of Simon Chase (marketing director of Hunters & Frankau store in the U.K.) decided to bring the Por Larrañaga Magnum back to life in the form of a "Regional Edition" (which as you may or may not know, are all the rage in Cuban cigars at the moment).
There was just one tiny problem.
Chase could not use the name "Magnum" because H. Upmann was already using it on their Magnum 48s and Magnum 50 (Edicion Limitada 2005). So, he was forced to use the slightly less historic (but slightly more pretentious) "Magnifico".
Only 1,400 numbered boxes were produced (1,000 10 count boxes and 400 25 count boxes), and the stunning gold leaf bands are a replica of one used by Por Larrañaga almost 100 years ago. (Although there are some rumblings that there may have been a "Second Release" of 100 more humidors of 50 making 5000 more cigars...I have not been able to confirm that has of yet).
So, lets get to it, shall we?
* Country of Origin: Cuba
* Wrapper: Cuba
* Binder: Cuba
* Filler: Cuba
* Size: 6.75 Inches (Double Robusto)
* Ring Gauge: 50
* Est. Price: $35.00 (MSRP-if you can find them at all)
As mentioned above, the gold leaf band with raised lettering on this cigar is quite simply the best I have ever seen. In fact, it is not even close. The wrapper is a (ahem) golden brown, and if gold had a smell, I bet it would smell like this wrapper. Unfortunately, gold does not have a smell (that I know of) so it had to settle for smelling like Cinnamon and chocolate, with a hint of pepper...
After lighting the cigar, there was an intense amount of pepper for about 20 puffs, but after that, it calmed considerably...Then other flavors started coming through...Oak, earth, and that wonderful Cuban Sweetness that is so hard to describe, but so easy to detect...
At the start of the 2nd Third, the pepper calmed down even more, and I started getting a great floral taste, which combined with the creamy oak to produce an absolutely HEAVENLY taste...it lasted for almost the entire 2nd third, but suddenly turned bitter for about 10 puffs, then went back to the aforementioned taste...very odd, but I was just happy to get the flavor back...
The last third was was about the creamy finish...just great flavors of oak, creamy sweetness and pepper that continued until the very end...no harshness at all, even at the nub, and it had one of the better finishes I have tasted in a while...interestingly, the floral taste disappeared after about the end of the 2nd third, and never came back...
Final Notes:
* The stick turned a bit bitter in the 2nd 3rd for about 10 puffs, then went away totally...I can only chalk that up to the youth of the cigar...
* The final smoking time was one hour and 52 minutes...
* The draw was wonderful all the way through, but the burn was just ok...I had to touch it up a few times during the smoke, but nothing major...
* The wrapper was a bit odd in that it had small bumps running down the lenth of the cigar...did not hurt anything, but I did notice it...
The Bottom Line: This is probably one of the best tasting "young" cuban cigars I have had...It definitely needs time to develop, but even now you can taste the quality and the potential for greatness. I predict in 5 years, people will be naming this cigar as one of the best in the past half decade. And if you run across one (or more) of them in the future, do NOT hesitate to buy (ALMOST regardless of price)...this stick embodies everything great about cigars.
Final Score: 93
