Cigars.ie

Group Tasting - Romeo y Julieta Cazadores

Our group was invited to participate in the 3rd Transnational Cigar Tasting, organised by the Russian Cigar Union, that took place on December 27th 2011. The cigar we were asked to review was the Romeo y Julieta Cazadores. Rob Fox was kind enough to share with us a box of Cazadores from December 1999.

Our meeting point was the smoking terrace of O’Neills Bar in Suffolk Street. After a quick pint and a quick cigar, we headed to the Mollie Malone statue for our group photo, as per protocol. The venue for our tasting was McGrattans Bar, on Fitzwilliam Lane, off Baggot Street. Most of us, including myself, had never been in McGrattan’s before, and we were surprised to see one of the most cozy smoking areas in Dublin. Well sheltered,  comfortable chairs, open fire and great service, Mc Grattans is now definately on our smoking venue list!

The cigars were handed out and we proceeded in lighting up. We all agreed that the Cazadores started off with flavours of spices and black pepper; a few of the cigars also seemed to have issues with the draw. While smoking in the first third the cigars settled down, with pencil wood, grass, chocolate and leather being some of the flavours we could identify. The body varied between medium to medium full throughout the whole cigar, miles apart from the full bodies powerhouse we were all expecting.

Overall we were not overly happy with the Cazadores. We all rated the cigar in the 100 scale, for an average score of 77, with the lowest score being 70 and the highest 82. A few of us pointed that their previous experience was completely different, and we agreed that the mediocre score was a result of production issues, often found in ‘99 to ‘01 productions. But despite our mean judgment, it was a fantastic evening. We all had a great time and we will be looking forward to take part in the 4th Transnational Tasting in 2012.

Some of the comments on the Cazadores:
“Initially too tight but opened up nicely after a deep cut”
“Appearance: Lovely, Predraw aroma: Chocolate, Draw: Shite!”
“Nice smoke, not the powerhouse I was  expecting”
“Not a sitting inside cigar. Best enjoyed while clay-pigeon shooting in Carlow”
“Very subtle, with black pepper, giving way to dark chocolate”
“Although the start was promising, with black pepper, it then died down”
“One dimensional  with flat flavours of wood and grass”