This Partagas Serie D #4 comes from a Robusto sampler I bought a few years ago, so I don't know the box code, all I know is that this 4.8 inch long ring 50 cigar is at least a 2007 and possibly even older.



The wrapper is quite light colored, a bit pale even, but tough and rough looking with the veins. The aroma is quite light and smells like a barnyard. The construction feels good. I punched the cigar and the predraw is just fine, I can taste a little bit of wood.



I get a typical Cuban leather flavor with some cedar, medium full. The leather is definitely the main flavor and the flavors are a bit sticky. Halfway the leather grows a bit in strength without becoming really strong. Right after the mid part I can taste something fresh, mint like flavor trough the leather with some chocolate as an aftertaste.



After 2/3rd the flavors get a bit stronger, now it's finally the powerhouse that everybody claims it is. The texture is mild creamy and I can also taste a little bit of pepper. Near the end the cedar wood returns in combination with the pepper and the never fading leather.



The smoke is thin and the amount of smoke is a bit poor too, even though the amount of smoke grows a bit after a third, but it remained below the levels that I love to see while smoking. The ash is quite dark and both the burn and draw are fine. Near the end the burn got a bit crooked. This cigar is full flavored but not as full bodied as I expected. I purged the cigar near the end but got no flame at all, the cigar was very clean.



Would I buy this cigar again? Yes. I was never impressed by the Partagas Serie D #4 but I have to change my opinion, this stick was awesome.

Appearance: 7 / 10
Construction: 7 / 10
Draw: 6 / 10
Burn: 7 / 10
Smoke & ash: 5 / 10
Aroma first part: 7 / 10
Aroma second part: 8 / 10
Aroma third part: 8 / 10

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Only one box of these cigars made it to The Netherlands, as Compaenen, a buyer's combine, wanted to see how these cigars would do in The Netherlands. It so happens that the box ended up at my favorite B&M in Amsterdam, Hartman Cigars & More, and they go for 5,60 a stick.



This is a thin cigar, with a 28 ring but still 6 1/2 inch long. The cigar has hardly no aroma. The band is very nice and there is a protective band on the foot as well. The wrapper is nice & light colored. There aren't many veins, just some spots. The cigar feels a bit hard. As this cigar is too thin to punch I took out my Palio and cut the thing. The predraw is tasteless but has the right resistance.



I can taste a quite strong coffee flavor with a hint of hay and something musty, but not unpleasant. The feeling is quite dry though. The coffee and the mustiness disappear after a few puffs and I can taste hay with chocolate and a bit of pepper on my tongue.



The chocolate disappears and I am left with a peppery hay flavor. Near the middle the pepper gets stronger and slowly becomes the dominant flavor. Near the end the hay slowly gets replaced by a wood flavor to support the pepper.



The cigar produces a lot of smoke, which is reasonably thick. The ash is light colored. The burn is straight but the cigar has a tendency to go out quickly. I would call this a full flavored medium bodied cigar.



Would I buy this cigar again? I think so, this is a very nice cigar.

Appearance: 8 / 10
Construction: 7 / 10
Draw: 7 / 10
Burn: 7 / 10
Smoke & ash: 8 / 10
Aroma first part: 7 / 10
Aroma second part: 7 / 10
Aroma third part: 8 / 10

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At the first day of the most recent Amsterdam herf, the owner of the B&M that hosted the herf, Hartman Cigars, handed me two C.A.O. La Traviata divinos that she got from a representative to try. The La Traviata isn't for sale in The Netherlands yet, but will be soon.



This 5 x 50 robusto comes wrapped in cellophane and looks quite nice, the band is tasteful with warm colors. The Ecuadorian habano wrapper is smooth, oily and shiny with a lot of small veins. The other tobaccos used to create this cigar are a Cameroon binder and a filler from Nicaraguan and Dominican tobacco.



The construction feels good and the cigar has a pretty strong aroma. The aroma reminds me of a barnyard. I punched the cigar and got a predraw that was to my liking, not too loose, not too hard. I could taste raisin which was a little spicy.



I can taste a spicy but muddy coffee flavor and after about a quarter of an inch I can also taste some wood while the muddy flavor fades away. The cigar gets better by the puff. The coffee fades away too, wood becomes the dominant flavor and the texture of the smoke in my mouth is a bit creamy.



The flavors don't really progress a lot, but I like what I taste. Once I passed the middle point of the cigar a mild nut flavor joins the wood for a while but it disappears near the end. At the end I can taste some pepper through the wood.



The cigar produces a lot of thick white smoke and very light colored ash, almost white. The draw and burn on this stick are great. I got a full flavor but strength wise I would rate it medium bodied. It lasted 75 minutes before I burned my fingers on the nub.



Would I buy this cigar again? Yes. I never had a C.A.O. I liked before and even though I heard good stuff about the La Traviata I was skeptic, but the cigar surprised me pleasantly.

Appearance: 8 / 10
Construction: 8 / 10
Draw: 7 / 10
Burn: 7 / 10
Smoke & ash: 8 / 10
Aroma first part: 7 / 10
Aroma second part: 7 / 10
Aroma third part: 8 / 10

0 Comments

I got this cigar at Hartman cigars in Amsterdam and this is the only shop where these cigars are available in The Netherlands. They are sold in Germany and brought to The Netherlands by a corporation of tobacconists to see if they would do good on the Dutch market. These cigars have a price tag of 3 euro.



This cellophane wrapped cigar is 6 1/2 inch long with a 28 ring. The cigar has a mild hay aroma and a light colored silky wrapper with minor veins. The band is unclear, I couldn't read the brand name or anything else. The predraw is fine and revealed a mild dry wood flavor.



I can taste coffee and wood, and with more strength than I expected. The wood is the dominant flavor and the coffee disappears after a few puffs. The flavor is less full then right at the start.



After an inch and a half I get a little bit of milky chocolate as supporting flavor but that disappears soon. The wood changed in hay without me noticing it.



The smoke that I get from this cigar is fairly thick and I get lots of it. The draw is fine and the pepper & salt ash is nice and compact. The burn is great too. I would rate this cigar medium bodied medium flavored.



Would I buy this cigar again? Yeah, why not? They are cheap, not bad and quite relaxing to smoke

Appearance: 6 / 10
Construction: 7 / 10
Draw: 7 / 10
Burn: 8 / 10
Smoke & ash: 8 / 10
Aroma first part: 7 / 10
Aroma second part: 6 / 10
Aroma third part: 6 / 10

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This 5 x 48 Nicaraguan cigar isn't available on the Dutch market, except for one shop in Amsterdam. They got a few boxes from Germany when their coorporation was looking for cigars to release on the Dutch market as a try out. The cigar has a pricetag of 3 euro.



The cigar, wrapped in cellophane, has a good construction and a pale wrapper with a big vein. The band is simple and is a Partagas lookalike. The cigar smells like hay, wood and a little bit of chocolate.



I can taste a little musty hay flavor with a little bit of pepper on the background. The musty flavor fades away after a few puffs and the pepper gets a bit stronger. After half an inch I get a metallic flavor and after an inch I can taste dry hay with wood, the pepper is gone.



Halfway I can no longer taste the metallic flavor and the pepper returns. A few puffs more and I can taste chocolate and the pepper gets stronger. The texture is quite dry. The hay gains some power too. At the end the chocolate disappears and the pepper gains more power.



The draw is a bit too hard and I think that is the reason I only get a little bit of smoke, although it gets better the further the cigar is smoked. The smoke is also kind of thin. The band is a Partagas rip off. The ash is quite light but with dark spots and quite firm. This little medium bodied medium flavored cigar didn't last me an hour and the smoke had a strange chocolate smell to it.



Would I buy this cigar again? Yeah, just a few. If you want a cheap, simple cigar to kill some time, this is a cigar I would grab.

Appearance: 6 / 10
Construction: 7 / 10
Draw: 6 / 10
Burn: 7 / 10
Smoke & ash: 7 / 10
Aroma first part: 6 / 10
Aroma second part: 6 / 10
Aroma third part: 7 / 10

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