Smoked: Punch Gran Puro Nicaragua

Today I enjoyed a first-time stick, a Punch Gran Puro Nicaragua Robusto. On the smaller side in the robusto realm, at 4.875 x 48, this little gem provided a surprisingly big flavor profile. Bountiful earthiness, woodiness, spiciness, and a bit of pepper were the main notes. The retrohale was smooth with a wee bit of that pepper making itself known. Another note, believe it or not, was tobacco. As strange as that may sound, I often find that a true, pure tobacco flavor isn’t always all that present among all the other notes going on in many cigars. That pure and hearty tobacco flavor was also noticeably present in its room-note aroma. (Which my wife liked. Yay!) It was an “old fashioned” flavor and aroma with which I truly connected. There wasn’t much in the way of transition throughout its almost 5-inch length. However, that’s not always a bad thing, IMO, when you are smoking a good cigar. I sometimes find that consistent flavors, from spark-up to nub, is very nice and kind of comforting. Not always, but sometimes. Today was one of those days that I found it quite pleasant.

Burn was just about as perfect as one could want, and its draw was also in the very close to perfect category (for me, anyway). I like a “Goldilocks” draw – not too loose, and not too tight, but leaning toward the looser side. Smoke production was phenomenal.

I’m really glad I have a few more of ‘em patiently resting in my humidor.

Hear ye, hear ye! Celebrate this glorious time of year with some fine cigars, brothers and sisters, and raise those holiday spirits!

Merry Christmas and happy holidays, gang. Cheers!!!