Monday, August 02 2010
Among the attendees at the recent Famous Smoke Shop Cigar Expo 2010 were Flor De Gonzalez Cigars. And among the cigars they handed out was their new 90 Miles selection. I was given a couple of 90 Miles Churchills by Yadi Gonzalez and promised her I'd review sometime before the upcoming IPCPR trade show. So here goes…
The 90 Miles Churchill weighs-in at 7" x 48. Made in Nicaragua, the blend consists of an all-Nicaraguan longfiller core with a Rosado-hued Habano wrapper grown in Ecuador.
The wrapper was a bit veiny with only one obvious protruder, but it had a nice healthy sheen overall. The cap clipped off cleanly in a perfectly round circle.
The
draw was good at the start but could have been just a tad easier. It loosened up some very quickly, so this aspect was pretty much a non-issue. During the pre-light, the cold draw had an appealing nutty-malty flavor.
I toasted the cigar with a torch, followed by a cedar spill (for some reason I've gotten into this method of lighting lately), and the cigar lit perfectly.
The first puff tasted of sweet tobacco with a little nutmeg in the mix. The smoke was very creamy and mild in this early stage.
As I smoked through the first couple of inches the ash was very firm and hung on well. At this point the smoke had become more medium in body and a little sweeter, too. When the ash finally dropped off it revealed a perfect cherry cone that remained consistent throughout.
Moving into the midsection, the smoke became much more earthy, woody and creamy with a note of white pepper on a semi-sweet finish.
In the last third the flavors and strength really amped-up offering a little more pepper in the mix and a hint of bitterness. I usually expect long cigars to build up more tars and resins. That said, it finished up without any significant bitterness. Blowing through the cigar helped keep it in check, too. (See our survey question on blowing out through a cigar.)
I paired the cigar with coffee and found it to be a well-balanced smoke with enough complexity to keep me interested. That said, I would really like to smoke this cigar with a good Port.
For me, the 90 Miles Churchill is the most impressive Flor De Gonzalez since the release of their 15th Anniversary cigars. This is a solid, full-flavored, medium-bodied cigar that I believe will improve even more with some additional months of home aging.
~ Gary Korb
