2008 Trinidad Reyes

I don't get much Trinidad on this spaceship.  They are JUST outside the price range I tend to roll in.  I ain't no playa'.  They are only about 10-15 dollars a box more than comparable cigars, but I have not bought Habanos in so long, it wouldn't matter if I WAS in the market to buy, I wouldn't buy them.  A friend Scott sent me a Reyes the other day, a 2011, that I have not gotten myself wound up to smoke yet.  This 08 was traded to me at the Shack Herf.  Some nice brother.

These are a little heftier than the usual perlas and minutos I smoke, likely closer to a minutos, with maybe another ring gauge 64th for good measure, and a nice pigtail cap.  It's a fairly new brand for Habanos, part of their modern-era introductions group that includes Cuaba, San Cristobal de la Habana and Vegas Robaina.  On par with the Cohiba, but less pricey...but not by much.  Certainly created to bring in a rival for Cohiba's cache' and to have another brand that gins up high revenues.  The quality is certainly consistent and the taste generally above par.  It sports a new band design from the Trinidad of the late 90's, which is good, given that the old band was a little bland, but distinctive, in plain gold with black lettering.  I am not a fan of the new logo, but it is a stylistic step up.

This little firecracker got lit after I slaved over my pond, getting it into spring shape.  A perfect draw and a mouth-watering tang, it produced an oily smoke that had hints of marzipan and citrus, with a bready, toasted tobacco core.  It gave me no trouble whatsoever in the burn or the draw.  It lasted a LOOOooong time, too.  I bet I smoked this thing for 70 minutes.  It paired up well with a Hop Wallop beer.  I never felt like I needed to increase my puff rate to keep it going, although it was quite moist for my usual smoking preference.  It stayed cool to the band ,where I let it die.  It's a shame that I have so few Trinidads on hand.  I had any number of chances to get some stock in while the getting was good, but I DO have two boxes of Robustos T and a box of 12 Fundadores, so I am at least populated with excellent cigars in the Trinidad line for the near future.  But this is a flavor I enjoy greatly, and it is a shame that I get to only smoke the expensive models to get my Trinidiad fix.

It's tough to rate the cigar, because I would bet it could have added 6-7 points as a dryer smoke.  But as it was, it was very well balanced and delicious, I score it 85 points.  It was THIS close to being what I would call perfect for a run of the mill smoke.  Too small to really be epic, all too quickly over just when you are getting jazzed about it.  But for a short time window, an excellent taste of the island.  Buy them while you can in the greatest quantity you can..