Oct 8 2011

Pirate’s Gold Cigar à trois

Pirate’s Gold by Rolando Reyes
Wrapper: Ecuador
Filler: Dominican, Brazilian and Nicaraguan

Sizes Compared:
Diademas (7.2″ x 62) Pyramid
Box of 20 for $50
Rothschild (5.0″ x 50)
Box of 20 for $40

Executive Summary:
Rolando Reyes’ Pirate’s Gold is a great bargain every-day smoke. It’s medium in strength, quite full in taste. Taste is a dry leather with a smokey texture, and while not very harsh to the mouth, it will leave a tinge on the tongue. The aroma is primarily sweet with a very present herbal layer underneath. Both sizes do eventually match up in taste and aroma experiences. The differences lie with the Diademas having a tighter draw and lighter taste overall with a more sweeter aroma for the first half. The Rothschild carries a stronger, hot and/or peppery taste throughout the smoke and a more balanced blend of sweet & herbs in the aroma.

Overview:
I’ve had a few cigars in different sizes, ususlly the single purchase sticks come in a smaller size and when I order a batch I get a larger size. I’ve noticed that the experience is quite different from this, usually in a less-dense aroma and taste from the larger to smaller versions.

I recently ran across an article from The Stogie Guys on expanding one’s experience through smoking two of the same cigars in different sizes at the same time. Sounds like a good idea to me! So I decided to try this method on a more affordable daily smoke as a test flight. The next comparison will be with a cigar I orignally discovered the size differences with: the Hoyo De Monterry Tradicion.

The smoking experience between these two is as I originally guessed; the aroma and taste is more pronounced in the smaller version, carrying a hotter, peppery taste as a penalty. The larger cigar was much lighter at the wider diameter and thus has its aroma and taste much more dispersed. The larger size offers a more sweeter and lighter smoke, at the loss of an arguably more enjoyable density and thickness of taste and smell.

The result of this comparison really brings to light what the cigar masters take into consideration when forming the perfect size for their blends. Some cigars only come in one or two sizes from what I see, usually a torpedo variation vs. a capped end, but same ring gauge. I can only imagine the testing they do to find the perfect ring-gauge, maybe there’s a standard range of sizes that’s known to yield the best balance. A future comparison would be to try the same ring gauge at different lengths.

This is also my first detailed writeup on a cigar(s). Something I am wondering about while writing a review like this through the stages of the smoke is weather to continue a timeline approach that refers & continues the previous thought at the different stages, or write up each stage as a unique experience.

I did this test on a gorgeous October day after a healthy salad while drinking only Perrier. The sticks got the match-stick treatment. Neither cigar needed a relight and both burned evenly. The back yard smelled awesome with a very rich herbal scent lingering about.

Pre-Light:
Rothschild
Aroma – Denser aroma emitting naturally from the cigar. Aroma has a notable complexity to it, or rather a layer of aromas to it.

Diademas
Aroma – Lighter natural aroma, not very potent. Mising the sweetness that the Rothschild has to it, mosly cedar or “cigar”-igh smelling.

Initial Light:
Rothschild –
Draw – Very light and airy.
Tonguing – Tonguing the end of the cigar tastes dry.
Taste – Has a peppery bite to it, quite dry tasting and smokey.
Aroma – Very subtle sweetness, is more spicey and leathery; quite dry.
Smoke – Quickly emits a thick lingering cloud.

Diademas –
Draw – Tight while on the pigtail. Need to keep puffing to keep the pigtail from nearly going out.
Tonguing – Tonguing the end of the cigar tastes dry and bitter.
Aroma – Already emitting a powerful sweet aroma.
Taste – Not much taste coming through.
Smoke – Not much at all from the lighted end due to the small pigtail, dissapears quickly. Almost none comes from the inhaled end.

A little bit more after initial lighting:
Rothschild –
Draw – The draw is very easy and light. The smoke is mild-to-medium in thickness.
Tonguing – Light and herbal.
Taste – Dry and spicey, maybe peppery, and earthy. No sweetness for the most part.
Aroma – A nice complexity of earth, leather, sweetness & chocolate.
Smoke – Hot to the nose, best kept at a distance.

Diademas –
Draw – Finally loosened up a bit but still tigheter than the Rothschild. Even at the widest part of the cigar, the smoke drawn from the cigar is not hot.
Tonguing – The end of the cigar is strongly bitter.
Taste – As the burn nears the large bulbous part, some the sweet taste comes through. When it finally hits, the sweetness floods into the mouth.
Aroma – The aroma is all sweet, maybe some floral or herbal notes burried in it.
Smoke – Mild to light in thickness, and is not hot to the nose unless up very close.

First Third:
Rothschild –
Draw – Unchanged.
Tonguing – Unchanged.
Taste – Dry, smokey, leathery.
Aroma – Caramel like sweetness with an even herbal quality with smoke. Not as hot to sniff.
Smoke – Unchanged.

Diademas (Largest part of the 62 ring gauge) –
Draw – Tight.
Tonguing – Mellowed in intensity but still bitter and tangy.
Taste – Pretty light and easy going, nothing noticable except a smokey quality to it and the slightest hint of pepper but in no way harsh. Need to let it sit in the mouth to notice this.
Aroma – Overall very sweet but now has a noticable herbal quality to it. Not harsh or hot to the nose.
Smoke – Light to medium, dissipitates quite easily.

Half Way:
Rothschild –
Draw – Still easy and smooth.
Tonguing – Unchanged.
Taste – Dry and smokey but not as harsh after the pre-light. Has a leather tone to it now after letting it sit in the mouth, and a slight chocolate note burried deep.
Aroma – Quite complex, not as sweet as I remember when I first had these cigars compared to the Diademas. Had to walk away from the Diademas with the Rothschild to detect its sweet character. Still very herbal with a slight peppery tingle to the nose. Not very hot but still not as easy to sniff as the Diademas. The balance is very enjoyable.
Smoke – White & medium thick, hangs around a bit.

Diademas –
Draw – Tight.
Tonguing – Very bitter.
Taste – Smokey and mildly peppery, not harsh or hot.
Aroma – Still overly sweet, now has more herbal and with earthy layers introduced. The balance is quite enjoyable when holding and idling the cigar from the mouth.
Smoke – Stil fairly light. Has gotten hotter.

Final Third:
Rothschild –
Draw – Unchaged, still smooth.
Tonguing – Lightly bitter.
Taste – Quite leathery. Dry but not as smokey. Light if any pepper, not bitey or harsh.
Aroma – Warm with a more earthy, deep texture, almost meaty. A choclatey sweetness is burried under the herbal and floral layers.
Smoke – Practicing my smoke rings.

Diademas –
Draw – Not as tight as before while burning through the largest diameter initially, but as it moved along closer to the nub it got much tighter.
Tonguing – Bitter.
Taste – Peppery and smokey, but not harsh, and stays on the tongue. Leathery and earthy.
Aroma – Sweet and herbal, equal to the Rothschild in a nice balance of the layers.
Smoke – Got thicker now, comparable almost to the Rothschild.

Nub:
Rothschild –
Draw – Very easy.
Tonguing – Hot and bitter.
Taste – No longer any pepper or harshness, rich, deep and smooth.
Aroma – Warm with a distinct smoked-meat note to it with layers of deep, rich herbs. The sweetness has enveloped this and matured into a darker tone, much richer and not as chocolatey.
Smoke – Still thick, not too hot to enjoy, but you can’t bring directly under the nose or inhale into the nose too long.

Diademas –
Draw – Very tight.
Tonguing – Very bitter.
Taste – Left a harsh burn on the tip of the tongue and lips. Does have a nice deep taste to it, very leathery.
Aroma – Rich and deep with a meatyness to it. Creamy but not necessarily sweet.
Smoke – Smoke-Ring thick, not harsh or hot to the nose.