Padron Family Reserve 45 Years
To finish up the new years weekend, I dug out today’s review. I believe this is available in a natural or maduro wrapper. Ed had the maduro version, so that is what I bought a couple months ago. Just like the other high end Padron cigars, this one is definitely priced out of my daily smoke rotation. With the high price comes high expectations. Let’s see how this Padron rates.
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder & Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: 6 x 52
Price: $26.00
Pre-Smoke & Construction:
The dark maduro wrapper almost looked like dark chocolate. It had a few wrinkles and small veins here and there, but overall looked great. The wrapper and foot had a very slight sweet odor. When squeezing the cigar from head to foot, it was very firm and consistent. Despite this, the draw was perfect and had a slight sweet earthy taste.
The burn required a couple corrections in the first and second third. The ash held for about an inch.
Flavor:
The first third greeted me with a smooth sweetness. Despite the smoothness, I could feel that Nicaraguan bite just as well. An espresso/coffee type of flavor joined in with a sweet spice. Under it all were very slight earthy notes. As I dug further into this third, the sweetness revealed itself as a cocoa flavor. The smoke feel became a little thicker and took on a slightly creamy feel. Very nice…
The second third maintained a very similar flavor profile to the first third. A cocoa flavor mixed with espresso or coffee were in the front. A smooth peppery spice was detected when passing the smoke though the nose. The earthy undertones almost went away. Every now and then I picked up on them though.
The last third changed up a little bit. Espresso dominated the flavor profile, with the cocoa following behind. The body and strength increased and packed a small punch. The Nicaraguan spice was in full effect, but it was very smooth.
Conclusion:
First the good: This was a very good full bodied cigar. Overall the flavors were very refined and enjoyable. The bad: The initial burn corrections were a little annoying, and not characteristic of Padron. My other complaint is the price. At $26.00 a stick, I simply don’t think it’s worth it.
In the end, this was a really good refined cigar. Price aside, I think this is worth trying.
This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 5th, 2010 at 12:00 am and is filed under Cigar Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Mike - KnightRid January 5th, 2010 at 9:30 am
Nice review. I agree with Luke. I have never had one myself just because of the price! I cant see how manufacturers can justify some of these prices considering what is out there right now and with the economy the way it is. I know tons of people enjoy them, but I know I dont have the money to buy even a couple, let alone a box
Mike
That said, I do want to try one someday.