DPG Blue vs Padilla Miami vs Ruination

ZAP

I think these all are in the same category for smokes and would love to hear opinions on how they match up in your view.

Personally I like Don Pepin Garcia Blue much, much better than the other two.  This is a quality, quality smoke...great draw...great smoke plumes...excellent taste...never gets harsh...spicy, but sweet in points..smoked to the nub.  Heavy hitter..Have had it twice...once two years ago and then today again...same exact impressions which is impressive

My second choice would be Ruination.  I like it enough but never seem to get the same impression others do.  Well made and a nice flavor...good strength...just doesn't wow me..I've had probably 4 or 5 of these over the last two years...

Third by a long distance for me is Padilla Miami...I've had this five times over the course of a couple years and really want to like it but every time I get a really harsh ashy flavor to it...(at least that's how I describe it)...not poorly made but not in the same league as the DPG Blue....

That's how I see it...how about you and would you agree these would fit in the same category of premium smokes?

gaberox

I would hesitate to lump these together based on wrapper difference alone. The habano wrapper on the ruiny to me gives that habano spicy/sweet profile.

DPG blue with its corojo oscuro to me has darker flavors, more cocoa, dark tobacco and that taste that I can only describe as DPG corojo. In my book Pepin is king of corojo.

Now Ive only had a few Miamis but I would compare it more to the Mi Barrio. Its salty and spicy also kinda dry on the finish but pretty rich. Maybe a little nutty as well.

Thats my take Im sure others may see it different. Oh and Ive had tons of blues and ruinys in my life.

dennisking

Three drastically different cigars in my opinion. Its funny how a palate can differ from person to person.

BigT06

I agree that the 3 are very different in terms of flavor profiles. I guess if you are new to full bodied cigars, or do not smoke them daily, the strength of the cigars alone may make your mind relate them...? Personally I like all 3, but I love the Ruination. The Ruination is, in my opinion, also a much fuller bodied cigar than the other 2... but it may feel that way to me because I like the taste of it so much that I smoke it a little faster than I do the Miami or DPG Blue, and I retrohale at least 75% of the smoke... In their own ways, all 3 of these sticks are marvelous. If you like the DPG Blue, try the DPG Black (also called the Cuban Classic). In my mind, the Black actually more closely resembles the flavor profile of the Ruination than the Blue does.... IMHO. It really is funny how people smoking the same sticks can have such different impressions of them.

martymcg43

if anything i'd say the Padilla 1932 is closer to the flavor profile of the DPG Blue, as well as maybe a Tatuaje Havana VI....

ZAP

Yeah..I guess I was comparing them as relatively the same type of strength cigars...how would you classify the taste differences in your opinion....I really do like the DPG Blue a lot and would be interested in others along those lines...

BigT06:

I agree that the 3 are very different in terms of flavor profiles. I guess if you are new to full bodied cigars, or do not smoke them daily, the strength of the cigars alone may make your mind relate them...? Personally I like all 3, but I love the Ruination. The Ruination is, in my opinion, also a much fuller bodied cigar than the other 2... but it may feel that way to me because I like the taste of it so much that I smoke it a little faster than I do the Miami or DPG Blue, and I retrohale at least 75% of the smoke... In their own ways, all 3 of these sticks are marvelous. If you like the DPG Blue, try the DPG Black (also called the Cuban Classic). In my mind, the Black actually more closely resembles the flavor profile of the Ruination than the Blue does.... IMHO. It really is funny how people smoking the same sticks can have such different impressions of them.

BigT06

For me, the differences are in the overall experience. The Padilla Miami is a very smooth cigar with ample pepper and spice, but the complexities in the cigar are more subtle, and the dominant taste of leather and almonds and the subtle spice kick continue for the duration of the cigar. With the MOW Ruination it's a totally different story. The cigar makes huge transitions where the dominant flavor actually changes every inch or so, but the cigar always maintains a ton of zest with spices that linger from draw to finish. It's a more aggressive cigar. The DPG Blue, to me, tastes the sweetest. Like all full bodied cigars from Pepin, the Blue does have some pepper and spice, but it also has a salty finish with a lot of sweetness not found in the Miami or Ruination. All three of the sticks will have notes of nuts, pepper, cocoa, and coffee, but it's in the way that they deliver the tastes and strengths that separate the experience you will get from each stick.

fla-gypsy

We are all different, I would rate the DPG Blue under the other two in terms of smoking pleasure

ZAP

Perhaps it is that sweeter, saltiness of the DPG that I enjoy....any other sticks similar?

BigT06:

For me, the differences are in the overall experience. The Padilla Miami is a very smooth cigar with ample pepper and spice, but the complexities in the cigar are more subtle, and the dominant taste of leather and almonds and the subtle spice kick continue for the duration of the cigar. With the MOW Ruination it's a totally different story. The cigar makes huge transitions where the dominant flavor actually changes every inch or so, but the cigar always maintains a ton of zest with spices that linger from draw to finish. It's a more aggressive cigar. The DPG Blue, to me, tastes the sweetest. Like all full bodied cigars from Pepin, the Blue does have some pepper and spice, but it also has a salty finish with a lot of sweetness not found in the Miami or Ruination. All three of the sticks will have notes of nuts, pepper, cocoa, and coffee, but it's in the way that they deliver the tastes and strengths that separate the experience you will get from each stick.

BigT06

ZAP:

Perhaps it is that sweeter, saltiness of the DPG that I enjoy....any other sticks similar?

BigT06:

For me, the differences are in the overall experience. The Padilla Miami is a very smooth cigar with ample pepper and spice, but the complexities in the cigar are more subtle, and the dominant taste of leather and almonds and the subtle spice kick continue for the duration of the cigar. With the MOW Ruination it's a totally different story. The cigar makes huge transitions where the dominant flavor actually changes every inch or so, but the cigar always maintains a ton of zest with spices that linger from draw to finish. It's a more aggressive cigar. The DPG Blue, to me, tastes the sweetest. Like all full bodied cigars from Pepin, the Blue does have some pepper and spice, but it also has a salty finish with a lot of sweetness not found in the Miami or Ruination. All three of the sticks will have notes of nuts, pepper, cocoa, and coffee, but it's in the way that they deliver the tastes and strengths that separate the experience you will get from each stick.

There are many sticks with sweetness and salty notes. Honestly, there are too many to list in a simple post... you can, however, search "cigars with sweet and salty taste notes" (or something to that effect) in google and get some good examples. Personally, my favorite cigar with distinct sweetness and some saltiness is the Tatuaje Havana VI.

BigT06

Oh... and just a side note... Don Pepin blends a lot of cigars with similar, yet complex flavors. And I do NOT mean that to say that he blends "repeats" or anything negative at all. He is easily in my top 3 blenders in the world. What I mean, is that if you like his stuff, call Tim the Beard (or any other qualified ccom staff, of which there are many) and ask him to put you together a DGP sampler. Or you can always just go with one of the premade DPG samplers that ccom carries... but they typically sell out pretty fast, so if you want a standard sampler, buy it quickly.

BigT06

And lastly... lol.... some other blenders that you may want to do some researching on are: AJ Fernandez, Nestor Plasencia, Guillermo (and George) Rico, Ernesto Padilla, and Abe Flores. There are about a billion cigars between them that will suit your palate.

bigharpoon

Choosing a hierarchy between Padilla Miami, DPG Blue and MOW Ruination is like ranking kids in order of how much you love them. These are three of my all-time favorite smokes, but they are all very different.

The Miami is more consistent from start to finish with a red pepper spice and leather flavor that dominates. The Ruination has more of a black pepper spice and sweetness that comes and goes and has many subtle changes throughout the cigar. The Blue is almost like two cigars inside one wrapper. It's classic DPG spice at the beginning then takes a hard left turn and sweetens out for the rest of the stick.