That's cool. How long he is going to be in Nicaragua? If he comes to the capital Mangua let me know. Plancensia factory is in another city calls Esteli. I am not going to be in Esteli for a while. Next week I am heading to Panama and Cuba for ten days. If you attest him as a cool guy then I wouldn't mind to meet him after I return from Cuba.
rwheelwright:
Rip I'm gonna change the subject for a minute. My friends cousin is in Nicaragua at the moment and is making some cigars with Nestor plascencia. Pretty cool if you ask me.
I'll see if I can find out details. I think he is back after thanksgiving but ill see what I can find out. Yeah he is a good guy.
That's cool. How long he is going to be in Nicaragua? If he comes to the capital Mangua let me know. Plancensia factory is in another city calls Esteli. I am not going to be in Esteli for a while. Next week I am heading to Panama and Cuba for ten days. If you attest him as a cool guy then I wouldn't mind to meet him after I return from Cuba.
rwheelwright:
Rip I'm gonna change the subject for a minute. My friends cousin is in Nicaragua at the moment and is making some cigars with Nestor plascencia. Pretty cool if you ask me.
I'll see if I can find out details. I think he is back after thanksgiving but ill see what I can find out. Yeah he is a good guy.
I have a funny feeling that your friend's cousin will meet Rip whether you set it up or not. From the stories I've heard so far...well Kramer eventually had to run into Bob Sacamano, right?
That picture is friggin awesome... Talk about the perfect compliment to any cigar room... I love VR, cannot wait to have boxes of them over the next few years in different aging states.
+1 That's a beautiful pic. I want one of me like that.
Thanks for another great review, Rip. I haven't bought a box of VR yet, I've been trying to decide on which vitola to choose from. I know everyone talks highly of Don Alejandro but they are quite a bit more expensive than the rest of the line. It seems like the Unicos are very good and a better value. Budget is a factor for me so I have to be choosy about what I buy.
That's cool. How long he is going to be in Nicaragua? If he comes to the capital Mangua let me know. Plancensia factory is in another city calls Esteli. I am not going to be in Esteli for a while. Next week I am heading to Panama and Cuba for ten days. If you attest him as a cool guy then I wouldn't mind to meet him after I return from Cuba.
rwheelwright:
Rip I'm gonna change the subject for a minute. My friends cousin is in Nicaragua at the moment and is making some cigars with Nestor plascencia. Pretty cool if you ask me.
I'll see if I can find out details. I think he is back after thanksgiving but ill see what I can find out. Yeah he is a good guy.
I have a funny feeling that your friend's cousin will meet Rip whether you set it up or not. From the stories I've heard so far...well Kramer eventually had to run into Bob Sacamano, right?
Thanks Daniel...I will try to get some cool posters from Havana. I heard they offer cool cigar posters from 1950s.
danielzreyes:
catfishbluezz:
That picture is friggin awesome... Talk about the perfect compliment to any cigar room... I love VR, cannot wait to have boxes of them over the next few years in different aging states.
+1 That's a beautiful pic. I want one of me like that.
Thanks...I appreciate your kind words. Go for VR Unicos. It has at least 85% of Don Alejandro's flavors, aroma and other elements.
bigharpoon:
Thanks for another great review, Rip. I haven't bought a box of VR yet, I've been trying to decide on which vitola to choose from. I know everyone talks highly of Don Alejandro but they are quite a bit more expensive than the rest of the line. It seems like the Unicos are very good and a better value. Budget is a factor for me so I have to be choosy about what I buy.
Thanks Daniel...I will try to get some cool posters from Havana. I heard they offer cool cigar posters from 1950s.
Pictures from Havana would be really cool to see.
For that matter, any pictures of Cuba, I would love to see.
I think I can speak for a lot of of us in saying that we really appreciate that you are sharing things like this with us.
Some day, I would love to see Cuba.
Cuba and Australia/New Zealand are among the places that I would love to visit the most.
I always enjoy share good time with friends. It is more fun to share things then keep it within ourselves. I hope your dream comes true soon. I also always appreciate your encouraging words.
0patience:
rzaman:
Thanks Daniel...I will try to get some cool posters from Havana. I heard they offer cool cigar posters from 1950s.
Pictures from Havana would be really cool to see.
For that matter, any pictures of Cuba, I would love to see.
I think I can speak for a lot of of us in saying that we really appreciate that you are sharing things like this with us.
Some day, I would love to see Cuba.
Cuba and Australia/New Zealand are among the places that I would love to visit the most.
Partagas is among the oldest extant brands of cigars, established in Havana in 1845. The name is used today by two independent and competing entities; one produced on the island of Cuba for Habanos SA- the Cuban state-owned tobacco company. The Spaniard Don Jaime Partagás y Ravelo had worked in the Cuban tobacco business for years before establishing his own factory, Real Fábricas de Tabaco Partagás in 1845, on 60 Industria Street in Havana, one of the largest of its time. The name, which translates as "Partagás Royal Tobacco Factory," was supposedly chosen because of Don Jaime's status as cigar supplier to various European and Asian nobilities. Don Jaime owned many of the best plantations in the Vuelta Abajo tobacco-growing region of Cuba; being able to choose from among the finest tobaccos on the island made the brand incredibly successful. Don Jaime is also believed to have experimented with various methods of fermenting and aging tobacco and is legendarily credited with hiring the first lector to read to and entertain the cigar rollers as they worked. Don Jaime was murdered (supposedly by a jealous rival he'd been vying with in one of his love affairs) on one of his plantations in either 1864 or 1868 and his son José Partagás took over the business. Later the factory and brand were sold to banker José A. Bance, who in turn sold to Cifuentes, Fernández y Cía in 1900. In 1916, Don José Fernández apparently left the firm and Ramón Cifuentes Llano joined with Francisco Pego Pita to form Cifuentes, Pego y Cía. In 1927, it acquired the rights to the Ramón Allones brand; at some unknown point the factory began to produce a brand in its own name, Cifuentes.Ramon Cifuentes died in 1938 and Pego in 1940, leaving the Cifuentes family solely in control of the increasingly prestigious factory and brand, which renamed the company Cifuentes y Cía. In 1954, the Cifuentes family acquired the Bolívar and La Gloria Cubana brands from José F. Rocha and moved their production to the Cifuentes factory. By 1958 it was second only to the H. Upmann Company in exporting Cuban cigars, accounting for over a quarter of all exported tobacco goods. Before and after the Cuban Revolution, the authentic Cuban-produced Partagás has been one of the most revered and highest-selling cigars in the world. By the middle 1990s it remained the second leading selling Cuban brand, following Montecristo, with annual sales of approximately 10 million cigars.[Source: Wikipedia and other on-line articles] Partagas P no. 2 Tubo pyramid shape was first released in 2008 and this is from 2008 and got four years of age in it. The cigar comes in an elegant aluminum black tube with red lettering band. The design is eye catching, very sleek and stylish. The other purpose was also to age them inside the sealed tube with cedar sheet. It is easy to carry in a side pocket without hurting the wrapper. The wrapper is dark milk chocolate brown, slightly veiny with good amount of oil on the wrapper. It is smooth, very well constructed and feels good in hand. It has dry wood and slight sweet cedar scent at the foot. It looks packed with tobaccos but the cold draw is perfect with earth, dry wood flavors. Partagas P 2 and Montecristo no. 2 are rolled in the same factory calls El Laguito. Some people say they are the same cigar with two different bands. It is not true at all. Thought they both are rolled in the same factory but they taste very different. It is extremely rich, balanced, complex, layers and layers of flavors and aroma with long finish. It has very distinctive signature Cuban aromatic fruit-flowery aroma from the start to finish. The flavor and aroma profile is a combination of straight soft black pepper, sweet wood (cedar), slight earth, cream, aromatic floral, vanilla, cocoa, caramel, espresso coffee, nut (walnut) with distinctive aromatic herbal, citrus aroma and finish at the back.
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba 1/3: It starts with a blast but not really a kick of black pepper spice, sweet cedar, slight earth, cocoa, cream, aromatic floral flavors and very mild leathery finish at the back. The smoke is lush, thick, round and very mouthful with a delicate soft touch of cocoa powder. It is like spread a flavorful layer on top of the tongue-wow!!! I took few puffs and stop smoking because I am trying to break down the complex flavor profile in my mouth. The top of my tongue feels the pinch of black pepper spice, the middle of my tongue is full of cream and round smoke with above flavors and aroma, the back of my tongue has a super mild slight tobacco harshness but it doesn't hamper the enjoyable smoke rather than shows its longer aging potential. During retrohale the aromatic floral, peppery spiciness through the nose is absolutely stunning. The intense flavor and aroma is locked in a creamy shield. It scores 90 plus from the start. The cigar mellowed out and has a distinctive clean, crispy and toasted espresso coffee note. I need to break down this twist a little more to elaborate the true feeling. When I take the puff, it blast black pepper then Immediately swing back to freshly toasted espresso note by taking over the front with another twist of sweet and floral aromatic notes at the back. Then the other flavors and aromas slowly dance around it with an earthy finish but still locked in a creamy shield. The performance is very different than a Montecristo no. 2 at this stage and it declared its unique character. It is absolutely a different blend than Monti 2. 2/3: The cigar continuously burn flawlessly with perfect draw. The black peppery bite toned down with more subtle and soft touch. It has more cocoa, earth, cream based flavors profile with distinctive sweet espresso coffee flavor. It has more pronounced nutty, aromatic floral-fruits note, clean vanilla finish at the back with a touch of caramel sweetness. The twist of complexity of this cigar is simply amazing. The top of my tongue has soft pinch of black peppery spiciness but cover with sweetness, the middle of my tongue feel the delicate and velvety smoke with above flavors, aroma and notes, the back of my tongue is clean. The cigar is locked with a shield of cream, earth and sweetness with toasted nutty, citrusy finish at the end. The flavors and aroma are dancing around my mouth. It just keeps on going. During retrohale, the soft and delicate black peppery spiciness through the nose with the caramel sweetness finish is simply amazing. The strength is straight medium and subtle. It is absolutely an amazing smoking experience. The twist of complexity is extremely balanced with long signature Cuban aromatic fruity-floral finish. Final/3: The cigar is picking up some strength but still within the medium body range. Until now it is gorgeously performing well with perfect burn and draw. This cigar is the answer to those critics who say Cuban cigars have construction issue. The cigar looses a point at this stage for not delivering any new flavor but with the twisting of on-going changes in flavor and aroma profile, it still remains a great smoke. This is where the cigar raises the question and compares itself with Monti no. 2 or Robina's Unicos pyramid cigars. Please don't get me wrong; this is still absolutely a stunning cigar. The black peppery spiciness is back at forefront with weaker 1/3 flavor profile. It is interesting to observe that the aroma notes are dominating the flavor profile. When a cigar performs like this, the best way to enjoy the smoke is retrohale more often. The reason is during retrohale our nose also detect some background flavors and aroma. This is also a tool to enjoy aged cigar when they mellow out. I am enjoying the retrohale more than the as usual smoke. Does it make any sense to you? I don't know but sometime it is a very difficult to describe taste. I love this cigar because it forces me to take it easy and help me to concentrate to the smoke. I am not using my as usual top, middle and back of my tongue to identify the flavors and aroma rather then using my retrohale and nose to enjoy the extremely complexity of this cigar. It takes some time to utilize this tool to enjoy some cigars. Once you learn how to do it then you can truly appreciate subtleness of a cigar. I am still enjoying the smoke in a full scale.
Final thought: Now the million dollar question- which one is a better cigar? The Montecristo No. 2, Robina’s Unicos, H. Upman no. 2 or Partagas series no. 2. My dear friends, I apologize for being unable to answer this question. It is like four gorgeous and beautiful women are standing front of me with beautiful eyes and smile. One is blonde (typical Scandinavian look), one is red haired (typical Irish look), one is dark haired with olive skin (typical Mediterranean look) and the fourth one is dark black hair with bronze skin (typical Latin beauty)- who do you want me to select as my date? Lets not go into the difficultly rather then date them in different days to enjoy their unique beauties and charms. I love them all. Hope you are enjoying the Veteran day. I would like to close my review by dedicating this review to all our Veterans (past, present and the future) for allowing me to enjoy this free life. Without their sacrifices I wouldn't be able to enjoy this free life with a great cigar like this. HAPPY VETERANS DAY!!!
Rip buddy, you killed me with this one.
Partagas has always remained my all time favorite cuban cigar.
Why that is, I am not certain. But the background information you provided was very interesting and intriguing. I love finding new information that I did not know and you provided me that.
As I stated, Partagas has always been my favorite, with the Serie D No. 4, being the one I seem to love the most. I had thought that I had a lot of information on Partagas, but clearly I didn't.
I like the Serie P No.2, because it seems to maintain the flavors farther into the cigar than the Serie D No. 4, but for some reason, I can never get away from the Serie D.
Rip I knew I would hate myself for reading this lol. But seriously that sounds freaking delicious!! I'm a big cc partagas fan and hate the Dominicans...well don't hate but find they are pretty one dimensional compared. This review reminds me I need to go on a hunt for some so I can age and smoke!! Thanks again for lighting a fire under my a$$ to go find some truley funominal sticks!!
Hi Tony, glad to hear that you enjoyed the background. I always search for background information of a cigar. It helps me to enjoy the smoke in fuller scale.
Both series D and P Partagas are great smokes. I do agree with you P2 has longer finish. D has dry finish compares to P. I think P series both No. 1(stronger in body) and no. 2 have more intense flavors then regular D series. Again, they are all great smoke. P 1 has a different charm with stronger body and longer finish. they are all different blends and unique of its own way.
0patience:
Rip buddy, you killed me with this one.
Partagas has always remained my all time favorite cuban cigar.
Why that is, I am not certain. But the background information you provided was very interesting and intriguing. I love finding new information that I did not know and you provided me that.
As I stated, Partagas has always been my favorite, with the Serie D No. 4, being the one I seem to love the most. I had thought that I had a lot of information on Partagas, but clearly I didn't.
I like the Serie P No.2, because it seems to maintain the flavors farther into the cigar than the Serie D No. 4, but for some reason, I can never get away from the Serie D.
Hi Lee, appreciate you kind words. Dominican Partagas are nothing compares to the Cubans except Partagas 150, 160, Decadas, Reserva lines but they comes with Cameroon wrapper so nothing to compare with Cuban Partagas. Ciban Partagas cigars are very complex, balanced, flavorful with long finish.
Lee.mcglynn:
Rip I knew I would hate myself for reading this lol. But seriously that sounds
freaking delicious!! I'm a big cc partagas fan and hate the Dominicans...well don't hate but find they are pretty one dimensional compared. This review reminds me I need to go on a hunt for some so I can age and smoke!! Thanks again for lighting a fire under my a$$ to go find some truley funominal sticks!!
The owner William C. Paley, known as ‘Little Bill’ to differentiate him from his father, was also the grandson of Harvey Williams Cushing, the noted Boston neurosurgeon and the father of brain surgery. Bill never knew the good doctor, as he had passed away in 1939. His middle name pays tribute to his Cushing ties. It is worth noting before going into the tobacco in Bill Paley’s DNA that his mother, Babe, was one of three (3) Cushing sisters, all of whom figured in ‘society’ for the longest time. Aunt Betsey, the middle sister, was wife of James Roosevelt, the son of Eleanor and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. She later married John Hay Whitney, President Eisenhower’s Ambassador to Great Britain, Publisher of the International Herald Tribune, and a formidable society figure himself. The eldest sister, known as ‘Minnie’, was married to Vincent Astor. Bill Paley, the Paley of this story, had a few brushes with higher education before deciding it wasn’t for him. He joined the United States Army in 1968 and wound up being a Military Cinematographer in Vietnam. After his tour of duty there, the Army transferred him to duty at the Pentagon, where he began his unrequited love affair with the city of Washington, D.C. Currently, he is a philanthropists and involves with many charitable organizations based in Washington DC and NY. He also opened up the Samuel Paley park in NYC where cigar lovers can sit, relax and smoke a cigar. It is very difficult to smoke a cigar in an open area in the NYC now a days. They want to stick with the core line to maintain the quality and the consistency. So far they only use to roll their cigars in two world famous factories Fabrica de Tabacos Raices Cubana factory of Danlí, Honduras and Graycliff in Bahama and now in El Titan de Bronze factory in the Little Havana, Miami.[Source: Various on-line articles] Goldie Drell Paley, the namesake of our brand, was the wife of Sam Paley, who in 1896 founded La Palina Cigars. To celebrate the history, contributions and accomplishments of women in the cigar industry, we are proud to release the La Palina Collection Goldie. ¬The Goldie is a limited 1000 box release. Produced at the El Titan de Bronze factory in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, the Goldie is made under the supervision of owner Sandy Cobas. The entire collection has been rolled in the Laguito No. 2 vitola (6×38) by master roller Maria Sierra. Maria is one of the ?rst women trained to roll cigars in Cuba. Her historic 32 year career at Villa El Laguito began July 22, 1967. Maria is a 95 rated, category 9 roller trained by Fidel Castro’s personal roller Eduardo Rivera Irizarri, as well as Avelino Lara, the creator of the legendary Cohiba blend. Each cigar is ?nished in the traditional Laguito style with a fan cap, exclusively taught to rollers at Villa El Laguito. ¬The Goldie is blended with the prized Medio Tiempo leaf, found on only 10% of tobacco plants.[Source: La Palina website & various on-line resources] It is simply a beautiful looking petit lancero cigar with eye catching La Palina classic band. The wrapper is light brown, smooth with few veins. It has slight oily sheen on the surface. I always like triple cap and pig tail in a cigar. It has sweet wood and mild caramel scent at the foot. This cigar is extremely full of flavors and aroma. It has the perfect construction with perfect draw and burn. There are few non-Cuban cigars in the market burns as good as Goldie. It has all the qualities of a great cigar. It has extreme aromatic complexity with long finish after each puff. It is a medium bodied cigar. The cold draw is perfect- neither loose nor tight. The cold draw has a nice banana-vanilla bread aroma. The flavor and aroma profile is a combination of sweet oak, mild earth, black-white(50:50) pepper spice, spicy leather, banana-vanilla bread, cloves, cardamom, caramel-butterscotch coated toffee, cappuccino, creamy honey, sugar cane sweetness, toasted pine nuts and lots of mix fruits aroma at the back. I have to admit that I haven't smoked such flavorful aromatic non-Cuban cigar for a long time. Wrapper: Ecuador habano
Binder: Ecuador
Fillers: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua 1/3: It starts with a blast of aromatic fruity flavor, aroma and black-white(50:50) spiciness. My mouth is immediately filled with banana-vanilla bread, sweet oak, mild earth and aromatic cardamom flavors with mild rough spicy leathery finish at the back. Within few puffs the rough spicy leather goes away and taken over with banana-vanilla bread finish. There is also clean but sharp sugar cane sweetness at the end which I am really enjoying. I am puffing the cigar very slowly. The top of my tongue has the spiciness of black-white pepper, the middle of my tongue is full of honey like creaminess with round and thick smoke, the back of my tongue has a slight tobacco bitter harshness but it gets balanced very nicely with a layer of clean sugar cane sweet aftertatse. The retrohale has the amazing cardamom aromatic spiciness through the nose-WOW! However, at the same, I cannot say that the back of my tongue is completely clean. A little aging will fix this bitter harshness. How many non-Cuban cigars can release so many flavors and aroma at the 1/3? The answer is very few cigars can. The smoke is very smooth, buttery, round, mouthful and complex with long finish. I already have a little tinglyness in my mouth. Interestingly, at the end of 1/3 the cigar became mild to medium though it started with medium body. Anyway, it is a flawless cigar with a perfect start. 2/3: the second third continues the flavorful journey with a little change in the flavorful profile. In fact, it adds additional flavors and aroma. The strength is picking up to medium again. I am detecting noticeable cappuccino coffee, caramel-butterscotch coated toffee with toasted pine nuts aroma at the back. The 1/3 full flavor and aroma profile is still there with distinctive banana-vanilla bread and others. It is so flavorful that it invites me to puff more often. I am trying to smoke it slowly but it is very difficult to smoke patiently. All the 1/3 and 2/3 flavor and aroma profile is there. They just simply come and go with ever changing complexity. I am in love with LP Goldie. The top of my tongue has more clove kind of aromatic spiciness with a slight touch of black- white peppery spiciness. It changes very quickly with each puff. It is not easy to keep track of different spiciness at this stage. The finish has a combination of creamy honey and clean sugar cane sweetness. The middle of my tongue is full of all the above flavors and aroma. The back is clean without any bitter or harshness. The retrohale still has the aromatic cardamom spiciness through the nose. At the same time also feels the aromatic clove kind of spiciness. How can I keep track of all the changes? This is an awesome smoke. I also noticed that the cigar is burning little quickly but I am not rushing the puff at all. This is kinda sad and disturbing LOL. Final/3: It is hard to believe that still the cigar is holding the full flavor and aroma profile of the 1/2 and 2/3 marks. It has more dominant fruity and toasted pine nuts finish after each puff. Though the cappuccino, butterscotch toffee flavors are dominating the flavor profile but still other flavors are coming and going with extreme complexity and long finish. The top of my tongue has more clove kind of spiciness. The middle of my tongue is coated with honey, creamy and round texture. The smoke is completely subtle and relaxing. There is no sign of any bitter or harshness at the back. I am retrohaling each puff to enjoy the aromatic cardamom spiciness through the nose. The spiciness through the nose is strong and also gives a side kick of sweet-black pepper at the end. The smoke is creamy but the sweetness is somewhere in between honey and sugar cane. I never had this kind of sweet feeling in any other cigar. This is magical smoke, a perfect masterpiece.
Final thought: I am having hard time to finish this part because I don't know what to say or how to end my final thought. The weather is perfect in Managua. I am sitting in my backyard and lost in a flavorful world. I am a huge fan of La Palina. They are improving the quality steadily with new blends one after another. Only God knows what they are going to release next. Their first limited release was Robusto LE 1896. After smoking it, I immediately fell in love with this new brand, then with Little Bill and now Their LE release Goldie. The owner Bill Paley always believes in medium bodied cigar with full of flavors and aroma. A blender can easily hide the creativity in a heavy and full bodied blend but not in a mild or medium bodied cigar. La Palina is very confident and they keep sticking with medium bodied and releasing more and more cigars each year. La Palina cigars are not cheap but they deserve the money. I do not hesitate to say that La Palina Goldie is the best cigar of 2012 and the best Non-Cuban petit Lancero in the market.
This was my favorite cigar of 2012 as well. I liked La Palina better than the Cohiba Corona Especiales if that is any comparison! This was truly a fantastic cigar! Great review as always! I'm gonna have to hunt down the 1896 you speak of.
Thanks Shawn. indeed, Goldie is better than many Cuban Lanceros. Maybe not flavor wise but with construction and complexcity this cigar can compete with some top Cuban Lanceros.
La Palina Robusto LE 1896 are almost gone or most probably sold out. However, I have a direct source who knows Bill Paley. I might get some more. If you can't find them then let me know. Andrew got my last box from his local B&M. I am one of those crazy smokers who really have to have the cigar when I want to smoke certain cigar. This is the reason I always try to maintain a large stock of my favourite cigars. The other great La Palina is the Little Bill.
zeebra:
This was my favorite cigar of 2012 as well. I liked La Palina better than the Cohiba Corona Especiales if that is any comparison! This was truly a fantastic cigar! Great review as always! I'm gonna have to hunt down the 1896 you speak of.
Nice to see your review on these RIP. Smoked 3 of these to an itty bitty nub myself. Construction, burn and draw were nothing less than perfect on all 3. Great cigar.
Thanks Andrew. I appreciate for sending me the box. Indeed, it is a prefect cigar.
amz1301:
Nice to see your review on these RIP. Smoked 3 of these to an itty bitty nub myself. Construction, burn and draw were nothing less than perfect on all 3. Great cigar.
Comments
And Monticristicos !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And Partagas D-4's !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And to walk down Havana streets !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Maybe someday in my lifetime, it will be possible for Americans to enjoy these simple pleasures.
Thanks again, Rip for another wonderful description of this cigar smoking experience.
For that matter, any pictures of Cuba, I would love to see.
I think I can speak for a lot of of us in saying that we really appreciate that you are sharing things like this with us.
Some day, I would love to see Cuba.
Cuba and Australia/New Zealand are among the places that I would love to visit the most.
I always enjoy share good time with friends. It is more fun to share things then keep it within ourselves. I hope your dream comes true soon. I also always appreciate your encouraging words.
Partagas is among the oldest extant brands of cigars, established in Havana in 1845. The name is used today by two independent and competing entities; one produced on the island of Cuba for Habanos SA- the Cuban state-owned tobacco company. The Spaniard Don Jaime Partagás y Ravelo had worked in the Cuban tobacco business for years before establishing his own factory, Real Fábricas de Tabaco Partagás in 1845, on 60 Industria Street in Havana, one of the largest of its time. The name, which translates as "Partagás Royal Tobacco Factory," was supposedly chosen because of Don Jaime's status as cigar supplier to various European and Asian nobilities. Don Jaime owned many of the best plantations in the Vuelta Abajo tobacco-growing region of Cuba; being able to choose from among the finest tobaccos on the island made the brand incredibly successful. Don Jaime is also believed to have experimented with various methods of fermenting and aging tobacco and is legendarily credited with hiring the first lector to read to and entertain the cigar rollers as they worked.
Don Jaime was murdered (supposedly by a jealous rival he'd been vying with in one of his love affairs) on one of his plantations in either 1864 or 1868 and his son José Partagás took over the business. Later the factory and brand were sold to banker José A. Bance, who in turn sold to Cifuentes, Fernández y Cía in 1900. In 1916, Don José Fernández apparently left the firm and Ramón Cifuentes Llano joined with Francisco Pego Pita to form Cifuentes, Pego y Cía. In 1927, it acquired the rights to the Ramón Allones brand; at some unknown point the factory began to produce a brand in its own name, Cifuentes.Ramon Cifuentes died in 1938 and Pego in 1940, leaving the Cifuentes family solely in control of the increasingly prestigious factory and brand, which renamed the company Cifuentes y Cía. In 1954, the Cifuentes family acquired the Bolívar and La Gloria Cubana brands from José F. Rocha and moved their production to the Cifuentes factory. By 1958 it was second only to the H. Upmann Company in exporting Cuban cigars, accounting for over a quarter of all exported tobacco goods. Before and after the Cuban Revolution, the authentic Cuban-produced Partagás has been one of the most revered and highest-selling cigars in the world. By the middle 1990s it remained the second leading selling Cuban brand, following Montecristo, with annual sales of approximately 10 million cigars.[Source: Wikipedia and other on-line articles]
Partagas P no. 2 Tubo pyramid shape was first released in 2008 and this is from 2008 and got four years of age in it. The cigar comes in an elegant aluminum black tube with red lettering band. The design is eye catching, very sleek and stylish. The other purpose was also to age them inside the sealed tube with cedar sheet. It is easy to carry in a side pocket without hurting the wrapper. The wrapper is dark milk chocolate brown, slightly veiny with good amount of oil on the wrapper. It is smooth, very well constructed and feels good in hand. It has dry wood and slight sweet cedar scent at the foot. It looks packed with tobaccos but the cold draw is perfect with earth, dry wood flavors. Partagas P 2 and Montecristo no. 2 are rolled in the same factory calls El Laguito. Some people say they are the same cigar with two different bands. It is not true at all. Thought they both are rolled in the same factory but they taste very different. It is extremely rich, balanced, complex, layers and layers of flavors and aroma with long finish. It has very distinctive signature Cuban aromatic fruit-flowery aroma from the start to finish. The flavor and aroma profile is a combination of straight soft black pepper, sweet wood (cedar), slight earth, cream, aromatic floral, vanilla, cocoa, caramel, espresso coffee, nut (walnut) with distinctive aromatic herbal, citrus aroma and finish at the back.
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba
1/3: It starts with a blast but not really a kick of black pepper spice, sweet cedar, slight earth, cocoa, cream, aromatic floral flavors and very mild leathery finish at the back. The smoke is lush, thick, round and very mouthful with a delicate soft touch of cocoa powder. It is like spread a flavorful layer on top of the tongue-wow!!! I took few puffs and stop smoking because I am trying to break down the complex flavor profile in my mouth. The top of my tongue feels the pinch of black pepper spice, the middle of my tongue is full of cream and round smoke with above flavors and aroma, the back of my tongue has a super mild slight tobacco harshness but it doesn't hamper the enjoyable smoke rather than shows its longer aging potential. During retrohale the aromatic floral, peppery spiciness through the nose is absolutely stunning. The intense flavor and aroma is locked in a creamy shield. It scores 90 plus from the start. The cigar mellowed out and has a distinctive clean, crispy and toasted espresso coffee note. I need to break down this twist a little more to elaborate the true feeling. When I take the puff, it blast black pepper then Immediately swing back to freshly toasted espresso note by taking over the front with another twist of sweet and floral aromatic notes at the back. Then the other flavors and aromas slowly dance around it with an earthy finish but still locked in a creamy shield. The performance is very different than a Montecristo no. 2 at this stage and it declared its unique character. It is absolutely a different blend than Monti 2.
2/3: The cigar continuously burn flawlessly with perfect draw. The black peppery bite toned down with more subtle and soft touch. It has more cocoa, earth, cream based flavors profile with distinctive sweet espresso coffee flavor. It has more pronounced nutty, aromatic floral-fruits note, clean vanilla finish at the back with a touch of caramel sweetness. The twist of complexity of this cigar is simply amazing. The top of my tongue has soft pinch of black peppery spiciness but cover with sweetness, the middle of my tongue feel the delicate and velvety smoke with above flavors, aroma and notes, the back of my tongue is clean. The cigar is locked with a shield of cream, earth and sweetness with toasted nutty, citrusy finish at the end. The flavors and aroma are dancing around my mouth. It just keeps on going. During retrohale, the soft and delicate black peppery spiciness through the nose with the caramel sweetness finish is simply amazing. The strength is straight medium and subtle. It is absolutely an amazing smoking experience. The twist of complexity is extremely balanced with long signature Cuban aromatic fruity-floral finish.
Final/3: The cigar is picking up some strength but still within the medium body range. Until now it is gorgeously performing well with perfect burn and draw. This cigar is the answer to those critics who say Cuban cigars have construction issue. The cigar looses a point at this stage for not delivering any new flavor but with the twisting of on-going changes in flavor and aroma profile, it still remains a great smoke. This is where the cigar raises the question and compares itself with Monti no. 2 or Robina's Unicos pyramid cigars. Please don't get me wrong; this is still absolutely a stunning cigar. The black peppery spiciness is back at forefront with weaker 1/3 flavor profile. It is interesting to observe that the aroma notes are dominating the flavor profile. When a cigar performs like this, the best way to enjoy the smoke is retrohale more often. The reason is during retrohale our nose also detect some background flavors and aroma. This is also a tool to enjoy aged cigar when they mellow out. I am enjoying the retrohale more than the as usual smoke. Does it make any sense to you? I don't know but sometime it is a very difficult to describe taste. I love this cigar because it forces me to take it easy and help me to concentrate to the smoke. I am not using my as usual top, middle and back of my tongue to identify the flavors and aroma rather then using my retrohale and nose to enjoy the extremely complexity of this cigar. It takes some time to utilize this tool to enjoy some cigars. Once you learn how to do it then you can truly appreciate subtleness of a cigar. I am still enjoying the smoke in a full scale.
Final thought: Now the million dollar question- which one is a better cigar? The Montecristo No. 2, Robina’s Unicos, H. Upman no. 2 or Partagas series no. 2. My dear friends, I apologize for being unable to answer this question. It is like four gorgeous and beautiful women are standing front of me with beautiful eyes and smile. One is blonde (typical Scandinavian look), one is red haired (typical Irish look), one is dark haired with olive skin (typical Mediterranean look) and the fourth one is dark black hair with bronze skin (typical Latin beauty)- who do you want me to select as my date? Lets not go into the difficultly rather then date them in different days to enjoy their unique beauties and charms. I love them all. Hope you are enjoying the Veteran day. I would like to close my review by dedicating this review to all our Veterans (past, present and the future) for allowing me to enjoy this free life. Without their sacrifices I wouldn't be able to enjoy this free life with a great cigar like this. HAPPY VETERANS DAY!!!
Partagas has always remained my all time favorite cuban cigar.
Why that is, I am not certain. But the background information you provided was very interesting and intriguing. I love finding new information that I did not know and you provided me that.
As I stated, Partagas has always been my favorite, with the Serie D No. 4, being the one I seem to love the most. I had thought that I had a lot of information on Partagas, but clearly I didn't.
I like the Serie P No.2, because it seems to maintain the flavors farther into the cigar than the Serie D No. 4, but for some reason, I can never get away from the Serie D.
Both series D and P Partagas are great smokes. I do agree with you P2 has longer finish. D has dry finish compares to P. I think P series both No. 1(stronger in body) and no. 2 have more intense flavors then regular D series. Again, they are all great smoke. P 1 has a different charm with stronger body and longer finish. they are all different blends and unique of its own way.
The owner William C. Paley, known as ‘Little Bill’ to differentiate him from his father, was also the grandson of Harvey Williams Cushing, the noted Boston neurosurgeon and the father of brain surgery. Bill never knew the good doctor, as he had passed away in 1939. His middle name pays tribute to his Cushing ties. It is worth noting before going into the tobacco in Bill Paley’s DNA that his mother, Babe, was one of three (3) Cushing sisters, all of whom figured in ‘society’ for the longest time. Aunt Betsey, the middle sister, was wife of James Roosevelt, the son of Eleanor and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. She later married John Hay Whitney, President Eisenhower’s Ambassador to Great Britain, Publisher of the International Herald Tribune, and a formidable society figure himself. The eldest sister, known as ‘Minnie’, was married to Vincent Astor. Bill Paley, the Paley of this story, had a few brushes with higher education before deciding it wasn’t for him. He joined the United States Army in 1968 and wound up being a Military Cinematographer in Vietnam. After his tour of duty there, the Army transferred him to duty at the Pentagon, where he began his unrequited love affair with the city of Washington, D.C. Currently, he is a philanthropists and involves with many charitable organizations based in Washington DC and NY. He also opened up the Samuel Paley park in NYC where cigar lovers can sit, relax and smoke a cigar. It is very difficult to smoke a cigar in an open area in the NYC now a days. They want to stick with the core line to maintain the quality and the consistency. So far they only use to roll their cigars in two world famous factories Fabrica de Tabacos Raices Cubana factory of Danlí, Honduras and Graycliff in Bahama and now in El Titan de Bronze factory in the Little Havana, Miami.[Source: Various on-line articles]
Goldie Drell Paley, the namesake of our brand, was the wife of Sam Paley, who in 1896 founded La Palina Cigars. To celebrate the history, contributions and accomplishments of women in the cigar industry, we are proud to release the La Palina Collection Goldie. ¬The Goldie is a limited 1000 box release. Produced at the El Titan de Bronze factory in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, the Goldie is made under the supervision of owner Sandy Cobas. The entire collection has been rolled in the Laguito No. 2 vitola (6×38) by master roller Maria Sierra. Maria is one of the ?rst women trained to roll cigars in Cuba. Her historic 32 year career at Villa El Laguito began July 22, 1967. Maria is a 95 rated, category 9 roller trained by Fidel Castro’s personal roller Eduardo Rivera Irizarri, as well as Avelino Lara, the creator of the legendary Cohiba blend. Each cigar is ?nished in the traditional Laguito style with a fan cap, exclusively taught to rollers at Villa El Laguito. ¬The Goldie is blended with the prized Medio Tiempo leaf, found on only 10% of tobacco plants.[Source: La Palina website & various on-line resources]
It is simply a beautiful looking petit lancero cigar with eye catching La Palina classic band. The wrapper is light brown, smooth with few veins. It has slight oily sheen on the surface. I always like triple cap and pig tail in a cigar. It has sweet wood and mild caramel scent at the foot. This cigar is extremely full of flavors and aroma. It has the perfect construction with perfect draw and burn. There are few non-Cuban cigars in the market burns as good as Goldie. It has all the qualities of a great cigar. It has extreme aromatic complexity with long finish after each puff. It is a medium bodied cigar. The cold draw is perfect- neither loose nor tight. The cold draw has a nice banana-vanilla bread aroma. The flavor and aroma profile is a combination of sweet oak, mild earth, black-white(50:50) pepper spice, spicy leather, banana-vanilla bread, cloves, cardamom, caramel-butterscotch coated toffee, cappuccino, creamy honey, sugar cane sweetness, toasted pine nuts and lots of mix fruits aroma at the back. I have to admit that I haven't smoked such flavorful aromatic non-Cuban cigar for a long time.
Wrapper: Ecuador habano
Binder: Ecuador
Fillers: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua
1/3: It starts with a blast of aromatic fruity flavor, aroma and black-white(50:50) spiciness. My mouth is immediately filled with banana-vanilla bread, sweet oak, mild earth and aromatic cardamom flavors with mild rough spicy leathery finish at the back. Within few puffs the rough spicy leather goes away and taken over with banana-vanilla bread finish. There is also clean but sharp sugar cane sweetness at the end which I am really enjoying. I am puffing the cigar very slowly. The top of my tongue has the spiciness of black-white pepper, the middle of my tongue is full of honey like creaminess with round and thick smoke, the back of my tongue has a slight tobacco bitter harshness but it gets balanced very nicely with a layer of clean sugar cane sweet aftertatse. The retrohale has the amazing cardamom aromatic spiciness through the nose-WOW! However, at the same, I cannot say that the back of my tongue is completely clean. A little aging will fix this bitter harshness. How many non-Cuban cigars can release so many flavors and aroma at the 1/3? The answer is very few cigars can. The smoke is very smooth, buttery, round, mouthful and complex with long finish. I already have a little tinglyness in my mouth. Interestingly, at the end of 1/3 the cigar became mild to medium though it started with medium body. Anyway, it is a flawless cigar with a perfect start.
2/3: the second third continues the flavorful journey with a little change in the flavorful profile. In fact, it adds additional flavors and aroma. The strength is picking up to medium again. I am detecting noticeable cappuccino coffee, caramel-butterscotch coated toffee with toasted pine nuts aroma at the back. The 1/3 full flavor and aroma profile is still there with distinctive banana-vanilla bread and others. It is so flavorful that it invites me to puff more often. I am trying to smoke it slowly but it is very difficult to smoke patiently. All the 1/3 and 2/3 flavor and aroma profile is there. They just simply come and go with ever changing complexity. I am in love with LP Goldie. The top of my tongue has more clove kind of aromatic spiciness with a slight touch of black- white peppery spiciness. It changes very quickly with each puff. It is not easy to keep track of different spiciness at this stage. The finish has a combination of creamy honey and clean sugar cane sweetness. The middle of my tongue is full of all the above flavors and aroma. The back is clean without any bitter or harshness. The retrohale still has the aromatic cardamom spiciness through the nose. At the same time also feels the aromatic clove kind of spiciness. How can I keep track of all the changes? This is an awesome smoke. I also noticed that the cigar is burning little quickly but I am not rushing the puff at all. This is kinda sad and disturbing LOL.
Final/3: It is hard to believe that still the cigar is holding the full flavor and aroma profile of the 1/2 and 2/3 marks. It has more dominant fruity and toasted pine nuts finish after each puff. Though the cappuccino, butterscotch toffee flavors are dominating the flavor profile but still other flavors are coming and going with extreme complexity and long finish. The top of my tongue has more clove kind of spiciness. The middle of my tongue is coated with honey, creamy and round texture. The smoke is completely subtle and relaxing. There is no sign of any bitter or harshness at the back. I am retrohaling each puff to enjoy the aromatic cardamom spiciness through the nose. The spiciness through the nose is strong and also gives a side kick of sweet-black pepper at the end. The smoke is creamy but the sweetness is somewhere in between honey and sugar cane. I never had this kind of sweet feeling in any other cigar. This is magical smoke, a perfect masterpiece.
Final thought: I am having hard time to finish this part because I don't know what to say or how to end my final thought. The weather is perfect in Managua. I am sitting in my backyard and lost in a flavorful world. I am a huge fan of La Palina. They are improving the quality steadily with new blends one after another. Only God knows what they are going to release next. Their first limited release was Robusto LE 1896. After smoking it, I immediately fell in love with this new brand, then with Little Bill and now Their LE release Goldie. The owner Bill Paley always believes in medium bodied cigar with full of flavors and aroma. A blender can easily hide the creativity in a heavy and full bodied blend but not in a mild or medium bodied cigar. La Palina is very confident and they keep sticking with medium bodied and releasing more and more cigars each year. La Palina cigars are not cheap but they deserve the money. I do not hesitate to say that La Palina Goldie is the best cigar of 2012 and the best Non-Cuban petit Lancero in the market.
La Palina Robusto LE 1896 are almost gone or most probably sold out. However, I have a direct source who knows Bill Paley. I might get some more. If you can't find them then let me know. Andrew got my last box from his local B&M. I am one of those crazy smokers who really have to have the cigar when I want to smoke certain cigar. This is the reason I always try to maintain a large stock of my favourite cigars. The other great La Palina is the Little Bill.
I am just looking to a B&M that sells La Paulina at all.