1. October 2020
This cigar comes with high hopes, having won the Cigar Aficionado 'Cigar of the Year' award in 2015 and by reason of its higher price tag of around $11. It's a Nicaraguan puro and is reminiscent of some of the fuller bodied, dark Nicaraguans. The Tatuaje black label and the Liga Privada come to mind with occasional allusion to the Partagas Magnum.
2. October 2020
Flavour: The 'dark roast' flavours with pepper in varying degrees and complexity, but marred by a soapy after taste, especially towards the end.
Consistency: The cigar took around 10 or 15 minutes to deliver complexity. Towards the middle of the cigar was the most satisfying portion. Flavour tended to degenerate towards the end.
Burn: several touch ups required and one relight. At around the halfway mark, the cigar went out. When I relit, it delivered a strong burst of pepper followed by a delicious aroma. But that soon dissipated.
Finish: Long finish, which allowed a leisurely pace of smoking. Each puff or two was quite satisfying.
Body: medium to full, alternating without any discernible trend. At its best, complexity was what one would expect from such a highly rated cigar. At the other end of the spectrum, it was 'smokable'.
Strength: medium. The wife thought that it was too strong. That might have been the body. I detected no substantial nicotine prevalence.
Time smoke: 1 hour 35 minutes
Overall: no doubt this is a fine cigar. But with a few caveats: the burn, the first ten minutes which were nothing special, the inconsistent presentation of body and the soapy aftertaste, especially towards the end. Let's see how this profile changes over the months.
3. November 16th: Yum. This was good all the way. Burn was uneven, as with the specimen from the previous month. But flavour and body were consistent throughout, unlike that of the previous month. Very satisfying.
4. January 2nd, 2021
Sweet scented dry aroma. Full bodied and full flavour from the outset, diminishing towards the halfway mark then picking up body with a little spiciness. Deep, dark chocolate. Rich, complex aroma. Strength stayed at medium throughout - nothing overwhelming. Lightly packed and easy to draw, the burn was a bit wonky and required a couple of touch-ups. Quite satisfying. But a little more strength would have made it easier to put down. 80 minutes.
I listened to one of Nikhil Banerjee's recordings of Raag Malkauns, a soulful raag, described by Urdu poet, Riyaz Latif,
When water draped in mystery gently laps against the windswept stones of the ghats; when darkness masks darkness, and horizons are obliterated; when the encompassing solitude induces all astral constellations to converge upon the infinite-density core of a resonant melody; when the trajectory of elements is consummated, and the primality of structured sound summons the animate and the inanimate to its ethereal realm…there appears, for an imperceptible moment, a lightning, radiant presence – ephemeral, otherworldly, frighteningly fluid, and blinding in its luminescence. It flashes past as it appears. Then, in an instant, all is the dark solitude of the primeval…
Well, I couldn't improve on that!
5. March 13th, 2021: Much the same as the previous cigar, with a little bitterness and lacking finish in the first half. First inch was a little bland. Flavour and body improved in the second half. Draw was easy throughout. Burn was wavy and benefited from one touch-up. 90 minutes. Again, quite satisfying, but lacking complexity.
6. May 12th, 2021: This cigar started off quite mellow and refined, like the last Oliva V Melanio Torpedo that I smoked, but much deeper in flavour. The first inch lasted about half an hour.
Every time I smoke one of these Le Bijou Torpedos I wonder why it has such a high rating and why it costs double the price of many other similar cigars, such as the Rocky Patel Super Ligero. So as this cigar began, I began to think that the rating was justified. But by the middle of the cigar, the profile changed and I was less persuaded. This is a cigar with a lot of ligero, like the Rocky Patel Super Ligero. If the mellowness remained throughout, it would be a cut above the Rocky Patel. But it soon devolved into the same slightly rough and tarry ligero number as the RP Super Ligero that I smoked two days earlier on May 10th.
Aroma was nothing much to speak of. Burn was wonky and required a couple of touch ups. Draw was a little resistant here and there but opened up in the final third. 90 minutes. Mixed feelings.
I listened to two Brad Harris podcasts on his Context channel. Both were about George Orwell. The first was about an Orwell essay on tribalism. The second was a review of 1984 and its relevance to the world today. Harris is eloquent. His podcasts are well prepared with no dross whatsoever.
7. February 17th, 2022: After eight months I decided to revisit this cigar. Dry aroma was sweet and floral. Aroma was rich and complex. Flavour was reasonably mellow and complex in the first half with no discernible spice or strength.. Burn was wavy but self correcting. By the middle of the cigar, spice appeared and the aftertaste became tarry and dirty. During the second half flavour dissipated to a more vegetal, peppery, profile with no complexity to speak of. The cigar went out with about two inches remaining and I left it there. 80 minutes. Overall, pleasant in the first half, but rather boring in the second half. While smoking I was reminded of the AJ Fernandez New World Navegante, but the My Father had much less complexity even during the first half. At almost twice the price, I couldn't imagine buying another box of this cigar.
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| A beautiful band and quite pleasant flavour during the first half. |
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| At the one hour mark flavour and complexity dissipated. I let the cigar go about an inch after this shot was taken. |
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