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La Aurora Puro Vintage 2003

DiamondogDiamondog Posts: 4,169
La Aurora Puro Vintage 2003

Size: 7.5 x 58 (Salomon)
Wrapper: Ecuador, sungrown
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican
Strength: Full
Smoke time: Just shy of 2 hours

Some background: The makers of La Aurora Preferidos and 100 Anos harvested an exceptional crop of tobacco back in 2003. Only the finest leaves from the crop were selected and then aged for 5 years. In 2008, this well aged rare tobacco was used to make The Puro Vintage 2003 by La Aurora, production was 12,000 cigars. Since I am a huge fan of the La Aurora 100 Anos this cigar intrigued me quite a bit. I stayed away initialy because of the price tag on an unknown cigar but jumped on them when I found a deal and it was a good thing I did. Lets get to it

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Wrapper: gorgeous wrapper, brown, with a reddish hue, minimal veins, smooth, oily, this is a massive cigar

Pre draw: Pre draw is tight because it is a salomon, tastes of sweet tobacco

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1/3
Cigar opens up full bodied with rich coffee notes and spice, pepper on the lips. The cigar quickly adds in woody tones, the first part of the 1st third was very in your face and towards the end of the 1st third the cigar has become very smooth, remaining full bodied, same flavours remain but have become more refined, towards the end of the 1st third, woodsy and grassy tones are taking the forefront and a nice pepper remains on the lips to end the 1st third

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2/3
2nd third continues with grassy and woody tones, the finish is now leaving a nice sweetness on the palette and the pepper has died out, as the 2nd third progresses the rich chocolate tones are starting to pick up again and a nice fruity taste is starting to appear, cigar is becoming more bold again and in my face but not overpowering, 2nd third is ending with dark chocolate tones and espresso with a hint of liquorice on the finish

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3/3
The final third continues with dark chocolate and espresso, with a hint liquorice on the finish, as the final third progresses I am starting to pick up a very pleasant almost banana bread like flavour that is very interesting, mixed in with the chocolate. The cigar is starting to become very smooth again. I find it quite interesting how this cigar transitions from bold to smooth and back throughout, very enjoyable quality. Pepper starts to make its way back and the cigar finishes in a woodsy and grassy profile.

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Draw and Burn: Excellent draw, this cigar produced thick and large volumes of smoke. The burn was great for the entire cigar no touch ups required.

Overall Impression: This cigar is a beauty to behold. An absolute gem, magnificently rolled, superb construction and the smoking experience is right up there with the best of them Cuban or otherwise. By the end of this cigar I felt like I had sat down to an experience not just smoking a cigar. The progression of flavours was really a journey from start to finish. There was progression of flavours but also the transition between bold and smooth was an experience in itself. This is a gem of a cigar and I am thoroughly pleased that I was able to find a deal on them good enough to allow me to pull the trigger on an unknown. This cigar is one of the greats in my collection and I would not hesitate to buy another box.

Appearance: 14/15
Draw & Burn: 19/20
Flavour & Complexity: 28/30
Overall: 33/35

Overall: 94/100

Comments

  • ENFIDLENFIDL Posts: 5,836
    Another great review Steve, def sounds like an amazing stick! Very nice pics as well
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