COTM club reviews

I haven't seen a cotm review thread and if I missed it I apologize but I figured members of the COTM could come here and review the cigars after they smoke them.
I myself am not much for reviewing cigars, my palate is not as developed as others I can really only say what I like and dislike.

As far as the this months cigars I've had a few of them, The Obsidian I have to say I wasn't a fan at all just not my cup of tea, the Sencillo Platinum I have to say fell under the same category. I just finished smoking the Don Lino Africa and that one I did enjoy. I haven't tried the Ave Maria reconquista or swag yet but am a fan of ave maria and look forward to trying it, and I've read mixed reviews on the swag but look forward to trying it myself.

Now what do you all think? Also those who are not cotm members but have tried these cigars feel free to jump in the more opinions the merrier.

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Comments

CAcigarguy007

Great Idea! It will provide feedback for both cigar.com and all the BOTL/SOTL out there who are also members and also those who may be considering joining. If enough good stuff is received/reviewed I'm sure many who are not members will want to join. Plus the 10% off really adds up fast if you are a frequent buyer or a large order buyer. I think this is good for everyone!

james40

The Don Lino was excellent and I really enjoyed it as well. That's the only one I've had so far.

Mephisto

I don't have the COTM thing, but I smoked an Osidian last week and it is one of my favorite new finds. I don't remember specific flavors now, but it was smooth and well balanced. Enjoyable and flavorful all the way through.

y2pascoe

I'm with Daniel in respect to palate devlopment. It's just not as sharply refined as most of the old pro's here. But I also am in the same boat with his take on the Obsidian. Did not like it. At all. The whole smoke I just found it to have this tangy, almost metallic taste to it. Maybe I should have kept it around a while longer. Who knows? I'm not going to be seeking out any more of these, though. I tried the Sencillo prior to getting it in the club, and I remember enjoying it, but couldn't really give a detailed description. I tend to try a lot of new sticks while I'm playing cards and drinking, so a lot of the nuances get lost to me. I'll save the other Sencillo for later, for a more relaxed smoke session. The Don Lino Africa was very tasty. I'd love to try it in a different vitola. And finally, I haven't tried the Swag or Reconquista yet. I've read some unfavorable reviews of the Swag. Stephen_hannibal hates it with a passion. We'll see soon enough, I guess.

The Sniper

y2pascoe:
I've read some unfavorable reviews of the Swag. Stephen_hannibal hates it with a passion.

Hannibal hates d@mn near EVERYTHING with a passion.

This is why I nominated him as the King of the Things I Hate thread. LOL

stephen_hannibal

The Sniper:
y2pascoe:
I've read some unfavorable reviews of the Swag. Stephen_hannibal hates it with a passion.
Hannibal hates d@mn near EVERYTHING with a passion.

This is why I nominated him as the King of the Things I Hate thread. LOL

Almost lol... But the SWAG is not good.

rossdavey2

Smoking the africa right now. Good flavour but it started to tar really quickly.

rossdavey2

stephen_hannibal:
The Sniper:
y2pascoe:
I've read some unfavorable reviews of the Swag. Stephen_hannibal hates it with a passion.
Hannibal hates d@mn near EVERYTHING with a passion.

This is why I nominated him as the King of the Things I Hate thread. LOL

Almost lol... But the SWAG is not good.

Yeah the SWAG sucked baws. Really just tasted like old captian black pipe tobacco.

robbyras

after reading these I am a little intrigued by the Don Lino Africa... gonna add that to my list

Russ55

I tried the Don Lino Africa today. There was a hard spot near the band, and the draw was pretty poor. The cap started to unravel on me as well. The aroma was nice though. It did taste a tad green, so if I had another, I'd probably rest them for a year or so. It has potential though, but I hate the size.

JSaint

Smoked the Don Lino while driving and it smoked pretty well. Kept going out because I wasnt paying attention but still smoked well. If I had another Im sure it would be a cigar I could sit down and enjoy.

CAcigarguy007

So what did you get this month? Already 11 days in and not much has been posted.

rossdavey2

I smoked the 5v 2011 last night. If I get this job I am going to get a box of theses.

y2pascoe

CAcigarguy007:
So what did you get this month? Already 11 days in and not much has been posted.

This month it was AVO, Cohiba Puro Dominicana, Alec Bradley Prensado, 5 Vegas Limitada 2011, and Punch. I haven't tried any of them yet, except for the AVO, which is totally bitchin'.

Heavy

What vitola of Obsidian did you guys not like? The sales description says that every vitola is slightly different. I had the mini-corona recently and absolutely loved it. Tasted like a maduro version of a 5-Vegas Miami to me (nice spice but with sweet, earthy maduro flavors).

Also, we're talking about the new Obsidian put out by PDR, not the Padilla Obsidian here, right?

y2pascoe

Heavy:
What vitola of Obsidian did you guys not like? The sales description says that every vitola is slightly different. I had the mini-corona recently and absolutely loved it. Tasted like a maduro version of a 5-Vegas Miami to me (nice spice but with sweet, earthy maduro flavors).

Also, we're talking about the new Obsidian put out by PDR, not the Padilla Obsidian here, right?

Yes, the PDR Obsidian, and it was the belicoso vitola. I just couldn't get down with the flavor profile. To me...it was kinda tangy, something I've never tasted in a smoke before. Eh, maybe one day I'll give it another shot. Not looking for it on my radar any time soon, though.

Amos Umwhat

So far out of the last batch or two I've had the Don Lino, which was good, but I wished they'd left the other end on it. It seemed like they rolled one cigar, cut it in half and put two bands on it, maybe that was good, though, pretty stout smoke! The Punch was excellent, the Prensado was OK, a little bitter though. I've held off on the Obsidian, mostly because of the Padilla of the same name, I guess. That was probably the only Padilla I've had that I really found disappointing.

I thought the SWAG was supposed to be great? Haven't tried it yet, and looking forward to the AVO. This is what I like about the COTM, most of these I'd have probably never tried, except the Punch, which has been around forever. I'm not committed against the Prensado, sometimes you just get a cigar that isn't representative of the line, in almost any brand.

danielruas

I haven't had a chance to smoke any of this months yet, I've been obsessed with tat havana vis lately and haven't paid attention to much else.

docbp87

danielruas:
I haven't had a chance to smoke any of this months yet, I've been obsessed with tat havana vis lately and haven't paid attention to much else.

As crazy as it sounds to many Tat enthusiasts, I like the Havana VI line as much as the Seleccion de Cazador ("brown label") line most days (especially the Angeles and Victorias). Don't get me wrong, the brown labels are killer, but I like a few of the reds just as much.

CharlieCordus

y2pascoe:
CAcigarguy007:
So what did you get this month? Already 11 days in and not much has been posted.
I haven't tried any of them yet, except for the AVO, which is totally bitchin'.

Amos Umwhat

Just tried the SWAG, I thought: "surely it can't be as bad as all that". I was WRONG! A new low, usually I don't run anything down, someone might like it, but DAMN! Tossed it in the compost, going to wash my mouth out and smoke a Relic.

Amos Umwhat

Smoked the Obsidian last night, Awesome cigar!

y2pascoe

Amos Umwhat:
Smoked the Obsidian last night, Awesome cigar!

Couldn't get into the flavor profile of the belicoso at all. Just tastes real funky to me. Heavy sent me a mini corona to give it a second chance, so we'll see.

Roberto99

y2pascoe:
CAcigarguy007:
So what did you get this month? Already 11 days in and not much has been posted.
This month it was AVO, Cohiba Puro Dominicana, Alec Bradley Prensado, 5 Vegas Limitada 2011, and Punch. I haven't tried any of them yet, except for the AVO, which is totally bitchin'.

I seem to let these COTM selections sit for several weeks and then smoke them slowly after that. I thought the AVO, the AB and the Punch were great. I put down the 5V for a long nap based on this forum. The Cohiba was just plain nasty and I can't figure out why I would have such a negative reaction to them when others here like them. I've tried 3 of the puro donimicana's now and they are just not for me. Every time I lit one up I was really hopeful!

laker1963

I was a member for a couple of years when I first joined. I always enjoyed the selection and the "not knowing" what was coming each month.

I always thought it would make the club so much better and INCREASE the members of the club if they were to send out no sticks that had not been sitting in their humi's for at least 6 months.

That way the BOTL who were members would be treated to the same cigars they get now, only these would already have a little rest time on them. The club packs could be stored for a couple of weeks in your personal humi and then you could break out a stick and enjoy it with a little age on it. The sticks in the COTMC packs even after a few weeks in the humi seemed fresh.

I just figured that since it is newer members mostly who make up the club, that this way they would get a real idea of what a little time can do for any quality cigar, without having to sacrifice by letting all the cigars they purchase sit for months before they smoke them.

Just something I thought at the time that would be a good tweek to the program. I would still be a member actually, if the shipping wasn't such an issue for the Northern BOTL.

Amos Umwhat

Have to mention the CAO OSA SOL. I smoked this last week, it was the #58, pretty massive cigar so I thought it would go good with a movie. I clipped the cap around 7pm, took a draw through it before lighting and thought "mmm, effortless". Torched the end until glowing and took the first couple puffs, which were about as light on flavor as the pre-light draw. "Rats, this is why I stay away from the really large gauges."
I hoped it would start to develop soon, and I wasn't disappointed. The flavor started coming on in a few minutes, and it was a little different from anything I've had before. It's hard to describe, sort of ginger, bread or maybe cream, leather in the background, and something vaguely minty. I'm not good at describing this, but bear with me a moment longer.
Ashed it at about 2 inches, which revealed a nice even burn, no "cone". Actually, never touched it with the lighter again! This is rare, because I get fanatical about even burns sometimes, and am constantly touching up one side or wetting the other.
9pm and the movies over, time to walk the dogs, and there's still plenty of cigar to go. Never went out. Oh, and that unique flavor just kept building and building, without ever becoming bitter or overwhelming. Walking the dogs I was just the slightest bit wobbly, and I'm not complaining about that either.
So, just wanted to pass that along, an all around enjoyable experience, well worth it!

Russ55

I had the Perdomo Reserve Champagne Noir yesterday. I think I got it from the cotm. Good cigar. Lots of bittersweet chocolatey flavor, a little spice, and tons of smoke. I'm not a maduro guy, but this is a good one.