Cigar:            La Aurora 100 Anos Centenario Corona #4

Size:             43 x 5.25" @ 68% RH

Country:          DR

Wrapper:          DR, Corojo

Binder:           DR

Filler:           DR

Flavor Strength:  Full

NicotineStength:  Medium

Date Received:    2004-12-15

Box Code:         13271 out of 16000, band serial number 331759 out of 400000

Suspected Age:    Wrappers 4 years old, binder and filler 6 years old (1996)

Vendor/Price:     MD Cigars, $201 includes shipping

Beverage(s):      Dead Guy Ale, water

Smoke time:       90 minutes

Date:             2004-12-29

Posted to ASC:    2004-12-30

Overall score:    4.9/5.0

Overall:    Wow!  This is a magnificient cigar, beautifully constructed, with a good burn and copious smoke volume.  Started nutty which faded quickly to a sweet, woody, cedar.  Finish was long, dry, and sweetened throughout.  Flavor transitioned through leather to creamy chocolate with vanilla, then a brief fruitiness, ending with some mint.  Wow!  A truely great cigar.  Worth a box or two or three if you can find them. 

Ambience:   Same old, same old.  Sweet Sara was an unexpected and welcome surprise as our waitress.  Wanting to smoke one of these ASAP I froze them for four days, then defrosted, then took two of the cigars, removed the cello and put them in a small sandwich bag with a calibrated hygrometer, and sucked out most of the air.  After a few hours the RH stabilized at 68%.  Okay, they are ready to smoke!

Construction:     The box, the double bands, and the cigars are all beautiful.  Big band whose medallion sports a reposed lion in front, quarter profile.  Smaller straight band has a serial number.  This one is 331759.  J's was 331760.  Wrapper is dark brown, with even darker mottling, and an oily sheen.  Cigar has a very long triple cap, small veins, and is firm throughout.  This is one of the best smelling cigars I've ever nosed.  It seems perfumed, floral, cocoa, with an aged alfalfa mustiness.  I want aftershave that smells like this! 

(Back in my youth I spent some time busting bales in the Willamette Valley of Oregon.  We baled alfalfa and various straws and delivered it mostly to dairies around the valley.  The aged alfalfa mustiness I mentioned is the smell that comes from the center of a warm, moist, months fermented old bale of alfalfa when you break it open.  It's a combination of sweet and sour and must - in short a hint of barnyard :-)

Cut & Prelight:   Cut extremely well.  Nice draw, slight resistance.  Sweet pepper draw flavor and lip tingle. 

First third:      Initially nutty much like a Honduran.  Immediately sweet finish.  Some pepper on the tongue.  Finish is dryish.  Flavor is a sweet woody cedar.  Copious smoke volume.  The long finish continues to dry and sweeten.  It is almost candy sweet in the long, long finish, i.e., minutes. 

Second third:     Some leather entering.  Ashed at 1.5".  Ash is firm, compact, and white.  Good burn.  Now, chocolate in the flavor and finish.  Finish still dry.  Sweet vanilla too.  More leather and getting creamy.

Third third:      Ashed again at 1.5".  Creamy chocolate and vanilla and leather.  Slight nicotine buzz.  Now a little fruity, and as we approach the nub, minty.  Nubbed it until my fingers and lips burned - 3/8".  Even the nub, down to the last draw was sweet and smooth.  Hours later the sweet, dry finish was still with me.  Fantastic.