Blind Cigar Review: Ron Mexico | Churchill

This cigar was reviewed blind (no bands) by a panel of at least 4 reviewers. They did not know what they were smoking beforehand. The scores are an average of all the reviewers' scores with outliers removed.

Vital Stats:

Vitola: Churchill

Length: 7″

Ring Gauge: 50

Country of Origin: Dominican Republic

Wrapper: Connecticut

Binder: Dominican Republic

Filler: Dominican Republic

Number of reviewers: 12 —– Derek (StogieNinja) Brian (B-daddy) Craig (WyldKnyght) Ian (Sp@rky426) Milton (mjohnsoniii) Myles (MylesT) Nicholas (volpow61) Robert (NavyPiper) Jason (bigslowrock) Ron (shuckins) Sandeep (Djangos) Will (Dubv23)

Price: $1.00

Initial Impressions

Appearance: 87

“This cigar had a light brown toothy wrapper and it was soft and spongy with lots of veins.” –Craig (WyldKnyght)

Aroma: 87

“Mostly hay and dry grass but pleasant none the less.” –Sandeep (Djangos)

Construction: 85

“Pretty spongy from head to foot, and feels under filled or rolled too loose.” –Myles (MylesT)

First Third

Flavor: 87

Strength: Mild

Body/Complexity: Light-Medium

“Very plain hay and earthy flavors. Pepper is coming in and out. Lots of blue grey smoke with a very straight burn line. Very uneventful in general. The burn is quite fast for a cigar of this size.” –Sandeep (Djangos)

“The cigar opened with a very bland basic profile. The flavor was no where above a light mild body. Present were tobacco, hay, toast and faint cedar. They came as one and never presented anything more than a simple straightforward experience.” –Will (Dubv23)

Second Third

Flavor: 86

Strength: Mild-Medium

Body/Complexity: Light-Medium

“Through the second third, spice picks up a bit, but not enough to be too noticeable. Still a lackluster cigar with not much flavor other than a natural tobacco flavor. If it werent for a review I would have pitched this cigar already. Hope it picks up but not much hope though.” –Nicholas (volpow61)

“Light anise has joined in bringing a bit of heat along with a musky, almost sour earthy peat taste that makes it seem to be wet, although it doesn’t burn that way. After a few puffs a little cedar flavor showed up giving it a drier taste that was much welcomed.” –Ron (shuckins)

Final Third

Flavor: 86

Strength: Mild-Medium

Body/Complexity: Light-Medium

“Sweet hay, sourdough bread, some baking spices and a hint of wood and pepper. Nothing changes muh flavor wise, except that it gets just a little harsher towards the end, and there’s a touch of bitterness when I hit a soft spot in the cigar and struggle to keep it lit. I let it go out when it hits a second trouble spot in the burn without much thought.” –Derek (StogieNinja)

“Toasty oak flavors ramp up a bit in the final third and body bumps up a notch. Still getting some creaminess but now with a touch of leather on the slightly longer, more interesting finish. Retrohale is a bit more spicy too. Some nuttiness comes in toward the end. I end it at about the one-inch mark because it gets pretty hot.” –Brian (B-daddy)

Overall Impressions

Draw: 91

“One of the best things about the cigar was the draw. Though sadly, the smoke it produced was not very tasty.” –Ron (shuckins)

Burn: 92

“Good burn, ash was flaky almos/t powdery up till 2nd third then tightened up and held for over an inch.” –Ian (Sp@rky426)

Overall Strength: Mild-Medium

Overall Body/Complexity: Light-Medium

Overall Experience: 85

“Well, this one was unremarkable in every way. Nothing exceptional to comment on. Nothing about it screamed quality, or encouraged me to smoke it again. It was one dimensional, and the scraps in my mouth were really annoying. That being said, I assume this is a cheap bundle cigar, and that being the case is actually one I might be interested it. If the price is cheap enough, this is a perfect cigar to hand to a noob. It’s mild, the smoke is calm and creamy, and it has a nice sweetness to it. Because its unremarkable, it’s also pretty inoffensive. If you have guys who have never smoked before, or guys who you know can’t appreciate a fine cigar, this might be the ticket.” –Derek (StogieNinja)

“Mild. Pleasant. OK. If it’s cheap, I might pick some up. Maybe with morning coffee.” –Brian (B-daddy)

“Overall, I would never try this cigar again, it was very harsh and bitter, the few good points for this cigar could not outweigh the bad points. If not for having to review it I would not have finished smoking it.” –Craig (WyldKnyght)

“All in all this would be a decent yard gar. Cutting the grass or playing golf is where this Churchill belongs. Nothing special in my book but a well rolled mild-medium stick. Good for introducing a buddy to cigars possibly.” – Ian (Sp@rky426)

“I can honestly say that at the beginning, I didn’t have high hopes for this one. But I have to admit, mid-way through the second third until I nubbed it (yea, that happened), flavors subtly started revealing themselves and eventually turned out to be a very enjoyable 60 minutes in which I thought would never happen. I usually don’t do Churchill sizes and this one surely didn’t change my mind, but at the same time, it was quite enjoyable. I definitely wouldn’t class it in the ultra-premium range but would keep a bundle to enjoy every now and again or possibly even use as an everyday cigar, given that wouldn’t break the bank.” –Milton (mjohnsoniii)

“This was a surprise for me. I really expected, based on initial impressions, that this would be kinda unpleasant, but I actually found it fairly enjoyable, if very mild for my taste. Also, considering its length, it was a very fast smoke.” –Myles (MylesT)

“Overall, not a cigar I enjoyed at all. Very bland and flavorless. Not something I would smoke again. Cant believe a cigar maker would even sell this stick after trying it himself. I have had 3 dollar sticks better than this. Like I said before, if it wasn’t for a review I would have pitched this in the first third.” –Nicholas (volpow61)

“Great smoke for in the morning, nice and mild way to start the day. Went great with my coffee complimenting it nicely. I smoked it to the nub, and would smoke more.” –Robert (NavyPiper)

While the one note flavor was enjoyable and a bit unique, the cigar was pretty boring. Also, the construction of my cigar was off. It’s like they almost forgot to add a leaf or two when rolling it. Just not enough tobacco for the size of this cigar.” –Jason (bigslowrock)

“Well rolled cigar that smoked great, but it never lost the musty earth taste that was a little sour at times and that held back, or covered up the other flavors, which is a shame because the potential for a better cigar was there.” –Ron (shuckins)

“Very plain cigar without any wow factor. Other than the smoke and burn there is not much to elaborate on the flavor profile.” –Sandeep (Djangos)

“This wasn’t the worst cigar I have smoked but it was far from good. The flavors were lacking at an extreme level. I was only presented with a few core flavors that were extremely mild and underwhelming. The profile never really changed and strength was low. Brownie points go to this one for decent burn and the fact that it never really turned bitter making the unpleasant…intolerable.” –Will (Dubv23)

Smoking Time (in minutes): 77

Total Score: 87 (Fair)

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To view the complete scores and notes, click here

Blind Cigar Review: Ron Mexico | Churchill