Ramon Allones Edicion Limitada 2011 Allones Extra

This is to be my first Edicion Limitada cigar. I’ve liked everything I’ve had from Ramon Allones, so this shouldn’t be too tough on me. This was a vitola that was discontinued in the 1970s, and only revived in 2011 for an EL. I love the corona vitola!

Statistics

CotM: May 2014

May 2014





Shape: Parejo

Parejo





Chosen by: mgcrunch







Size: 5 5/8″ x 44







Country of Origin: Cuba







Wrapper: Cuban







Binder: Cuban







Filler: Cuban







Color: Colorado-maduro

Colorado-maduro





Strength: Medium







Price Paid: Trade

Trade





Smoke Date: May 19, 2014

May 19, 2014





Age: 2-3 years

Accessories Used

Xikar Xi3 STK Titanium Black cutter, Xikar EX Windproof Lighter Brushed Silver, Handmade English walnut ashtray made by wedgewoodrings.

Pairing

Light Roast Wild Tree Purple Varietal Black Tea of Dehong (Spring 2014) served in a Japanese Blue Dragonfly teapot and Chinese glazed ceramic “Small Flock” large cup. This is a rather spicy and complex cup of Chinese black tea. The spice helped out quite a bit, as the cigar was almost spiceless. This pairing worked out quite well in that regard.

Appearance/Nose

The first thing I have to say about this cigar is that the wrapper is gorgeous. It’s a light, milk-chocolate brown with a fine, fuzzy tooth. The color is completely even. Very nice. The band is the classic band from Ramon Allones of ages past. If anything, I like this band a lot more than the current gold/brown/red RA band. The forest green and white is a combination that you don’t really see on cigar bands and I think it makes it unique and interesting. The gold and black EL band is standard, but does help this cigar feel like something special. The nose was fairly faint, but I did get a bit of barnyard scent from the foot.

Construction

The construction on this cigar was quite nice. The wrapper, as previously mentioned, was smooth and flawless, topped off with the traditional Cuban triple-cap. The cigar was very firm to the touch and a bit hard/dry feeling near the foot. The burn was razor sharp the whole way through. In a word: perfect. The ash was light and dark gray (predominantly dark) and clung on nicely for an inch and a half at a time. When it fell off, it landed in a single, solid chunk.

Cold Draw

The cold draw was rather tight, owing probably to the tight pack near the foot. The flavor was sweet, with a savory finish.

Smoking

First third

The first few puffs were tight, yielding little smoke. The flavor was complex right from the start. There was a woody note, molasses sweetness, and a charred-meat like savory taste.

After about a quarter-inch, he draw opened up a bit and became manageable, though still rather tight.

There was a pie-crust butteriness and a slightly bitter herbal note, reminiscent of hops. The retrohale was almost minty, with the herbal flavors taking the forefront. There was little pepper or spiciness, but I did manage to get a hint of red pepper on the retrohale.

This cigar began to really shine abut an inch in. There was graham cracker pie crust, honey and molasses, and pumpkin ie spice. There was a strong “bakery” quality to the smell and taste of the smoke, as if it were made of cupcakes. The draw had also opened up nicely by this point, and was just on the tight side of normal. Very nice.

There was a tangy citrus note involved on the finish to let me know this was Cuban tobacco. The herbal note was fading with the sweetness taking over.

Second third

As the second third began, the herbal notes of basil, mint, and hops reared their heads again.the smoke left a slightly bitter (though not unpleasant) note on the center of the tongue that lingered long after the rest of the finish.

There was still the tiniest trace of red pepper on the retrohale, as well as an entire herb garden full or oregano, basil, parsley, hops, and nutmeg.

At the halfway point, I should note that the burn had been absolutely perfect. No need to rotate or watch the line, and certainly no need for a touch up or relight.

The bakery flavors, though buried under herbs, were still there, making this taste a bit like a “sweet pizza”. I know that sounds horrible, but it was actually quite nice.

The Edicion Limitada band came off cleanly without any issue, signaling the end of the middle third.

Final third

The herbal flavors subsided again in the early part of this third. There was sweet honey and vanilla, along with pie crust and graham cracker on the finish.





Despite being long past the hard bit by the foot, the draw was still a touch on the tight side of things.

Just before the second band came off, the burn finally got a touch of waviness to it, but that soon corrected itself.

The herbal flavor kicked back up again, and stayed in charge until the final puff.

Notes

Draw: Tight

Tight





Body: Medium

Medium





Primary Flavors: Basil, Hops, Pie Crust

Basil, Hops, Pie Crust





Smoke Output: Medium

Medium





Smoke Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes

Overall

This is exactly what I expected from Ramon Allones. I think I described a previous RA cigar as “tomato basil flavored”, and that holds true of this one as well. RA has a very unique herbal taste that sets it apart from other Cubans and other cigars in general. I have to say that this was the best RA stick I’ve had, with a touch of honey and graham cracker on the finish that brought it to another level. If this was a regular production stick, it probably still wouldn’t find a regular place in my humidor, but I would definitely visit it from time to time.

Rating