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Last post 4 years ago by Mrs. dpnewell. 32 replies replies.
601 Oscuros...still any good?
Titleist Offline
#1 Posted:
Joined: 11-03-2019
Posts: 6
Been about 10 years since I smoked, getting back in for a while. I too went through the Rocky Patel seconds garbage fiasco back then, a couple garbage boxes from Patel as well and swore off of his cigars. I was thinking of trying the 601 Green again as I enjoyed that back in the day.

Are the 601's made TODAY still a decent smoker did they go the way of garbage as well?
Mr. Jones Offline
#2 Posted:
Joined: 06-12-2005
Posts: 19,357
Get in your "WAY BACK MACHINE" with Mr. Wizard and dial up 2009...you may find them back then...
That blend is gone...long gone...
ZRX1200 Online
#3 Posted:
Joined: 07-08-2007
Posts: 60,473
I quit buying 601s after the “bomb” whatever they were went downhill quickly
Titleist Offline
#4 Posted:
Joined: 11-03-2019
Posts: 6
Mr. Jones wrote:
Get in your "WAY BACK MACHINE" with Mr. Wizard and dial up 2009...you may find them back then...
That blend is gone...long gone...



They're still selling these everywhere..... you mean the 601 green now is nothing like what it was then?
frankj1 Offline
#5 Posted:
Joined: 02-08-2007
Posts: 44,211
mind if I play through?
KingoftheCove Offline
#6 Posted:
Joined: 10-08-2011
Posts: 7,600
I used to smoke them back in the day.......with a long nap, they were good, but I found better cigars at the same price point......so they fell off my radar.

There’s a couple guys at Geeks who quite recently reviewed the Tronco, and gave it a good score.
The Tronco was my favorite vitola when I was smoking them.
Whistlebritches Offline
#7 Posted:
Joined: 04-23-2006
Posts: 22,127
Used ty the corona's by the cab.Haven't had one in years...….now my curiosity is kicking in
corey sellers Offline
#8 Posted:
Joined: 08-21-2011
Posts: 10,338
Ha see what you did there Frank
Palama Online
#9 Posted:
Joined: 02-05-2013
Posts: 23,450
Whistlebritches wrote:
Used ty the corona's by the cab.Haven't had one in years...….now my curiosity is kicking in


Like the drugs from the ‘70s and ‘80s? Whistle
GaryR Offline
#10 Posted:
Joined: 06-06-2019
Posts: 49
I'm ignorant on the history of 601. They are now made by Erik Espinosa. I do really enjoy the blue label box pressed sticks. Have had hit and miss experiences with the green label.
BLISTER Offline
#11 Posted:
Joined: 11-24-2003
Posts: 1,798
GaryR wrote:
I'm ignorant on the history of 601.


The 601 Greens were produced by Pepin. I used to smoke tons of them. Still have a box or two.

The Espinoza made cigars taste different, but I like almost everything that's made at La Zona.
Mr. Jones Offline
#12 Posted:
Joined: 06-12-2005
Posts: 19,357
Sooo
Blister...

Is the B.L.E.N.D. the same now?

Or are you smoking 10 - 15 yr old 601 's and talkin' out ur STARFISH...? FROM THE WAY BACK MACHINE...

MR. WIZARD HAS BLISTER BY THE BALLS !!!

BWUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! BLLLLIIISSS-THOOORRR!
Mr. Jones Offline
#13 Posted:
Joined: 06-12-2005
Posts: 19,357
Hey FRANK...

STAY OUTTA' MY PLAYGROUND...
U
PHHHH U KKKKK
borndead1 Offline
#14 Posted:
Joined: 11-07-2006
Posts: 5,215
The 601 Reds are still pretty good. Been thinking about giving the Greens another shot. I still have a handful of the OR.
frankj1 Offline
#15 Posted:
Joined: 02-08-2007
Posts: 44,211
corey sellers wrote:
Ha see what you did there Frank

had to be home before dark.
frankj1 Offline
#16 Posted:
Joined: 02-08-2007
Posts: 44,211
Mr. Jones wrote:
Hey FRANK...

STAY OUTTA' MY PLAYGROUND...
U
PHHHH U KKKKK

con mucho gusto, Senor Chones
borndead1 Offline
#17 Posted:
Joined: 11-07-2006
Posts: 5,215
Smoking an approximately 10 yr old Green Tronco now. Yum. I may have to try some newer ones.
BLISTER Offline
#18 Posted:
Joined: 11-24-2003
Posts: 1,798
Mr. Jones wrote:
Sooo
Blister...

Is the B.L.E.N.D. the same now?

Or are you smoking 10 - 15 yr old 601 's and talkin' out ur STARFISH...? FROM THE WAY BACK MACHINE...



No, the blend is different but I still enjoy them.
Eddie Ortega and Erik Espinosa parted ways and broke up EO Brands in 2012.
I think Pepin continued to make the 601 greens for a while longer, maybe a year of two.

..and yeh, I have a bunch of old stuff. ODO, buy more than you can smoke
Pudding Mittens Offline
#19 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
.
I still have one half-full plus three fully-intact 40-count boxes of the 601 green coronas with the "My Father" seal, meaning Pepin-rolled. Got them years ago on a closeout for $80/box meaning $2/stick.

They're fantastic after around 8+ years of age.

(Yes, the Pepin-rolled coronas used to come in 40-count boxes).

Back about then, CI was constantly pushing 601 Greens in the Tronco size. 5-packs, 20-count bundles, you name it. 601 Green Tronco, deal deal deal! Constantly. I'm not complaining though, because I ended up with a ton of Troncos I still have today, with 8+ years age on them. They're also fantastic.
.
Whistlebritches Offline
#20 Posted:
Joined: 04-23-2006
Posts: 22,127
Pudding Mittens wrote:
.
I still have one half-full plus three fully-intact 40-count boxes of the 601 green coronas with the "My Father" seal, meaning Pepin-rolled. Got them years ago on a closeout for $80/box meaning $2/stick.

They're fantastic after around 8+ years of age.

(Yes, the Pepin-rolled coronas used to come in 40-count boxes).

Back about then, CI was constantly pushing 601 Greens in the Tronco size. 5-packs, 20-count bundles, you name it. 601 Green Tronco, deal deal deal! Constantly. I'm not complaining though, because I ended up with a ton of Troncos I still have today, with 8+ years age on them. They're also fantastic.
.


I couldn't remember,50,44,40,I just knew the coronas came in a cab of sorts.Those were the days!!!
Ruby Offline
#21 Posted:
Joined: 02-24-2016
Posts: 116
I like the green and the blue. Smoked a green after lunch today and it tasted just fine.
steve02 Offline
#22 Posted:
Joined: 05-20-2004
Posts: 954
Was just at my B&M (waiting for his AF Xmas shipment - I have a box of Opus and a box of Anejos coming) and he was raving about the new blends of the 601s. He gave me one of each - I’ll check back when I’ve tried them.
Pudding Mittens Offline
#23 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
steve02 wrote:
Was just at my B&M (waiting for his AF Xmas shipment - I have a box of Opus and a box of Anejos coming) and he was raving about the new blends of the 601s. He gave me one of each - I’ll check back when I’ve tried them.

It seems Espinoza's not screwing around lately, he seems to be making very good cigars.

I've previously mentioned his 601 Steel line, which can often, if you're patient, be had for cheap at a particular vendor (codename: "scary site" and its parent, the "very well-known" shop).

Those are tasty, well-made, great-performing sticks for (again if you're patient) $2 each by the box or jar, quite impressive. The boxes (unfinished Spanish cedar, great for humidor regulation) and jars (negative pressure-seal vacuum lid, nice!) are a bonus.

However I did get a big batch of what was, in my opinion, terrible 601 La Bomba Flash Bangs in late 2016 (CI 10-pack plus $20 Bucks deal, $30 per 10-pack thus $1 per stick net price). They were harsh, burned badly, tasted terrible. Now however, 3 years later, they're getting good, believe it or not. Had a few recently and enjoyed them.

Go figure.
.
Titleist Offline
#24 Posted:
Joined: 11-03-2019
Posts: 6
Well now I'm leaning towards another 5 pack to see what they've done to the blend. I just let the desire of getting my humi restocked that I made a rookie mistake. I picked up a 5er of Decades, let ithem rest a couple weeks and pulled one out to try. Wasn't half bad although a bit rough near the end so I assumed they could just use a bit more time.. Then came the mistake of picking up a few more lots of them based on only smoking the one dog rocket. Burned again by Patel and my own greed. Second one I just burned was that same old acrid chemical flavor that made me give them up the last time. I didn't pick up the distinct ammonia I did in the last batch years ago though. These were dated 2018. I can't tell if it's undercured or just garbage tobacco so who knows if letting them sit for 6 months or so is going to do any good. I'm thinking undercured there's nothing that will save them.

So from now on its ONE fiver, smoke them all before considering stocking up. I'll do the greens and a red to see if they's smokable. Then I'll move onto the newer blends and see if they're box worthy.

Waiting to hear Steve02's evaluation of the new ones.
GaryR Offline
#25 Posted:
Joined: 06-06-2019
Posts: 49
Titleist wrote:
Well now I'm leaning towards another 5 pack to see what they've done to the blend. I just let the desire of getting my humi restocked that I made a rookie mistake. I picked up a 5er of Decades, let ithem rest a couple weeks and pulled one out to try. Wasn't half bad although a bit rough near the end so I assumed they could just use a bit more time.. Then came the mistake of picking up a few more lots of them based on only smoking the one dog rocket. Burned again by Patel and my own greed. Second one I just burned was that same old acrid chemical flavor that made me give them up the last time. I didn't pick up the distinct ammonia I did in the last batch years ago though. These were dated 2018. I can't tell if it's undercured or just garbage tobacco so who knows if letting them sit for 6 months or so is going to do any good. I'm thinking undercured there's nothing that will save them.

So from now on its ONE fiver, smoke them all before considering stocking up. I'll do the greens and a red to see if they's smokable. Then I'll move onto the newer blends and see if they're box worthy.

Waiting to hear Steve02's evaluation of the new ones.


I just did the same thing. I smoked a Man o War Damnation a week ago and as I was smoking I was thinking, "Damn, this is the absolute BEST cigar I have ever had." I remember thinking how I enjoyed it even more than Padron 1926.....

Got home that night and ordered a box. Then I smoked a couple more from the first 5er......

I'm going to go crazy trying to duplicate that first experience. :(
Pudding Mittens Offline
#26 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
GaryR wrote:
I just did the same thing. I smoked a Man o War Damnation a week ago and as I was smoking I was thinking, "Damn, this is the absolute BEST cigar I have ever had." I remember thinking how I enjoyed it even more than Padron 1926.....

Got home that night and ordered a box. Then I smoked a couple more from the first 5er......

I'm going to go crazy trying to duplicate that first experience. :(

Upon initial testing/evaluation, the Damnations struck me as a cigar that would benefit from lots of age. This is based on their performance, flavor and my total past experience and intuition with cigars so it may not be correct, but I really suspect it is.

So I bought a lot of them, buried them in one of my Sterilite containers and forgot about them. Gonna keep forgetting about them for quite a few years to come.

Then you hope they're great. It's like playing a slot machine where it takes years to pull the arm each time. Herfing

If you want to smoke them now, I would suggest maybe 48 hours of dryboxing.

You can also try running the cigar under tap water for a few seconds (pre-cut, head facing up, foot ALWAYS facing down so no water gets in it), then rolling it on a paper towel to remove all excess water, let sit maybe 2-3 minutes, then light. Wrappers are basically waterproof so the binder/filler won't get wet, but the wrapper will become slightly more moist, which believe it or not doesn't inhibit burning, but significantly changes the flavors, usually for the better. It's a technique not commonly known or talked about today, but it used to be very common, and it works... with some cigars, anyway.

You can even do both. Sometimes I drybox 48 hours, then wet the wrapper, then smoke.

When to do which? Hard to say. Experiment!
.
GaryR Offline
#27 Posted:
Joined: 06-06-2019
Posts: 49
Thanks for the tips! Will try that.
Titleist Offline
#28 Posted:
Joined: 11-03-2019
Posts: 6
All things to try before relegating them to a forgotten coolerdor. This reminds me of something though, has anyone tried clipping the cap before aging? Everything that's ever gotten unsmokable for me lately has always been halfway down, was thinking if I clipped the cap and let them age the circulation through the clipped cap might help with that on the back end. There are a couple that taste ok until halfway so I'm gonna try clipping a couple caps and letting them sit in the same box for a couple months and see if opening the other end helps with this.
delta1 Offline
#29 Posted:
Joined: 11-23-2011
Posts: 28,753
it's been a "thing" here before...heard it only works on Victor Sinclair cigars though....ymmv...
Mrs. dpnewell Offline
#30 Posted:
Joined: 08-23-2014
Posts: 1,373
Early fall I won over 30 of these 601 greens for $1.50. This thread shows up and the bids more then double. I wish you folk would stop talking about my go to cigars.

David
USNGunner Offline
#31 Posted:
Joined: 05-17-2019
Posts: 4,402
Mrs. dpnewell wrote:
Early fall I won over 30 of these 601 greens for $1.50. This thread shows up and the bids more then double. I wish you folk would stop talking about my go to cigars.

David



Yeah, I've seen that same thing happen with other smokes as well. The power of the press. LOL.
Mrs. dpnewell Offline
#32 Posted:
Joined: 08-23-2014
Posts: 1,373
I also won a bunch of 601 reds for $1. Can't do that any more either.

David
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