It seems like there has been a lot of interest in this cigar lately, so I wrote up my notes from the one I smoked.
Prelight observations: This cigar was purchased from a local B&M and stored in my humi at 65% for a week. The band is a bit of a departure from other illusione bands, not something I would immediately identify as one of Dion's sticks sitting. Not that it looks bad or anything but who really cares about bands anyway, right? The wrapper isn't the prettiest thing has a fair amount of tooth. I really only smelled a faint cider smell out of the box.
Flavor: The Rothchildes opens with an earthy maduro flavor with underlying floral notes. The floral notes fade into something more nutty towards the middle of the cigar, maybe boiled peanuts. As the floral notes fade the earthiness shifts to more of a cocoa flavor. There is perhaps a hint of allspice towards the finish. Way more complex than I expected from a cigar at this size and price point.
Construction and Burn: the Rothchildes had a perfect draw. The burn got a little uneven towards the middle, but it corrected it's self. The smoke production was fantastic, nearly Undercrown levels. Ash holds almost to the two inch mark. Smoke time is just under an hour. With the price point and the sub-robusto size, You may think this is a short smoke, but it benefits from going slow.
Strength: The Rothchildes was a solid medium through out. Good for a slight buzz, but you are never going to mistake this thing for a Fausto.
My Take: I can't think of a readily available medium strength maduro that I would rather have than the ~r~, the only thing I would probably prefer would be an aged WOAM. There are some full strength maduros I like better, namely the PAM 26 and Tat TAA '12, but those are at a whole different price point. The MSRP on these is already low, but I've seen them go for as low as $3.50 a stick. There are a few good cigars out there for that price, mostly petit coronas, but I can't think of any that bring the level of complexity that the Rothchildes has to the table. This cigar is in a class by its own, and should make any respectable top cigars of the year list.
