Vitola de Galera:  Petit Corona
Vitola de Salida:  Half Corona
Shape: Parejo
Body: Round
Dimensions:  44 RG /  3 1/2 inches
Vintage:  September 2012 / ENE
Age When Tasted:  2 yrs, 6 mo

Warning…

This little cigar is addictive.

I often find myself obsessing about finding sharing a stolen moment with one…like a starstruck lover.

But the story wasn’t all romance.

When I had my first look at one of these diminutive chaps, I wasn’t really that impressed.

My first thought was…a 3 /2 inch cigar with a 44 ring gauge?  It seemed a little silly, and they also looked carelessly rolled.  Did I mention the draw is really loose?

But I decided to try one.

Then another.

Then another.

I have to admit that I feel like I committed an act of betrayal by judging this very tasty little cigar by looks alone. The faults I perceived are actually assets.

They add to the charm.

The size to ring gauge ratio actually makes it feel like a welcome friend in the hand.

The fast burning quality means it will last about 40 minutes–just enough time for an after lunch break or after dinner, if you don’t want to spend time lingering too long over a cigar that requires more time to enjoy.

What looks like carelessness in fabrication is actually very deliberate and you can always count on the same experience,

And its a great value.

Need I say more?

And because enjoy this little guy so much, and I want to make sure you do too.

Here it goes..

“Rules” for the Optimum Enjoyment of the H. Upmann Half Corona

Here it goes:

1. Age them at LEAST 2 years before smoking.  They need time to mellow out a little–to balance the intense flavors. Two years is the minimum.  These babies could lay down a long time and just get better and better.
2. Make sure they are not over-humidified.  They are already soft to begin with.
3. Don’t draw too often or too hard–they will overheat—trust me. And they will taste bitter.
4. Stay on top of them–the loose roll means that they tend to go out if you don’t pay attention while smoking them.  BUT, you need to have a balanced approach.  Don’t draw too often but don’t draw too infrequently.  Sounds easy? It really isn’t.  (I just had the one I am smoking go out because I was paying more attention to writing this list of Rules than tending to the cigar!)
5.  And finally…stock  up on them.  You will thank me.

You way be wondering…what do they taste like?

Imagine the way the spirit of a grizzly bear tastes.

Brawny…confident…a little unruly…STRONG…wild…but calculating.

I always taste lots of burnt coffee and chocolate..but chocolate with a high cacao content–you know how chocolate like that tends to have a dry finish?  It’s like that.

There is also a pretty omnipresent malty-herbal character to them.  Kinda a strange combination, but it works.

They also don’t taste very “H. Upmann-like” to me, as the bulk of the line has quite a bit of refinement to my taste.

But that’s another one of its many merits.