Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan Corojo 2012 (Aganorsa)
Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: 5 x 52 Robusto
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $14.95
My cigars have had a little over 2 months of naked humidor time.
BACKGROUND:
Regular production.
Released 2021.
Actor Jeremy Piven worked in collaboration with Dion Giolito of Illusione Cigars to blend Piven’s first outing as a cigar maker.
THE WHOLE MEGILLAH:
Aromas lean towards the sweet side: pineapple (?), peppermint, milk chocolate, café au lait, BBQ sauce, malted milk balls, spicy peppers, butterscotch, and cedar.
I’m guessing that I am experiencing a brain aneurysm to smell all that.
The cigar is very light in the hand. Still, after using my PerfecDraw Punch & Stand, I now need to use my PerfecDraw draw adjustment tool as there is zero draw on this cigar. Look at me. I got two plugs in for Dr. Rod. I’m a good boy.
I allowed two days of dry boxing although in this 92% humidity, it is tougher than usual.
It takes several thrusts of my PerfecDraw to the hilt to clear this baby.
Good to go…
Very tasty start. Like getting some high-end 35%thc Grade A NorCal Sativa. (Did I say that out loud?).
The thing that smashes my testicles to my brain is the immediate richness of the blend. Flavors are secondary to this lovely complexity that rings the dinner bell from the get-go.
Hope it continues.
I read other reviews of this cigar that have occurred since the cigar’s release in 2021. Not very complimentary. I smoked one soon after receipt and saw something I liked. What do I know?
Basically, this is an Illusione brand with a celebrity’s name on it. I’m sure that Piven’s involvement was initially about strength, etc. After that, it was just tasting blends that Giolito threw at him over a conference table. Or something like that.
Generally, celebrity cigar blends are merely ego driven messes. I’ve smoked a couple I liked…but I can’t remember what they were. Remember, I am nearly 104 years old. If you think you forget things, just wait.
The burn gets wonky. The draw hole I made is healing itself making puffing difficult. This is not the cigar’s fault. This record-breaking heat and humidity are to blame.
With ¾” burned in 9 minutes, the flavor profile goes flat.
The blend has some heft in the depth department so maybe this cigar needs a lot of naked humidor time that I did not give it. On the other hand, it just might be a novice picking a blend he liked…and who knows what his palate is really like.
The key to any good review, or reviewer, is to magically have a palate that is similar to the greatest number of smokers. Sometimes, we hit it on the head…other times, we are lost in space. I’ve read social media comments that state the katman is out of his mind with his reviews…and other times, there are smokers that have similar palates as mine.
The Cap of the MPD Tactical Unit only buys what I recommend. That’s good enough for me. (God, I hope he doesn’t read this).
The cigar has pooped out. I do believe the industry reviewers nailed it. This is a poopy cigar.
My experience is telling me that the blender’s intent is muddled. The key is that there have been zero reviews that gave this cigar 6 months or longer to rest before reviewing it. Which means that time doesn’t matter. A poopy cigar is a poopy cigar.
The burn line is just capital, my friends. The burn has also slowed down. Great. A crap cigar that will hoist my petard through what seems like hours to complete.
A reader notified me of a Stewart Copeland interview that is very recent. It’s on YouTube. Anyway, he does talk about Curved Air…and not in a nice way. But there it was again…that classic photo of CA with me in it.
I don’t care about what I’ve written in the past about the band or Copeland. This guy has been trashing The Police and Sting for 40 years. He is not shy when it comes to being in front of the camera. And it is embarrassing how he talks about his status in life as a great drummer. He says Ringo is above him in importance. But that’s about it.
He had a giant ego when I knew and played with him, and that arrogance has just gone wild. Does he deserve the praise? Of course. But man, show some humility occasionally.
Copeland’s older brother was our manager. He was dating Jill Furmanovsky at the time I was in the band. She became a big-time rock n roll photographer. Check out her website for some very cool photos. Prints are for sale.
Jill took all the classic photos of Curved Air. She broke up with Miles sometime after I left the band. So, 90% of the photos used in P.R., are the ones she took…even though the band has been in existence for over 50 years.
The cigar goes out.
If this cigar doesn’t make a major turnaround just after the halfway point, I’m throwing in the towel.
Minerals. Black pepper. A tad scoche of creaminess. The complexity has drained away. Zero transitions. The finish is like chewing on a penny. Oy.
Damn. At $15 a pop, this cigar should be sailing around the world with a ferret as commander. The price was jacked due to the celebrity association.
The cigar is in total stasis. Not a hint of improvement or any sign of it becoming a good cigar. What was Giolito thinking? Was it the dough? Who knows.
The fact that Piven didn’t go back to the drawing board two years later after seeing negative reviews is baffling. Plus, he intends on releasing more cigars as his brand is called “The Piven Collection.” Maybe the pandemic stopped forward progress, but I hope if there is another release, Jeremy takes his palate out of his ass and Giolito does better.
I’m still waiting for the second half.
Strength began at medium. It is now full tilt and I have the swoons. Don’t you just love a cigar that is tasteless but gives you vertigo?
I hit just past the halfway point after 40 minutes. It ain’t getting better.
I must stop. I don’t like being dizzy from strength unless the cigar is a killer blend that makes one plow ahead because you just don’t want that cigar to end.
I want this cigar to end.
Sorry Jeremy.
RATING: 65
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Categories: CIGAR REVIEWS
