Wrapper: Dominican Sun Grown Rosado
Binder: Dominican Sun Grown Rosado
Filler: Dominican Sun Grown Rosado
Size: 4.88 x 40 Petit Corona
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $13.00-$50.00
BACKGROUND:
From Cigar Aficionado #13 Cigar of 2004:
“The world said fine wrapper leaf couldn’t be grown in the Dominican Republic, but Carlos Fuente Jr. proved them wrong in late 1995 with the release of the cigar he dubbed his baby, the Fuente Fuente OpusX. The cigars are a classic combination of strength and beauty, with reddish-brown Cuban-seed wrappers grown under shade. The PerfecXion No. 5 is the smallest of the line, a 4 7/8 by 40 petit corona that’s one of the premier small cigars in the world. The slight ring gauge allows the wrapper taste to dominate the cigar, giving it a delicious combination of sweetness and power. The cigars are not for beginners, simply too strong for some palates. This is the 10th year the Fuente Fuente OpusX brand has been on the market, and it remains one of the hardest cigars to find.”
THE WHOLE MEGILLAH:
Nothing better than an aged OpusX. Over ten years resting quietly…like Dr. Rod during his prostate exam. CA reviewed it over and over until 2014. CA rated the cigar 91-92 each time. Not sure if this is pretty good or pretty great. I shall now exercise my unwarranted opinion and decide if this baby is worth $50. Yeah, some pirate online retailers are charging half a Franklin. When CA reviewed the Fuente Fuente OpusX PerfecXion No. 5 in 2004, it went for $7.50.
I’ve been up since 4am. It’s true. Old people don’t sleep.
Does a 10-year-old wrapper still emit aromas? It does. Licorice, barnyard, cinnamon, caramel, oakiness, Shetland pony nuts, and old leather belt.
The draw could be better. I carefully insert my PerfecDraw because I can. I want what I want. Mission accomplished. My hands shook like a 12-year-old boy masturbating for the first time.
Why do video reviewers insist on spending 40% of their time talking about smoke output? Who the fuck cares. Really. I know, I know, glass houses…
Spicy meatball start. Very rich from years of sleep. Savory notes of smoked brisket, creaminess, brown ale, mushroom, and black pepper. Bare bones sweetness of wintergreen candy, root beer float, and black licorice.
A sophisticated open book. Seasoned smokers will certainly appreciate the blend. And newbies will love it until the medium/full kicks in…or will it? 10 years may have tamed the beast into submission. Like telling my wiener not to dribble when I pee.
The little cigar tightens up as Archie Bell would have it. The Drells do not comment…as their royalties were stolen by The Man.
I wasn’t expecting that everyman was for himself when I played in my first pro band. I thought that it would have a familial attitude about everyone helping each other out. I was wrong. In Curved Air, we never once jammed. Not once. Always down to business which I found foreign. But I was paid handsomely so I shut the fuck up while I was miserable.
Lemon citrus enters the fray while the cigar goes from medium strength to medium/full in the first half inch. Clearly, time does not have an Einstein effect on this tobacco.
The heat formed a steel rod. The draw quits on me. I grab my PerfecDraw once again. It retrieves a twig. Airflow goes back to normal. What do you expect from a $7.50 cigar.
The FF OpusX is good. A 91 or 92 is pretty accurate. But how did a cigar with that rating make it to the top 25 of Cigar Aficionado’s list in 2004? I’m sure corruption and greed were not in play. CA is above that.
Very slow roll which surprises me. 1” burned. 25 minutes. Using my Fortran programming, I calculate this will be a 2-hour smoke. That can’t be right.
And then it happens…complexity kicks in with all four feet. The early richness is surpassed by something otherworldly. 10 years shows its face. I was beginning to give up.
Strength is way, way potent. Holy shit. Laugh out loud. The room spins. My gonads do the Macarena to ‘All Along the Watchtower.’ They may be old, but they still have good taste. I’ll have to ask Charlotte about that.
So, do you have to marinate your new FF OpusX PerfecXion 10 years before lighting up? Hell no. I’d give it a year. Clearly, the blend doesn’t mellow. A year should be plenty.
Holy crap. A lot of smoke output. Roll camera.
Out of the three Copeland boys, Ian was my favorite as he was the most out there of the three brothers. He also was the babe magnet. He dated Marianne Faithful and Courteney Cox. Unfortunately, he died of cancer at age 57 in 2006. He wrote a book called “Wild Thing” in 1995. Yes, he told everyone what a pain in the ass I was.
The strength hits William Wallace at the halfway point. My guts splay for all to see.
Transitions are very subtle…but they’re noticeable and I bear down. I’m sure that CA smoked a fairly green stick. If it had rested appropriately, they would have picked up on just how complex it becomes. Flavors begin to coagulate and find themselves being more of an afterthought than under a bright spotlight. Rich nuances blast from the Super Soaker.
More flavors begin to swirl in a parabolic curve with a quadratic relationship just past the halfway point: Oatmeal with brown sugar, butterscotch, black walnuts, and beef jerky. Citrus is bitter lemon rind. Black pepper spiciness hangs in the background exerting a perfect complement to this now exciting blend. I honestly thought the cigar would be bland. I was wrong.
And the cigar goes out. What do I do? Dunno.
My brain shakes like a bobble doll inside my incredible shrinking head.
It took nearly 2-1/2” inches, but this cigar knocks it out of the park with extreme complexity. This is a new level.
Despite its strength, the nicotine level is low. I keep a bucket nearby just in case.
Roasted nuts, malt, espresso, dark chocolate, creamy floral, and salted caramel. The blend keeps morphing. Alrighty then. This petite cigar is a showoff.
My arse is like your dog scraping his on the carpet. Only furrier.
Old-people-sex incorporates a cacophony of talking over each other while juxtaposing from one possible position to another…” Ouch…can’t put weight on that knee. Let me move over to the other side.’
“No. Don’t do that. It makes me twist my back the way it makes me hurt. Just get off your knees and lay down on your back.’
“Why don’t I get on top of you?’
“OK.”
“Fuck. My neck is uncomfortable on my pillow. Can you move it?’
“Shit. I can’t let my knee bend for that long and holding myself up is giving me a cramp in my shoulder.’
“I got it. A blow job.”
The wife agrees.
When we were young, we were two dreidels cage fighting. Now, I am merely hoping not to lose consciousness before the happy ending.
Earth, wind, and leather. How many times must you lick leather and eat dirt before it becomes muscle memory?
The cigar is a homunculus while maintaining its slight size. A marvelous ploy.
Great cigar. It is a 90-minute exercise in not levitating from its strength. Perfect for the seasoned smoker. Not great for newbies.
You can purchase any number of Arturo Fuente cigars from sponsors Small Batch Cigar (10% off with promo code ‘katman’), Luxury Cigar Club (15% off with promo code ‘katman), Renegade Cigars (10% off with promo code ‘katman’), and Cigar Page.
RATING: 95
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