Weekend review; January 16 & 17, 2010

Another wet weekend! Oh well, whatcha gonna do? It was a good weekend to review some cigars. Here's the weekend list:
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• Avo XO Maestoso
• Playboy robusto
• Perdomo Grand Cru Maduro churchill

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Saturday, January 16th, 2010
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Avo XO Maestoso (7x48)
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I picked up this cigar at the Maduro Room at an event last year. It had a very creamy, vanilla spice with nice pepper. More pepper than I expected. The finish was long with raw almond notes. I observed notes of citrus, leather and sweetness. The pepper lingers on the back of your tongue. The cigar is, what some might call, floral. By that I mean it has a mix of several flavors that give it a bouquet of spice. While this is a medium bodied cigar at best it is quite pleasing. It is not an inexpensive cigar either! They retail for around $12. This is a good, flavorful cigar.
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Score: 91
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Playboy robusto (5x50)
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This cigar had a dark brown wrapper. It had notes of citrus spice with roasted almonds and pepper. The finish is fairly long with light sweet vanilla notes.
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The finish improved at midpoint. This cigar is, as I expected, mild but fairly flavorful. This was my first try at a Playboy cigar. It was sent to me by "Lumbo" but unfortunately he did not send a playmate to go along with it!
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Score: 87
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Sunday, January 17th, 2010
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Perdomo Grand Cru Maduro churchill (7x50)
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This is a very solid feeling cigar. By that I mean it has substantial weight in the hand. It feels very dense; well packed. That being said the draw was very good with just a touch of firmness. It started with an intense sweet spice and tons of pepper. There were light leather notes hidden in the spice. The heavy, sweet spice has a thick molasses flavor. The finish is very long with sweet vanilla notes. Medium to full bodied. The pepper is very prominent when exhaled through the nose. Black coffee notes observed at midpoint. This is a very good, solid cigar and priced right. You can find them for around $7 at your local shop. I'd call this a must-try for maduro lovers.
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Score: 91