Unfortunately, Jerry had some family problems arise and will not be able to stand in for his normal Friday Review.
First and foremost, Jerry I wish you and your family the best through these hard times.
Today as an impromptu review, I have the Padron Anniversary 1964 Maduro, also referred to as the PAM 1964. This particular cigar weighs in at 4.5 inches long and has a square pressed 46 ring gauge. The wrapper has a satin like sheen with small veins and oily speckles running throughout the stick. It is an absolute beauty to look at.
After a quick and easy clip I had the head of the cigar opened up, which gave way to an excellent pre light draw. When puffed upon, it produced rich tobacco flavors. After a few test puffs I reached for my lighter and began my toast and light ritual. After touching the flame to the foot for just a minute, the cigar produced thick clouds of flavorful smoke.
As I made my way into the first third of my PAM 1964, I found it to have very rich tobacco flavors with a mild coffee like aftertaste. The finish was smooth & creamy and lasted for just a minute or two on the palate. The body was in the Medium to Full range and rounded out all of the flavors and textures very well. The draw was excellent as expected and produced a nice even burn and a strong light colored ash.
At this point, the only thing that troubled me was the fairly heavy resting smoke the cigar was putting out. This is generally a sign of a fast burning cigar, but to my surprise it was not quiet as fast as I would have expected. In addition it stayed cool and smoked very well. The resting smoke filled the room with a medium aroma that was very enjoyable.
After about 20 minutes I began to work my way into the second third. The base flavor was that of rich tobacco with a coffee, and now nutty aftertaste. The finish was still very smooth and creamy while the body was slowly building deeper into the medium to full spectrum. The ash remained very firm and light in color while producing a thin and crisp burn line. The burn was still a little fast, but was nice and even. At this point I found myself completely engrossed by the cigar and was really enjoying myself.
About 20 minutes later I reached the final third of my PAM 1964. The body peaked in the medium to full range. The finish was very consistent and lasted for just a minute or two on the palate while remaining smooth and creamy. The base flavor was rich tobacco with a mixture of coffee, nuts, and now cocoa. The flavor, body, and finish made for an all around fantastic smoke.
Overall I was very happy with this cigar and would highly recommend picking one up if possible. The price point on my cigar was $8.00 which I think is pricy for such a small cigar (or any size honestly) but I think that it performs very well and is worth every penny. I like to pick these up on occasion to have on hand for special occasions, or just because in this case.
Hey, Walt.
I want to ask you a question about when cigars are stored improperly. Because lately I’ve pick up a few cigars from some local shops and some of these shops don’t seem to know what there doing when it comes down to storing them. And about half way threw the first one of the cigars I pick up I got a pungent taste. this has happened with all the ones I’ve pick up from one of the shops. And I thought maybe its when a cigar doesn’t get the right amount of humidity. so I just wanted to make sure that this was a problem with the storing of the cigar and not the cigar its self?
If I had the sneaking suspicion the shops I frequented weren’t storing their cigars properly I wouldn’t be a customer anymore. That being said I usually let my cigars rest a couple days before smoking them. I find that cigars smoker better at 65% humidity and most tobacconists store their cigars at 70%.
hey walt,
great review as always. sorry to hear youve been so busy lately. hope you can get things back to normal soon. so sorry to hear about jerry, hope everyhting will be ok for him and his family. i wish him the very best.
Thanks, Jack.
I don’t buy from that shop anymore.
But isn’t 65% humidity a little to dry?
I thought that was more of a Cuban cigar type storing?
Lou,
I have learned that there is a huge difference in the way cigars perform between 65-70% RH.
I have found that some cigars (such as Padron) actually smoke much better at 65% RH (thanks for Jabba for the tip) while others do better at 70%. It seems that you really have to do a trial and error run before finding out how cigars perform best.
Also, the pungent taste you are experiencing could be a result of too much humidity n the stick. I have found that some B&M’s actually store their sticks at upwards of 75%. This is due to the constant opening and closing of the humidor door.
Matt & Cigar Jack,
Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment, it is greatly appreciated.
-Walt
Aside from Cigars, there are more important things in life, like family. I want to wish Jerry and his family the best and hope all is well.
Thanks alot, Walt.
and Matt & Cigar Jack.
I hope Jerry is hanging in there, he will be in my thoughts and prayers.
Great review Walt! I agree with your comment on the price point, personally I try to avoid the expensive stuff other than for special occassions/smokes.
If one has the patience to age cigars, a Padron regular series is awesome with a few years of age on them, probably my favorite non Cubans
The large sizes of this cigar are some of the few cigars that I’m willing to pay over $10 to purchase.
i rock my humidor at a constant 70 or 71. that is my favorite way. i hope to smoke one of these guys some day. the high price tag is limiting me from this one currently. for just a little more you can have a box 25 of romeo y julietas from tnt. when i think in those terms that makes it tough.
Great smoke, I have several 64 Torpedos in my fridge (yes, I keep them in the fridge) for special occasions. As to the cost, another way to think of it is that you can’t even buy two packs of crappy generic cigarettes for that price (not that I smoke cigs).
Putting cigars in a fridge will definitely ruin them. The fridge runs a significantly low RH and thus will dry them out. If you have no alternative storage or humidification device, I suggest putting the cigars in the freezer. Remove them a day before you want to smoke it and put them in a zip lock bag to rest for at least 24 hours before you smoke them.
I recently smoke one of these in Vegas.
The weird thing is at first I wasn’t sure if I liked it, but after smoking it I realized just how good it was.
A suggested drink pairing that I had was a large ice cold Kahula Mudslide taking small sips. Went really well with the cigar’s mild coffee like flavors.
I’ve had Maduro cigars before but this one wins hands down for best Maduro I’ve ever had, even if the cigar smoking time is a bit short.
P.S. – Buying them in Canada at a local B & M is pointless as they over charge for this brand. Buy them in the U.S.
Well i must have had a bad stick. I truly didn’t enjoy this cigar as much as everyone else. It had a bitter taste and too much spice left on the pallet for me. Don’t get me wrong it was a good cigar but definitely not worth the price for me. Better luck to everyone else 🙂
Totally agree with Kyle. Had the same with mine. Very spicy dry taste. Not worth the price.