H. Upmann No. 2 Cigar - 1 Single

Date Added: Tuesday 15 August, 2023 by Andrew

I recently revisited this cigar only because on a recent trip to Italy I managed to get my hands on two boxes. These cigars have been quite hard to find in recent times, probably due to being No. 1 on CA’s Top 25 list 2022.

After six weeks rest I smoked one of the cigars Ive just bought box date FEB 2022 against some I’ve been aging for a while box date MAR 2013 (I only have a handful left) unsurprisingly there quite different experiences, however the similarities are strong, up to a point!

Both cigars started very well with a sweet almost meaty flavour, strangely the aged cigar had a much more oily feel and appearance to it, with the youthful one a dry appearance in comparison.

As with most Cuban cigars, there’s a hint of herbaceous grassiness and mild spice, turning to woodiness in the second third, these are by no means a strong cigar, but there are enough transitions to keep you interested. Both cigars produced voluminous smoke with a very slight blue hue. The veteran cigar did burn better, the youngster did require the odd correction to keep an even burn.

It was in the final third that these cigars took a completely different path, the aged cigar transitioned in to a tanned leather, coffee and cream delight, with a back note of spice. However the younger counterpart was rendered almost un-smokable the burn was quite uneven and the taste was raw, It was like a wet dung heap and almost ammonia overload. I know this is a sign of youth, but this was so overpowering I had to stop smoking it. I was really surprised how quickly this cigar went south!

I am not someone that nubs cigars generally leaving an inch and half and when compared to my friends Im a slow smoker. The aged cigar was a 90 minute smoke for me, the other cigar made it to the 60 minute mark before being retired.

I have been buying, smoking and to some extent aging Cuban cigars for almost 30 years (when I first started buy cigars it was not uncommon to buy cigars with three+ age on them), I’m 100% sure the 2022 smokes will in time age perfectly.

Ive done this comparison smoking aged v new production many times before but this is the biggest difference Ive encountered, maybe down to the larger viola or the tapped head focusing the flavours?

This would be five stars for the 2013 cigar, three for 2022.