Mr. Bundles Nicaraguan Selection line

[solomr2]

Based on reviews I read in here I decided to give these a try. I bought a bundle of NSS (sungrown) and also received a sampler of NSO (original) - both in Churchill size.

First, my review of the NSS:
I must say, for bundled cigars these are pretty nice looking sticks. The NSS has a dark wrapper, almost maduro, but the color is a little mottled. The cap is pretty smooth, and there is a slightly oily sheen to the wrapper. The cigars are very firm, and unfortunately, they are rather tight and don't draw very well. I've smoked 4 of them in the past week, and all had a hard draw, not enough to spoil them, but it did affect my enjoyment. I've had them drying out for nearly 2 weeks, so I'm pretty sure it's not because they are too wet.

The smoke was relatively dense, but I'm sure if they were not so tight there would be greater volume. The taste is very agreeable with me, typical Nicaraguan flavor profile, with some hints of cedar, and slightly nutty sweetness. There was no harshness or bitterness noted. I would clasify this as medium bodied, not overpowering, but it has a good tobacco kick to it. Burn was quite smooth and even, the ash is somewhat flaky medium gray color. The ash fell off rather early, but I don't have any reason to suspect they are anything but long-filler.

Overall, I like the cigar, and would try another bundle to see if the tight draw is just a fluke, or if this is typical of this line. For the price this is one heck of a deal, and I would recommend them readily if they didn't have a draw problem.

Now - the NSO Review:
Much like the NSS, these sticks look too good to be bundles, with a dark even wrapper, nice smooth cap, very well constructed cigar. The draw was easier than the NSS, but still a little tighter than I prefer. The cigar was firm throughout, and felt a little heftier than the NSS.

The flavor is a little milder than the NSS, with that same familiar Nicaraguan profile. However, the NSO had a slightly rough finish. There were undertones of cedar, and something else I couldn't quite describe, it was like loamy/earthy, not unpleasant, just different. Again, I would classify this as medium bodied, slightly milder than the NSS, but still has that familar Nicaraguan kick.

This time burn problems emerged, with canoeing throughout 2/3 of the cigar, and it kept snuffing out in the 2nd half. This was definately a disturbing characteristic, which didn't ruin the experience, but certainly annoyed me to the point of pitching it at about 2/3 through.

For my taste buds, I prefer the NSS over the NSO, but if the next bundle has draw problems again then I'm done with this line. That would be a shame, since for the price these would be a great value, but I cannot stand a tight draw - I don't like having to work so hard to smoke my cigars.