Quay d'Orsay Limitada 2019 Senadores Test

Test of the Quay d'Orsay Limitada 2019 Senadores. Available from February 3, 2021 in the Swiss Casa del Habano and one week later, on February 10, 2021, in the Habanos Specialist Stores. CHF 475 per box containing 25 cigars. That's a really great price! Length of the cigar: 157 mm, ring 48, format Hermosos No. 2 (Grand Corona). Find the cigar on Google > Please read my personal impressions in the conclusion.

Tasting notes

Fact sheet on the test

• Format: Hermosos No. 2, Grand Corona (length: 175 / ring gauge: 48)
• Tobacco: Complete Cuba
• Boxing Date (BD): ABR 20 ( April 2020)
• Price: CHF 475 per box containing 25 cigars (CHF 19 / pc.)
• Find the cigar on Google >

What is "retronasal"?

Retronasal cigar enjoyment enhances the taste. What it is and, why it works and how to do it please read here. Especially look at the ZiZo vacuum technology. Incredible increase in the enjoyment of the cigar!

What is the "R+ ZiZo vacuum technology"?

This is the consummate pleasure of a cigar. Hard to describe. I'll try. Here's an example: a baby sucking on a pacifier. Try this technique with a cigar. Very little smoke enters the mouth. But this passes over the tongue and goes right through the nose. I tried it on about 10 cigars before I mastered it. Please be very careful with this technique when practicing: the smoke got to the back of my larynx several times when I did this. It was really bad. But now that I can do it, it's an accomplished technique for enjoying a cigar.

What is umami?

This means "savory", "spicy", "essence", "meaty". This blending of taste sensations is perceived in the middle of the tongue. You can find a good article about it on Wikipedia. 

Recommended ageing: The box in the humidor for at least 2 years. Single specimens in a tubo, also 2 years in a humidor.

Cuban cigars and the important ageing phase: testing this Limitada

Cuban cigars are super tasty for the first 1 - 3 months after rolling. After that, the cigar begins to mature. The tobacco used is not yet ready for tasting. Cuba has too few resources. The tobacco cannot mature as long as it should. The cigars are rolled and hardly have a resting phase. Depending on the brand and format, the maturing phase in the humidor at home takes between 2 and over 8 years (or even longer). Very important: this is not a fault of the cigar.

If you buy single copies

Place the cigar with the cellophane in the humidor. If your cigar does not have cellophane: Put them in tubos and then in the humidor. Or you can put the single cigar in a Zippo bag and put a small Boveda in it. Then you put it closed in the humidor. Cigars that are stored open without cellophane or a box lose their flavor very quickly. This is proven in this article with experiments.

What is the Boxing Date of the cigar (BD)?

On the back of the box is a stamp. There you can see when the cigars were placed in the box. From this date Cuban cigars are excellent to taste within 1 - 3 months. If you did not buy a whole box, please ask your dealer for the boxing date.

Note: The boxing date can also be placed in other places. E.g. on the outer carton.

Conclusion from the test

My test of the Quay d'Orsay Limitada 2019 Senadores was very exciting for me. The box date is April 2020 and they are now about 10 months old. These 10 months have done the cigar a lot of good. Assuming it really is April 2020. Why am I skeptical? Because I have already experienced a few inconsistencies with Cuba cigars *. Perhaps the cigars that have now arrived in Switzerland were only rolled two months ago. In terms of taste, both could be true.

Germany has had the cigars on the market for some time (and they are out of stock). The cigars were probably actually rolled last year in April. This is because the COVID-19 pandemic did not allow deliveries to take place as planned. In any case: this cigar is really great!

As the smoke progresses, it becomes a little more acidic and slightly astringent. This is not a fault of the cigar. The tobacco simply continues to work, even if it is a Limitada in which the tobacco used has been stored for at least two years.

The cigar has a maximum strength of 2.5/5. I recommend a minimum ageing period of 2 years.

Here is an article on the topic white dots on the ash.