Seth's Humidor

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35 (Maduro)

I don't smoke Padron Cigars on a regular basis and when I do I usually grab one of their larger smokes, but when I am short of time and want something special I grab the 35. This is the cigar that you will often see Jorge Padron smoking and what a treat it is. The cigar derived its name from the amount of time it takes Jorge to smoke it, 35 minutes. One of their smallest cigars, it measures 4" with a 48 ring gauge, and this particular vitola is known as the Rothschild. If you were wondering where the term, Rotschild, as a cigar vitola comes from, it comes from the infamous Rothschild family which was a successful banking family in Europe. Like all of the Padron Cigars it is a Nicaraguan puro and is packed with incredible flavors and strength. The 1926 Serie is composed of tobacco that has been aged a minium of five years and comes in  a box pressed format. The cigar has a wonderful aroma to it of leather, cocoa and nuts, and is beautifully constructed. There are no major veins present in this maduro wrapper and it is very tight when pressed.

The cigar begins wonderfully. showing lots of spice notes up front and remains complex all the way to the end showing notes of nuts, cocoa and coffee. The cigar burns very evenly through the first half and is incredibly smooth. For being such a smooth and balanced cigar the strength is very subtle but it is present. The 1926 Serie definitely has more strength than the others lines but I feel this size in particular shows the most. As I enter the second half of the cigar the spices remain very strong but the cigar is also showing many more flavors than the first half. I am picking up lots of cocoa, coffee, nuts and toast, but I am also picking up some citrus peel on the finish as well. The cigar burns smoothly all the way to the nub and at no point did I have a burn problem. This was a great cigar that packed tons of flavors and punch in a small format.

I know this is a short review but because of the size I felt that breaking it up into thirds would not be necessary. I give this cigar a 92 and have made it my weekly lunch smoke. I feel that the No. 35 can go head to head with any other Padron Cigar and definitely with any other flavor bomb by any other company. I know that a lot of people out there are looking for big cigars because they think they will have more flavor, but it is just so wrong. People are forgetting that vitolas like the Rotschild and Petit Corona can be just as good or better than a gordo size cigar. If you are short on time then this is a great cigar for you , and if you prefer smaller cigars the same applies. Everyone out there should really give this cigar a chance if they have not. I am sure all of you  big cigar fans will fall in love with this smoke and quite possibly prefer something a little bit smaller in your hand afterwards. This is a cigar that has flavor, stength and is definitely value driven.

No. 35