Wed 26 Apr 2006
I picked up the Macanudo Diplomats partly because of their distinctive shape, not to mention because Macanudos are relatively rare in this neck of the woods.
The Diplomat boasts a silky, very dark maduro wrapper with an enticing oily sheen. The cigar feels very well made overall; solid in hand, with a firm and tight roll. Before lighting up, the aroma of the wrapper is not strong, but pleasant. I sensed a dark earthy smell with sweet cedar and a tiny bit of a metallic zing.
An effortless light releases a very aromatic and relaxing smoke. It is sweet and pleasant, with a distinctively maduro musky smell. The smoke is exceptionally smooth and still has a good dose of flavor and body, though it’s not exactly opulent.
The first notes were toasty with a general overtone of coffee beans. I sensed very little spice or pepper, though a very nice bitter chocolate quality was present. The half way point was marked by an increase of the bitter chocolate and coffee notes. The last third revealed semi-sweet cedar notes with some spice. In fact, when eagerly solicited throughout the smoke, the stick can reward with a great burst of spice, though the overall subtlety of this cigar sets back in soon afterwards.
The burn and the ash of the Diplomat are right on the mark. No coaxing from my jet flame was necessary at all. As you can see, the creamy white ash made it well past the half way mark before falling off. The medium finish includes some spice, sweet wood and cedar. I would qualify the Diplomat as a nice addition to my humidor for those maduro days.
April 26th, 2006 at 5:18 pm
I will try and get these sent from the USA to the UK from Famous-Smoke.com but would have liked a score out of ten or a % score.
Sounds great to me though, especially as some Mac Hyde Park have arrived today.
But not to use a cigar match to like a premium cigar would get me hung here in England.
Regards - Roy.R
April 28th, 2006 at 11:54 pm
Personally, I’ve never met a cigar in the Macanudo Maduro line-up that I didn’t like, and it’s one of the lines I highly recommend to people who started out on mild-bodied cigars and are ready to move up to something with a fuller flavor. You just can’t go wrong with them.
November 5th, 2006 at 11:42 am
I’m smoking one right now. I agree with your description on taste, however I find the draw is a little hard.
November 18th, 2006 at 8:51 pm
i think this is my favorite cigar. i always look for them when i enter a cigar shop, and i usually leave the shop with one as well.
November 27th, 2006 at 7:46 pm
I just finished smoking a Macanudo Maduro Hyde Park. It was also my first cigar. I enjoyed it quite a lot. I know my palette’s not as refined as other smokers’ but I did taste the chocolate. I also got a lot of ash to hold on (1 1/2″) until, accidentally, I bumped it and it fell off. Overall Macanudo Maduros have made my decision to keep smoking cigars.
January 4th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
Tried this on recommendation by an experienced tobacconist in Vilnius, Lithuania (thank you, Leonidas!) - what a nice find. Haven’t bought any non-Cubans for a long time, and this was remarkably good. Smooth, easy draw; sweet and oily: this is an equivalent of a beefy and fruity Australian Shiraz vs. more restrained French clarets. Bought a box of 10 and I am sure I will be buying even more.
October 25th, 2007 at 10:21 am
The mac, diplomat is one of my favoritie smokes.Its aroma taste and over all aperance make it a 95-97%for me.All this is being said while i smoke one.And aswell it brings out some incredible flavor’s in my scotch.All in all i would recomend this cigar to any one at any level of smoking experience
June 19th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
I have only recently ventured into the wide world of cigars. The diplomat was one of my first and I remember thinking “This is a great cigar, if all cigars are similar to this one, I’m going to enjoy this very much.” I have since found that not all cigars are like the diplomat. Which is why I now buy a variety of singles to try out new cigars, but always buy a handful of these maduros because they are so enjoyable.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
Grade, I’m glad to see that you enjoy these. In cigar smoking, some people may be snobby about smoking powerful cigars that would make anyone hurl.
I like to emphasize that it’s all about what we enjoy. Smoking a cigar should be satisfying and enjoyable… period.
I personally enjoy variety according to my mood, and while I have my favorites, rarely find a cigar that I just hate, though there are certainly some.