For those of you that don’t know…

In 1995, Partagas (The Dominican Brand owned by General Cigar , not the Cuban brand) released the Partagas 150 to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the founding of the Partagas brand. The cigar sported a 18-year-old Cameroon wrapper at the time, which means (for those of you counting on your hands at home) that at this point, the wrapper covering this cigar is now an astounding 33 Years Old.

The Vitolas of the Partagas 150 were:

• Partagas 150 A ~ 6 3/4 x 43
• Partagas 150 B ~ 6 1/2 x 47
• Partagas 150 C ~ 5 1/2 x 49
• Partagas 150 Robusto ~ 4 1/2 x 49
• Partagas 150 AA ~ 7 1/2 x 49
• Partagas 150 D ~ 5 x 38

Only 1 million of these cigars were rolled, with the largest production of the range the 6 3/4 x 43  Partagas A, with 300,000 cigars; the smallest number produced is the Don Ramon, with only 10,000 made. They are exceedingly difficult to get a hold of, and when you do find them, they are fairly expensive.

But enough of that, let’s get down to business, shall we?

• Cigar Reviewed: Partagas 150
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Menendez y Garcia
• Wrapper: Cameroon
• Binder: Mexican
• Filler: Dominican & Mexican
• Size: 5 1/2 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 49
• Vitola: Robusto Extra
  
• Est. Price: Varies Widely
• Release Date: 1995
• Number of Cigars Released: 1,000,000 Cigars between the six vitolas
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 2

The vitola I am reviewing today is the Partagas 150 C, a 5.5″ x 49 RG Corona Gordaish size. The cigar looks old, with a very rough wrapper (kinda reminds me of the Tatuaje Black Label Corona Gorda in that respect, for those of you who have seen one) that is a marbled, reddish brown.

The wrapper has very little scent to it, which does not surprise me, and seems to be quite thin, and that makes me wonder a bit about what is coming.

I decide to cut instead of punch, mostly due to the thinness of the wrapper, and I am glad I did, since when I do, the cap decided to literally disintegrate on me. The construction seems to be good, and the pre-light draw is interesting, with a faint taste of aged tobacco and oak flavors.

The cigar lights fairly easily, and the first few puffs are filled with a bit of spice (tiny amount really, but still there) and that same oak flavor from the pre-light draw, a very woodsy flavor with a “tang” if you will, a nice, easy, fairly boring start however.

We are about a 3rd of the way through the cigar and the first ash happened before I could take a photo of it. That same aged woody tobacco flavor (it is definitely oak, not cedar) is still quite dominant, in fact, I don’t really taste much of anything else, not much pepper (just a tiny bit in the background, not enough to make a difference in the taste really). The draw is excellent so far, and the burn is very good as well.

This seems to be fairly fast burning stick, and we are about halfway done with it so far. I hate to sound like a broken record, but there is not much change in the flavors coming from this cigar. Aged oak is how I can best describe it, like I am smoking an oak barrel that has been sitting in a barn for decades, Very little pepper or spice as well. One interesting thing is that the ash is fairly flaky, and is a yellowish white that does not seem to stay on the cigar for more then 1/2 inch at a time.

We are a bit more then 2/3rds through, and this cigar shows no sign of picking up. The burn is starting to wander a bit (or a lot, actually), and the flavor has gone from “aged oak” to a bit more like “bitter oak”. Interestingly, I am noticing just a bit more pepper, and a very faint floral note that I really wish would develop a bit more.

No change, no change, no change, no change, no change.

sigh.

Well, we are at the end, the bitter, bitter end and there has been no change whatsoever, in any appreciable way at least, for the entire stick. It has started to get hot and as noted, quite a bit more bitter at the end, and I think it is time to but this lame horse down. Unfortunately, I don’t have a gun to shoot it with, or I would.

The Bottom Line: What can I say that has not already been mentioned? After smoking two of these (yes, this is the second one I smoked, the other one was a larger size, the Partagas 150 B ~ 6.5″ x 47), I can honestly say that this cigar is a prime example of what an over the hill cigar tastes like. These were never strong cigars, even when first released, and I guess they were so mild that age leeched all the remaining flavor out of them. I was seriously considering breaking it open and eating the tobacco to find any flavor other then the “Old Oak” that I was getting, Combine that with the thin as hell wrapper, which split on me in the last third,  and the bitter ending, and this cigar is really not even worth considering, even as a yard gar. I have tasted $2 cigars that are better (and sadly, have more flavor) then this piece of shit, and I recommend you not even consider wasting your time or money on these.

Final Score: 68