Padilla Habano

Padilla Habano- The Padilla Habano is a Nicaraguan Puro, blended with cuban-seed tobacco and wrapped in a beautiful Nicaraguan Habano wrapper. Padilla doesn't offer as many lines as companies like Rocky Patel and CAO, but they have had some success over the years. Ernesto Padilla (owner and company's namesake), is known for his blending abilities and many of the cigars put out by Padilla seem to offer a nice balance of smoothness and flavor.

Prelight- This cigar is absolutely beautiful. The Habano wrapper is flawless; nice oils, no veins and an attractive-bumpy appearance. I picked up the Robusto and am impressed with look of this stick. I've never smoked a Padilla; not because I've chose not to, I've just never come across a single stick at the shops I go to.
I live in Maryland and have been snowed in the past few days. I got lucky when I came across this Padilla on a beer run. I was jonesin' for a cigar and it just so happened this liquor store had a nice tower humidor with a decent selection. Most of their cigars were of mild flavor, so I ventured to grab the Padilla in hopes of some flavor and a new smoking experience.
The cigar is spongy and consistent in feel. The foot smells of cinammon and earth, while the prelight draw has a sweet spice taste. I'm interested and ready to smoke.

Sparking it- The cigar lights with ease and the initial drags are bland and have no defining taste. The draw is a little tighter than I like, so I clip a bit more from the cap end and gently roll it with my fingers. The draw loosens a bit and provides a little more smoke, but still the flavoring is kind of bland. I taste some spice, but I'm reaching on that. I hope this smoke has more to offer than this.

Smoking it- After about an inch and a half the flavor picks up and does a complete turn around. The absence of flavor is gradually filled by a bouquet of sweet spice. The draw is still a little tight, but the cigar is burning slow and cool while providing an adequate amount of smoke, so I let it be.
The cigar's construction is awesome. The burn is even and consistent, and I put a mean bite on the stick while driving without compromising the end. I really enjoy the flavors after the first bit and am happy with the complexity. Some hints of fruit, almost like an apple-cinammon taste. A little bit of leather and pepper towards the end.
This stick starts as a mild-medium, but slowly builds to a medium-full. Really an interesting smoke for anyone that enjoys flavor change and complexity. I really can't pick a defining flavor, but there is a nice mix of sweetness throughout the smoke. I'll be reaching for another when I'm in the mood for a medium smoke

Overall- B+