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Gurkha Le Grande....otherwise known as Crest.
It's true. Gurkha has more blends than you (and an entire small country) could shake a stick at. Fortunately, they're all good. They're all made from superior tobaccos and top-notch quality control measures, producing some of the finest boutique cigars money can buy. However, even among the countless top-shelf blends beneath the Gurkha umbrella, few can compare to Gurkha Crest. Under constant demand, the Crest easily ranks among Gurkha's finest creations.
To craft this masterpiece, a thick and chewy Connecticut Broadleaf maduro wrapper aged 9+ years conceals a vintage mixture of Cuban-seed long-fillers from Nicaragua's top growing regions. Each puff yields an exceedingly rich bouquet that's velvety smooth, delivering deep, roasted flavors throughout with softer hints of leather, oak, and toast. The finish is long, chewy, and sweet, completing a veritable work of art savored by the most critical of enthusiasts. If you're looking for a Gurkha blend that will really 'wow' you, look no further than Gurkha Crest.
Ordered a huge sample pack. Got my shipment yesterday. Smoking the Crest on my porch while writing a school paper. Great taste, very smooth and cool smoke. Only problem I have(not huge at all and may just be the cut I made or this particular stick) is that the foot produces a nice thick cloud of smoke but the draw only has just a little bit. Other than that I am enjoying it and am glad I have a 5 pack.
Decent stick but not one of Gurkhas best by any means. Subtle sweetness with earthy tones. Uneven burn...gonna let them sit a while & see if they improve. Received in a sampler & would stay away from these @ normal price. I'm a $3 stick all day.
I tried this cigar because of the description and it was on sale, and I must say I was not disappointed. I love this cigar, especially the flavor at the end of the draw though I can't exactly describe what it tastes like. Just bought another box!
Gurkha Crest Salomon is a medium bodied cigar. Dominant flavor's are of earth , dry cocao, dark roasted coffee, and hints of creamed coffee. Finish was long which coats ure pallette with a dark roasted coffee and dry cocoa flavor. Draw firm initially but did open up to plenty of smoke. Construction was good, even burn line, required a minor touch up or two. Overall a good offering from Gurkha. I tend to fall back to Gurkha for their maduros, always hits the spot. I rate a 90 on my book
Just tried one of the XO version and what nice smoke. From the pre light to the nub, this cigar delivers hints of cocoa, and a sweet earthiness. I thoroughly enjoyed this cigar and can't wait to try the other 4 I have. One thing bad about the cigar is it did not burn even for me.
Overall scale 1-10? I'd give it a 7. Definitely one of the nicer smokes out there. Lit easily, a bit harsh on the light; fully expected. Toasty aromas, flavor ranging from pepper to dark toast. The finish left an arid feel in my mouth, not unpleasant, followed by a full-bodied, oily aftertaste. I burned this one with a whiskey on the rocks, a perfect compliment to the robust finish. These aren't cheap, so would I purchase a bunch? There's so much good product out there for less, but I'll tell you what, I'll never turn one down in trade!
Smoked a 5-pack after 4 months in the humi. Not a bad cigar.... Average flavor, slightly uneven burn. Positives: they look GREAT and are well constructed (note the aforementioned uneven burn, though). The Centurian, which has a comparable blend, is MUCH more flavorful.
Ok so there is a lot of Gurkha hate out there and it may but justly deserved but not on this cigar. I smoked this right out of the truck. Prelight it was very oily and had a very pleasant smell. I am a veteran living in New Mexico so I am very familiar with what a good ripe pepper should taste like. On my first draw of this cigar I gasped on my exhale with a WOW. It had a true green pepper taste as if it came from my garden. No spice just a sweet green pepper taste. I am half way through and some chocolate just exploded in my mouth. This is a very fine stick. Now I am a disabled vet and my money is limited so I bought mine on that (cigar bid)ding web site for 1/4th the price CI sells for on here. Very nice stick. I'll be buying more for sure.
I bought the Gurkha Crest & Blue Steel combo tin when CI was providing free shipping for the entire order (also bought a box of CAO Cameroon Anniversaries and a box of Hemingway Signatures, my all time faves). Recently pulled them out of the tin as I had some room on one of my loose cigar shelves and smoked one of the Crests. Absolutely wonderful smoke. Might not be worth the list price, but at $90 for a box of 10, I'll add them to the rotation with my Hemingways and CAOs. They are at least the equal of the CAO Italias and Brazilias and far superior to the Padilla Hybrids I smoke when riding the mower over the back half acre. I can't wait for it to warm up again so I can try a Gurkha Blue Steel.
I bought this from C.I. as a single. Very disappointed. I think it was a problem with that one cigar though. I took the cigar out of the wrapper and the leaf was practically falling off. No humidification problems on my end. I would love to re-try this cigar but will wait and see if I can pick it up for cheaper. My only negative review on this site so far, absolutely love CI!!
The Crest with it's price tag, well I guess I was expecting more. As one of the other Fans said it's a middle of the road at best. I'm currently on the last of the 6x60 I have. Great taste maybe medium in body, but I've had the majority of the ones I've smoked (20+) burn very uneven and had to keep the torch nearby to correct. If you catch it on sale give her a try.
I lit up a Gurkha Crest XO (6" 60 ring) honker after it had settled down a week or two in my standup humidor. Cut off just enough to have a nice tight draw. The first puff, second puff, third puff, with each puff my chin kept rising to where this classic cigar was vertical and I was smoking it like a PIPE !!! Nicaraguan not inlike CAO Brazilia complexity kept my head tipped back, especially that XO 60 ring - the only way to smoke this jem. The other feedback may be one of the 52 ring versions which obviously takes a weaker hand. The XO burned very well as one would expect a Gurkha to smoke. I thought the XO Beast was a classic Dominican fantastic smoke but this XO Crest provides mindboggling Nicaraguan complexity. Another absolutely TOP SHELF 60 ring Gurkha impossible to find any finer !!!
I smoked this cigar after it sat for 3 weeks in my humi. I didn't really get a lot of flavors out of this one, but it had a certain sweetness that kept me going all the way down to the nub. I have another one and will probably let that one sit for a long time before enjoying. I can't say it was great and I can't say it sucked, it was middle of the road enjoyable.