Size:  4 5/8″ x 52

Vitola: Perfecto

Wrapper:  Connecticut Shade

Origin: Dominican Republic

Have I ever mentioned before that I’m a huge Kelner fan?  Yeah… I am.  I love The Griffin’s cigar line too.

This was actually a size I had not tried before, and I’m kicking myself for not trying this earlier.

It’s a short cigar, so it doesn’t really have time to be complex, so Kelner hits you with it from the onset.

This tiny little perfecto is deceptive.  The Griffin’s line is very mild, but even though this cigar has mild strength, it had a ton of flavor.

From the get go, I am inundated with wave after wave of oaky sweet cream and a nice light coffee finish.

The burn is dead on even and the cigar’s draw is perfect giving off ample smoke.

My only complaint was that it was over too quickly.  This is a good example of how a cigar can be mild in strength, but full flavored at the same time.

I will buy more of these, as I can’t wait to see this one after a couple of year’s age.  Bravo!

Rating: 89 (B+)

Size:  5 ½ ” x 50

Vitola:  Robusto

Wrapper: Connecticut Shade

Origin: Dominican Republic

Author’s Note: I am, and will always be, very biased to Kelner-made cigars.  So bear this in mind when you read this review.

There are few things that excite me more than Limited and Special Edition cigars.  This is where the big boys get to flex their blending muscles and real knock out a great small batch blend.  In my opinion, there is no one better than this than Henke Kelner.  Dr. Kelner is responsible for an quite a few major labels – Davidoff, AVO, The Griffin’s, Cusano, Cuvee, Alec Bradley Havana Sun Grown and Paul Garmirian to name a few.

Each year, Davidoff, AVO and The Griffin’s release a Limited Edition cigar.  Last year, my favorite was The Griffin’s Special XXIII Edition (see pic below) over the Davidoff Puro Dominicano and the AVO LE7.

But I digress, I still have a few of the XXIs lying around from ’05 (that I purchased from Capital City Cigars) and I am very eager to try one on the eve of the Special XXIV Edition.  From what I remember of the XXI, I felt it was very mellow and forgettable.  My taste has certainly changed since then.

From the onset this cigar surprised with a bit of pepper I do not remember from my first encounter with this stick.  The cigar was firm to the touch, a bit on the dry side, but drew easy, burned straight and delivered a metric ton of smoke with every puff.  Can you tell I like this cigar already?

I get a consistent sweet wood note as well as the underlying pepper mentioned above and a very mild coffee flavor.  Kelner cigars always have a very dry finish, much like a tannic dry red wine.  I believe this is what consistently gives them lower than normal ratings in Cigar Aficionado (that and they don’t buy a lot of ad space).

Halfway thru, I hit the sweet spot and its licorice and oak for the last half of the cigar.

This cigar is absolutely sublime.  I am in a Zen state of mind.  This cigar has just put itself on The Top Zen (10) List!

Rating: 95 (A)