In a past Humidor Diving video, I spent a bit of time digging around in an old cooler searching for a Camacho Negro that I purchased a few years back. In my search, I came across an old Camacho SLR. I set that cigar aside and planned to feature it sometime later. That time has come.
I don’t know precisely how old the Camacho SLR is but there are a couple of points of reference. As you can see in the photo above, the cigar is sporting the old school bands. I don’t recall when the switch was made to the more trendy bands, but it has been a couple of years. The price tag on the Tubo listed the single stick price of $6.50. The Cigar.com pricing on a single is $7.10, without the tube, so we are looking at probably a $1.00 increase in price over however many years it has been since my purchase.
There was trouble from the very beginning. The wrapper exploded under my, apparently dull, Palio Cutter. Since the camera was already running, I opted to smoke through it until the wrapper was too mangled to manage anymore.
To my surprise, I was able to smoke the cigar down beyond the band. Don’t get me wrong, it was absolutely hideous, but smokeable. Smoke volume was hit or miss due to the cracked wrapper but the cigar burned well.
The flavor profile was mostly woody with waves of sourness coming and going. Age did not seem to help this cigar. It was a shell of its former self. The power in this stick, that made me grin in anticipation so long ago, was weak and disappointing. I’ll most definitely smoke the Camacho SLR again but it will be something a bit ‘fresher’.
Purchase Fool in The Rain by Led Zeppelin (Music in the video)
A cool NUB’s Cap. Where did you got it from Walt?
I think I picked that up at one of the nation-wide Nub Tours (the older tour, not the more recent Studio Tobac events).
Interesting review, Walt. I don’t have much experience with Camacho, but from what I’ve been reading, they don’t seem to age very well.
The only real positive experience I can recall having with an aged Camacho was in an older Liberty. That cigar was very pleasant.
I had the Camacho Connecticut last night…my first Camacho cigar…was okay…no wow factor…mild as expected…I see the Camacho Connecticut brought out a bunch of comments when reviewed by both Jerry and Walt…would be interested to hear if people have had some good experiences with other Camacho sticks.
Paul, I had the same reaction to the Camacho Connecticuts I had, and so did a friend who only smokes occasionally. Too mild, and not enough body and complexity to raise it above the competition. The only other Camacho I’ve had is the Triple Maduro, and so far, I haven’t been able to come to a verdict. I was expecting a more complex cigar than what I’ve gotten so far. I have two left, so I need to smoke them soon, since from I’ve read, the fresher ones are better. I need to try out some of the Corojos.
The Camacho Connecticut wasn’t something that I bought a lot of. It came out around the same time as the Oliva Connecticut, which I enjoyed much more.
Camacho has fallen off of my radar in the last couple of years but I used to enjoy the Corojo, Corojo Maduro, Coyolar, and the Diploma (which I believe is a specialty Corojo)
I definitely enjoy the Camacho Connecticut. That and the Camacho Diploma are probably the only two Camacho branded cigars I smoke. The Camacho Connecticut use to be my go to first cigar of the day before the EPC New Wave came out.
Walt
Like these humidor dives…great to see hoes they age….I personally don’t like aging in seals(tubes, cello, wrappings, etc). No facts on it but I feel the moisture exposure varies too much throughout the cigar. I think my goal this yr is to burn throug the stock I have of 1-3yr old cigars…no reason to keep pushing off the inevitable….i guess one pro to having a stock is if prices of cigars get out of hand
It is interesting to compare what I paid for a particular cigar years ago (sometimes they have a price sticker on them) versus what they are going for currently. Some cigars creep up a little every year while others get leaps and bounds more expensive as the brand grows in popularity.
Smoked Camacho Connecticut about two years ago, not bad, enjoyed it. Mime didn’t fall a part. Was interesting to watch what your cigar did.
The cigar cracking was a disappointment. I had such high hopes for that stick (I have fond memories of those old SLRs)
I like these types of posts. It’s fun to see older sticks and hear about how they’ve aged. Funny you ended up with a Camacho. I was in a local shop a couple days ago and saw a Camacho Corojo Maduro on the shelf. I hadn’t smoked one of those in years, so I grabbed one and smoked it last night. To my surprise, it was really good, better than I remembered, with better construction than I remembered as well. Lots of clay/earth, spice, and a raisiny sweetness with a perfect draw and even burn. It’s easy to get caught up in what’s new, but I’ll definitely have to revisit some old friends like this in the future.
It has been a couple of years since I smoked a Camacho Corojo Maduro. At one point in time they were a favorite of mine. They seemed richer and bolder than the non-maduro version of the same stick.
I drop in daily for reviews. Thanks for your insight.
Had a Camacho Corojo Maduro last night. Great smoke. I never cared for the SLR, but the SLR maduro is a great smoke too. I like Camacho’s maduros because they are not overly sweet and tend to just richen the cigar.