OpusX Perfexcion #5 /pics

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omowasu

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I had an opportunity to smoke one of these on Saturday night. The Fuente Fuente OpusX Perfexcion #5 is the smallest of the OpusX series (excluding the thinner but hard-to-find Lancero). At 4.88"x40RG, this stogie falls into the Petite Corona vitola category, and makes an excellent introduction to the new Opus X smoker.

I also had the opportunity to pass this one around to some other cigar smokers, and I will include their thoughts in this review as well.

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This stogie has a dark, oily, thick wrapper that eminates odors of spice, fruit, and citrus notes. An Opus X wrapper smells like no other, and you know it after a couple have been smoked. Others thought it smelled like "cinnamon raisin bread", "pepper and lemon", and "strong". One guy sniffed the wrapper rather firmly, and immediately started to sneeze. This is a strong cigar - and the #5 fits the bill well if strong cigars are not your thing.

I actually had some burn issues with this one - the stogie self-extinguished a couple times right after lighting. I believe this is due to the environmental conditions or B&M humi issues, but I have had lighting problems with OX's in the past. I have a few more in my humi awaiting equilibrium.

The Opus X #5 presents some very interesting tasting notes. The cigar is very strong, but the strength is not in tobacco flavor. It is in spice, and not the single-threaded pepper taste we are all accustomed to. Yes, the peppery sting of nicotine is present, but there are other spices - nutmeg, cinnamon, clove - that show in small doses while smoking. There are citrus notes as well - lemon and orange - buried within the voluminous white smoke. Others noted spiciness, cinnamon, "strength". One person compared the taste to that of a good citrus vodka, and I can't totally disagree with that. The FFOX #5 leaves an aftertaste similar to that of swigging a citrus martini, a spicy sting combined with a refreshing tropical taste.

Make no mistake, this is a very strong cigar. I was a little dizzy afterward, but nothing major. Anything larger than an Opus X xXx would probably leave me on the couch for a while.

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At less than 10.00 MSRP (7.50, I paid 8.95), this is a great cigar and comparable to others in the price range - Dominican or otherwise. The #5 is also a great introduction to the OpusX line for those who fear the Opus strength. It is a little too short to do much damamge, but just long enough for a very enjoyable smoke. I wouldnt pay the 25.00+ that these are going for on various auction sites, however.
 
Thanks for the review, it is very helpful and descriptive. I now have several of the Opux smokes due to the Carlitos way sampler and look forward to smoking them in several months once the weather gets warmer.
 
Thanks for the review and the pics.

Glad you found this cigar to be good. It is a good one, definately very enjoyable.

I like Opus but I like Opus with a year or two on them even better. :dr Thanks again for the review.
 
Nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, lemon and orange?

How long does it take to develop one's palate to start experiencing these flavors? I've smoked dozens of OpusX and have never tasted anything other than creamy spice and pepper (which I love). I enjoyed a very distinctive cognac taste in one of my Añejos on New Year's Eve, but never any of these nuts or citrus fruits I hear from other BOTLs.

Envious,
Mark
 
omowasu said:
FFOX2.jpg
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Thanks for the review. I particularly like that 2nd photo.

To me, "cinnamon raisin bread," and, "pepper and lemon," sound totally incongruent. It's amazing that two of your friends got these impressions from the very same stick. And, I gotta say, "the peppery sting of nicotine," sounds like a bad thing to me. The way you use the word "strong" in your review, it seems more synonymous with "harsh" than with "full-bodied." Could it be that that particular cigar was just young? I've got one of these little guys resting in my humi. I think--especially after reading your review--that I'd better give it a year or more to rest. :s
 
Nice review. This is one of my fav. sizes in the Opus it runs a close second to the xXx. An Opus has the most distinguishable pre light taste I have ever experienced, pure oatmeal raisin cookie, to me anyways.
 
Goethe said:
Nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, lemon and orange?

How long does it take to develop one's palate to start experiencing these flavors? I've smoked dozens of OpusX and have never tasted anything other than creamy spice and pepper (which I love). I enjoyed a very distinctive cognac taste in one of my Añejos on New Year's Eve, but never any of these nuts or citrus fruits I hear from other BOTLs.

Envious,
Mark
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I am no opus expert, and I don't tend to be able to pick up distinct flavors well. But on the Opus I totally understand what he is saying about the combo of citrus and spice. There is just somthing unique about it that stood out to me, and that I have found nowhere else. I have never smoked an opus that had less than a years age on it so I cannot speak for a young opus.
 
Thanks for reading the review and commenting, BOTL's! Here are some responses:

Goethe said:
Nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, lemon and orange?
How long does it take to develop one's palate to start experiencing these flavors? I've smoked dozens of OpusX and have never tasted anything other than creamy spice and pepper (which I love). I enjoyed a very distinctive cognac taste in one of my Añejos on New Year's Eve, but never any of these nuts or citrus fruits I hear from other BOTLs.
Envious,
Mark
Click to expand...

Well, I have been smoking for a long time, but I dont consider myself to have a fully developed palette by any means. I think that everyone experiences a cigar a little bit differently, and one mans pleasure could be anothers poison. Alcohol can skew taste as well. The tastes stated therein were not only mine, but were that of myself and other smokers of varying experience levels. I also was all about the spice, but I was able to pick up some subtleties in addition to the pepper. I have pulled some citrus tastes from other cigars, and I have had one that tasted like a charred steak. I didnt find the OX #5 to be creamy, I will actually be looking for that when I have another.

ColdCuts said:
Thanks for the review. I particularly like that 2nd photo.
To me, "cinnamon raisin bread," and, "pepper and lemon," sound totally incongruent. It's amazing that two of your friends got these impressions from the very same stick. And, I gotta say, "the peppery sting of nicotine," sounds like a bad thing to me. The way you use the word "strong" in your review, it seems more synonymous with "harsh" than with "full-bodied." Could it be that that particular cigar was just young? I've got one of these little guys resting in my humi. I think--especially after reading your review--that I'd better give it a year or more to rest. :s
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This one had two months on it, but it was still enjoyable. Some of the taste and smell comments came from other smokers, and some from myself. The two mentioned are indeed incongruent and were from two different people who smelled the cigar prior to my light. To me, the "peppery sting" of nicotine is not really a harsh sensation, but a good indicator that the cigar being herfed is incredibly strong. A peppery or tingling sensation is usually caused by nicotine, and I have had the same experience with Tatuajes, etc. The sensation would subside with aging - I have 5 more of these aging away!

mhillsing23 said:
I am no opus expert, and I don't tend to be able to pick up distinct flavors well. But on the Opus I totally understand what he is saying about the combo of citrus and spice. There is just somthing unique about it that stood out to me, and that I have found nowhere else. I have never smoked an opus that had less than a years age on it so I cannot speak for a young opus.
Click to expand...

I would agree, that taste is very unique and I havent been able to find it nearly as distinctly in any other cigar. The Opus is not my favorite smoke, but it is up there due to this unique characteristic. I love being able to fire one up and not taste just tobacco, but other flavors in the forefront of the palette. The one smoked for this review was two months old, I have others aging - I think my oldest one right now is a 7 month xXx.

Thanks again for reading!
 
[
The Opus X #5 presents some very interesting tasting notes. The cigar is very strong, but the strength is not in tobacco flavor. It is in spice, and not the single-threaded pepper taste we are all accustomed to. Yes, the peppery sting of nicotine is present, but there are other spices - nutmeg, cinnamon, clove - that show in small doses while smoking. There are citrus notes as well - lemon and orange - buried within the voluminous white smoke. Others noted spiciness, cinnamon, "strength". One person compared the taste to that of a good citrus vodka, and I can't totally disagree with that. The FFOX #5 leaves an aftertaste similar to that of swigging a citrus martini, a spicy sting combined with a refreshing tropical taste.

Make no mistake, this is a very strong cigar. I was a little dizzy afterward, but nothing major. Anything larger than an Opus X xXx would probably leave me on the couch for a while.

Great review. This is my favorite size and you are right on with the taste and the slight dizziness.
 
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