Introduction
Gurkha is a line of cigars marketed by K Hansotia. They are made by Torano. The Gurkha Expedition 1887 Ltd. Toro is a 6x50 cedar wrapped stick that comes in a plain but unusually shaped wooden box. (Double the length of the cigars) They advertise these as "extensively aged Dominican long leaf fillers and an exhilarating Connecticut-Ecuador wrapper". I'm not sure about the extensive aging or how a wrapper can be exhilarating but they have been good enough to keep me coming back for more as they come ready to enjoyably smoke. I have smoked most of the K Hansotia products including sherpa, caafe tabac, eact inda, park ave, etc etc. IMHO these are towards the mild side of the line. This was the first box purchase I made when I picked up the habit again after 10 years of smoking cigarettes. Since then (Last February) I have smoked 4-5 boxes of these as one of the daily smokes but got away from them a couple months ago when the CS addiction started.. This one was the last from a box I bought in March of last year.
Pre-Light Ruminations
This is a medium to light brown toro with a silky wrapper (Usually), and after 11 months in the humi starting to smell real nice. These have been very consistent in construction over the 100 or so I have smoked. The head is fairly well made and I haven't had one unravel to date. Starting to have that sweet dirty taste of a cigar that's been sitting. As these are fairly mild I always guillotine cut them vs. punch. The draw is alway good or slightly on the loose side.
Initial Thoughts
These almost always light easily but you need to give them a perfect toast. (reasons explained later). Light it up and you get that nice deep woody essence almost from the first smoke. These are not complex cigars just mellow. After about a half inch they get a little nutty I find this more pronounced in this more aged (yea I know calling 11 months aged is a stretch here) version than I am used to smoking. They still have a little bite but less pronounced then younger sticks.
Mid Burn Experience
Back to lighting these properly… this cigar has a unique quality. If you light is perfectly they will ash for over 3 inches maybe 4 if you baby them. It's almost pure white razor sharp and has a very smooth appearance. The ash is one reason I smoked them so much. It's cool. This stick unlike its younger siblings, that have sacrificed themselves to my smoking pleasure, started to get a little spice towards the halfway point. More flavor then the young-uns. Maybe like most CS members they temper well and gain complexity with time. Hint I'm trying!
Last Third
Much more spice than I remember. Not ISOM quality but not bad. Usually you can nub these with no problem. Still had some of that woody nutty essence that has kept me coming back for more. Sensed a little tongue twang, kind of Cuban like, but not the same. This was new to this stick for me. It might be my newly expanded vocabulary as much as the stick (Thanks again B52man and goat). I put this one out at about an inch as the spice got a little heavy. It was raining here maybe the humidity was an issue.
Final Thoughts
I think this was a really good newbie ready to smoke stick for me. Mild enough to smoke the whole thing but has enough interest in it to keep buying them. With some age they are worthwhile for all mild/med smokers. But the burn... its worth trying one to see how long you can make the ash. My record is one ash to 3/4 inch.
Gurkha is a line of cigars marketed by K Hansotia. They are made by Torano. The Gurkha Expedition 1887 Ltd. Toro is a 6x50 cedar wrapped stick that comes in a plain but unusually shaped wooden box. (Double the length of the cigars) They advertise these as "extensively aged Dominican long leaf fillers and an exhilarating Connecticut-Ecuador wrapper". I'm not sure about the extensive aging or how a wrapper can be exhilarating but they have been good enough to keep me coming back for more as they come ready to enjoyably smoke. I have smoked most of the K Hansotia products including sherpa, caafe tabac, eact inda, park ave, etc etc. IMHO these are towards the mild side of the line. This was the first box purchase I made when I picked up the habit again after 10 years of smoking cigarettes. Since then (Last February) I have smoked 4-5 boxes of these as one of the daily smokes but got away from them a couple months ago when the CS addiction started.. This one was the last from a box I bought in March of last year.
Pre-Light Ruminations
This is a medium to light brown toro with a silky wrapper (Usually), and after 11 months in the humi starting to smell real nice. These have been very consistent in construction over the 100 or so I have smoked. The head is fairly well made and I haven't had one unravel to date. Starting to have that sweet dirty taste of a cigar that's been sitting. As these are fairly mild I always guillotine cut them vs. punch. The draw is alway good or slightly on the loose side.
Initial Thoughts
These almost always light easily but you need to give them a perfect toast. (reasons explained later). Light it up and you get that nice deep woody essence almost from the first smoke. These are not complex cigars just mellow. After about a half inch they get a little nutty I find this more pronounced in this more aged (yea I know calling 11 months aged is a stretch here) version than I am used to smoking. They still have a little bite but less pronounced then younger sticks.
Mid Burn Experience
Back to lighting these properly… this cigar has a unique quality. If you light is perfectly they will ash for over 3 inches maybe 4 if you baby them. It's almost pure white razor sharp and has a very smooth appearance. The ash is one reason I smoked them so much. It's cool. This stick unlike its younger siblings, that have sacrificed themselves to my smoking pleasure, started to get a little spice towards the halfway point. More flavor then the young-uns. Maybe like most CS members they temper well and gain complexity with time. Hint I'm trying!
Last Third
Much more spice than I remember. Not ISOM quality but not bad. Usually you can nub these with no problem. Still had some of that woody nutty essence that has kept me coming back for more. Sensed a little tongue twang, kind of Cuban like, but not the same. This was new to this stick for me. It might be my newly expanded vocabulary as much as the stick (Thanks again B52man and goat). I put this one out at about an inch as the spice got a little heavy. It was raining here maybe the humidity was an issue.
Final Thoughts
I think this was a really good newbie ready to smoke stick for me. Mild enough to smoke the whole thing but has enough interest in it to keep buying them. With some age they are worthwhile for all mild/med smokers. But the burn... its worth trying one to see how long you can make the ash. My record is one ash to 3/4 inch.
