Pre Light
Punch is a storied brand with roots that can be traced back to the mid 1800s. The namesake of the brand was a puppet named Mr. Punch which was very popular in European puppet shows. The British “Punch” Magazine also shared Mr. Punch as it’s logo and namesake. As the story goes the blend was meant to capture the 19th century British market, and became known for it’s Punch-ey flavor. This particular blend, the Short De Punch is not nearly as old as the brand itself. It was debuted back in 2019 as the first Robusto in the marca’s history.
This example has a gorgeous wrapper, a bit veiny, but some really nice color. The draw was spot on to my liking, just a bit of resistance. I cut with a punch cutter (of course), and lit with some matches.
I
The first light is showing notes of crackers, sweet biscuits, and medium coffee on the palate. I’m tasting cedar, floral spice, and sweet vanilla cream on the retrohale. About an inch in there’s a note that reminds me of those honey wheat pretzels – wheat, honey, and a bit of salt. Burn line is pretty wobbly here, but smoke output and flavors are sublime, so nothing worth complaining about.
II
Getting into the second third on the Short De Punch. The flavors are staying fairly consistent to the first third. The dominant flavor here is that honey pretzel note, but there’s some baking spices developing in the background. The vanilla, and wood notes are more pronounced as well. I’m reminded of the Partagas P2 spiced cream flavor, but not quite as spicy, and way heavier on the vanilla. This cigar is almost like a perfect middle ground between a Partagas and a Hoyo De Monterrey. Again less than great construction here, it needed a touchup to stay evenly lit.
III
Now in the final third. Honey wheat pretzels, toasted barley, and oak on the palate. The retrohale is still showing that sweet vanilla cream, cinnamon, and a bit of raw peanut. It’s worth noting how well balanced this blend is – it’s straddling the line between confectionary and complexity perfectly. I put this one down with just about an inch left.
Conclusions
I’d been having some less than stellar luck with the Cuban reviews as of late, and then the Punch Short De Punch came along. This example is from an RGB ABR ’23 box, so it performed exceptionally well given its youth. I’d love to see how this one would smoke in a year or two from now. The honey pretzel note was fantastic, and I really liked the mix of the baking spice and sweet vanilla. This cigar is winning no awards when it comes to construction, but the flavor profile is so well crafted I almost didn’t even notice. I will very likely be picking up a box of these when I next have the chance.
