For those of you that don’t know…

I know, I know… I promised myself I would try not to review another Gurkha cigar as long as I lived. But then, a BOTL offered to trade a Gurkha Triad Platinum for some sticks he was looking for, so I took him up on it, threw the cigar in the back of one of the Vinos, and forgot about it.

Until recently, when I saw it sitting there, and thought “What the hell!” and decided to take a chance and review it.

The Triad line of cigars by Gurkha is one of those sticks that is released almost solely for the recognition that the brand has a $100 cigar for sale. Of course, Gurkha is known for such cigars (His Majesty’s Reserve, anyone?) and so a cigar like this is not that unusual for them.

There are two different versions of the Triad line: the Natural, which retails for $50, and the Platinum, which retails for $100. They are both the same size (7 x 52), but the tobacco in the Platinum is aged a bit more, and they are both different blends.

Says the Gurkha Website about the Platinum:

The Triad Platinum is incredibly unique and delicious. Unheard of in the cigar industry, The Triad Platinum has a dark and oily 10 year CT Maduro wrapper with amazing spiciness. The 8 year Cameroon Binder gives the Platinum such an overwhelming taste that it will tantalize your palate. Not to be outdone, the 8 year Dominican Binder will just knock your socks off with its complexity. So rare a cigar that only 300 boxes could be made for the World.

And for those wondering, here is what a $2000 box of cigars looks like (Photo by Gurkha):

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But enough of that, let’s get down to business, shall we?

• Cigar Reviewed: Gurkha Triad Platinum Maduro
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Tabacos San Rafael S.A.
• Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
• Binder: Cameroon
• Filler: Dominican
• Size: 7 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 52
• Vitola: Churchill
• MSRP: $100.00 (Boxes of 20, $2,000.00)
• Date Released: 2011
• Number of Cigars Released: 300 Boxes of 20 Cigars (6,000 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked for Review: 1

The cigar itself is a very large stick with an almost jet black wrapper that seems just a little too even to my eye. It comes wrapped in a cedar sleeve that has a black ribbon on the bottom. It is extremely hard when squeezed, with almost no give at all. The wrapper has a little too to it, but no oil that I could detect. The wrapper also has almost no scent, just a little sour hay and wood.

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The First Third starts out with a sour/bitter woodish note dominant, along with just a tad bit of spice on the lips. I can taste some coffee way in the background, but it is having trouble coming to the forefront. There is just a tiny amount of pepper on the retrohale, but hardly enough to effect anything.

As the Second Third begins, I start to taste an interesting sweet floral note that comes and goes throughout the third. Not enough to really impact the profile, but enough to notice. Sadly, most other flavors I might be able to pick out are overwhelmed by the sourness from the first third that seems to be gaining in strength.

The Final Third was pretty much the same. Almost no spice or pepper (even on the retrohale) and while I could taste some flavors in the background (sweet floral, cedar, coffee and even some dark chocolate), they were almost overwhelmed by the sourness that was a main player in the profile. It did not get hot at the end, and I was able to nub it, sourness not withstanding/

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Final Notes:

• I have to give props where they are due, and I have to say, I love the quality of the band on this cigar. Ornate and eye catching, and the silver is embossed nicely. Unlike, say, the His Majesty’s Reserve, this is a band that LOOKS like it belongs on a $100 cigar.
• Continuing with the giving of props where they are due, the construction and smoke production on the Triad were actually quite nice, albeit not spectacular.
• While the sourness that was pervasive in the profile was annoying, it was not so bad that I could not taste other flavors. nor bad enough to stop smoking it.
• The Triad comes adorned with a cedar sleeve that has a black ribbon on the bottom, which made me instantly think of a Fuente Maduro, who do the exact same thing with some of their Maduro wrapped cigars like the 858 Maduro and Opus Maduro. I am not sure if that was intentional on Gurkha’s part, but if it was, it worked.
• The strength of the cigar stayed at a pretty constant medium for the whole smoke.
• By all accounts, the humidor the Gurkha Triad comes in is actually quite nice, and keeps a seal very well.
• The Final Smoking Time was just under 2 Hours.

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The Bottom Line: This cigar surprised me, not because of how great of a smoke it was, which it was not, but how smokable it was. While not a great cigar by any means, it was an okay smoke that had some okay flavors and decent construction. While I was expecting a horrible experience, what I got instead was just an underwhelming mediocrity. The problem is that the Triad is billed as an Ultra Ultra Ultra Premium smoke, and it falls FAR short of fulfilling that promise. Flavor-wise and construction wise, this is a $4 smoke masquerading as a $100 smoke, and anyone buying one of these thinking they are going to get $100 of enjoyment out of it are fooling themselves and wasting their money.

Final Score: 69