Opalo 1979 Habano (6.5x50) ___________________________________________ Initial lighting greets you with white pepper, leather, vanilla, caramel and fleeting notes of toasted coconut. Smoke starts off a bit dry but improves after about a half-inch. About an inch in and dried fruit notes emerge. Ash is light gray, solid as concrete and has zero flake. The draw is a perfect medium. Palate stimulation is focused on the middle of tongue and front-roof of mouth. Combustion line is fairly thin and burning perfectly straight. Second third shifts from warmer notes to a much brighter character; lemon peel, vanilla, cedar, herbal and floral notes with a rich cream base. White pepper softens and palate stimulation starts to include the back-sides of the tongue. Final third rounds out a bit bringing notes of coffee, mild cocoa, lemon peel, shortbread cookie, and white pepper. Palate stimulation is full and slightly bright; pairs quite nicely with coffee. The Opalo 1976 is a medium bodied cigar that performed flawlessly with a price point of $8.50. It is packed with complexity for a cigar of this price point. While generally not a huge fan of Honduran tobacco, this gem showed me it can be great if done right.