A couple months ago I had the pleasure of smoking one of the smaller LGC Reservas in maduro, the Felicias. A very fine little smoke. So I couldn’t pass up its big brother, the “Selectos de Lujos,” a handsome looking Salamones style figurado.

This particular size in the Reserva Figurados line was selected by Cigar Aficionado magazine as one of the best cigars of 2004, earning a 93, the top scorer along with other stellar smokes like the Cohiba Siglo VI and Ashton’s VSG Spellbound.

The “Luxury Selection” is a large perfecto measuring 7 1/4 inches with a ring gauge of 54 at its widest point. Before production the tobaccos are aged for four years, including three months in specially designed cedar bins to impart an extra spicy cedar kick.

The Ecuadorian Sumatra seed wrapper on this baby is a beauty. The Nicaraguan binder and the filler blend of Nicaraguan and Dominican leaf work with the wrapper to create a harmoniously mild to medium-bodied cigar, but the wrapper steals the show.

The foot lights up easily with barely a spark from my torch lighter. The draw is excellent and the burn is slow. A nice volume of smoke is produced with every lazy puff.

The first taste is of cedar, soon accompanied by a very pleasant, almost sweet aroma from the wrapper. If I had to guess I would have said this was Cameroon — but no, this is just a very carefully selected and prepared Ecuadorian leaf with a lot of mellow spice.

The smoke from this cigar is extremely smooth, almost creamy. Despite the big flavor I found the finish to be short, leaving a neglible aftertaste.

Toward the mid-way point it builds to about a medium body and picks up just a hint of bitterness. Truth be told, the first quarter of this cigar is brilliant, the next quarter very good, and the rest is just plain good. The only letdown is that there isn’t too much development here — it’s a very tasty cigar, but not terribly complex.

The “Selectos de Lujos” is a fairly pricey cigar, but not over the top at around 7 USD per stick — pretty reasonable for a large figurado of this quality. I’d say it’s worth every nickel if you’re in the mood for a mellow and tasty smoke with top notch construction.