The Particulars

The Review

This review for the J. London Pink Telephone Booth - Lancero (6.75 x 42) is based on the journal entry dated 2025-05-11

This seemed like a good choice for Mother’s Day. If you’re unsure why, well, you can thank your dad connecting a long-distance call in your mom’s pink telephone booth for the fact that you’re here in this world. 😅 ba dum tiss 🥁

Admittedly, Lanceros are not in my comfort zone, but they strike me as a bit of a connoisseur’s vitola. They’re a really great way to savor the wrapper with less binder and filler tobacco. But as a proud member of the big-hand club, these smaller ring gauges always feel a little like I’m holding a toothpick. While the Pink Telephone Booth blend itself is not limited, the Lancero vitola is an exclusive to LA Cigar Collective, located right in our backyard just outside of New Orleans

Appearance & Construction (0-3):  Average (2)

The Habano wrapper is super dark, has good oiliness, and features a lot of mottling. There’s an interesting dichotomy of a “crispiness” to the wrapper while still being so oily you can feel the residue on your fingers. It is definitely not dry, though; the HumidiMeter checked in at 62%. It is a bit rustic, however. It’s lumpy and slightly curved, with a couple of thick veins and some lift at the seams. The pigtail only accentuates the rustic vibe. But I really dig the teal and pink color combo on the band.

Draw (0-3) & Burn (0-4):  Good (3) / Good (3)

The draw is on the open side, but good. The burn is uneven through the first inch, but stays controlled enough to avoid canoeing. I always find these smaller ring gauges are tougher to burn evenly. The ash is a very light gray that develops dark, deep grooves between draws. By the end of the first third, the char settles into a nice, even line. The ash barely holds on through the first third, but there are no surprises there. Stacking ash isn’t a strong suit of the small-ring gang.

Flavor Profile (0-5):  Excellent (5)

Immediate flavors are musty earth, light pepper, and a citrusy sweetness. I’m getting espresso and light chocolate as well. I get a little bit of salt from the wrapper when my tongue touches where the leaf was resting on my lips. This blend is off to a great start. There’s some charred woodiness, but it adds a smoky quality to the earth rather than overpowering it. The sweetness is interesting; there’s a bit of zest, but I’m also getting a very savory, butter-like flavor to it.

The pepper increases with the smoke, approaching 🌶️💣 status. This is a very robust set of flavors, as well as a strong cigar for its size. But it’s a straight-shooter—no real major transitions from start to finish, just increasing intensity and a delightful blend of flavors. The savory, buttery note, along with the espresso, spice, and musty earth—all wrapped in a creamy finish—just absolutely dominate.

Overall Experience (0-5):  Great (4)

A great and enjoyable blend, but I’m still not completely sold on Lanceros. The biggest issue now is that I want it in a Toro vitola that just doesn’t exist. 😅 And now I’m also very interested in the other Telephone Booth blends. The pursuit of new and interesting cigars never ends! Check this one out if you can. 🔥

Review Base Rating (0-5):

4.25

Is it Burnable?

Signs point to yes (recommended)

Review Final Score (0-10):

8.50

Postscript

So yeah, it absolutely sucks this cigar is no longer on the market… I loved it and now I love Lanceros.   Luckily I still have more in my reserves, but eventually they’ll be gone for good. 😭

Overall Score and Individual Journal Entries

While the review is based off one instance of journaling this cigar; there’s a number of reasons you can have different experiences smoking the same cigar multiple times. A blend can evolve with age (for better or worse), palates evolves, preferences change, and sometimes you just get a bad example!  This section captures the ratings from each journal entry and the related journal photo.  Below you’ll find an aggregate score based on every time the cigar has been journaled. Unless it was a gift or on-off smoke, this section will be updated every time I journal this cigar!

The Flavor Wheel

With every cigar I journal, I capture simple ratings of the basic flavor categories that I experience.  These are more generalized than what you would see in a review, but a distinct profile can still be built out.  When multiple instances of the same cigar have been journaled, the scores are averaged out in an attempt to build a reliable flavor profile based on my palate.

The values entered for the strength of each flavor range from 0 to 3.

• 0:   No flavor detected
• 1:   Mild flavor
• 2:   Medium flavor
• 3:   Strong flavor

Note: desktop / large screens will see a flavor wheel while mobile / small screens will see a bar chart.

With every cigar I journal, I capture simple ratings of the basic flavor categories that I experience.  These are more generalized than what you would see in a review, but a distinct profile can still be built out.  When multiple instances of the same cigar have been journaled, the scores are averaged out in an attempt to build a reliable flavor profile based on my palate.

The values entered for the strength of each flavor range from 0 to 3.

• 0:   No flavor detected
• 1:   Mild flavor
• 2:   Medium flavor
• 3:   Strong flavor

Note: desktop / large screens will see a flavor wheel while mobile / small screens will see a bar chart.