Graycliff Crystal Pirate

Paid $24 but it was buy three get one free. Most I've ever paid for 4 cigars. I didn't think that this cigar was worth the money.
It was OK, but it never really knocked my socks off. It was just OK. Spent 4 months in the humi waiting for the right time, but I was disappointed.

I hope this review finds its way into the hands of someone who is doing the same thing that I am doing now...reading top 25 cigar reviews smoking this elegant cigar and in 12 hours catching a plane to rocky point mexico for some much needed R&R. this cigar was gifted to me by the local graycliff distributer here in hawaii. his cigars are stored in a temp controlled herfador and they come directly from nassau. I'm finding that his cliffs are a cut above the ones that cbid sells in their 5 packs. the wrapper is darker, and the tobacco feels fuller than the 5 pack. The first half of this cigar was strong with a bit of an oily deisel taste. however now that I am I'm the second half I am getting flavors of mellow spice, fresh baked nutty bread, and the slghtest hint of menthal twang. I picked this as my morning smoke, and while it didn't dissaoint, this powerhouse would have been better suited with a scotch after a good steak dinner. Like other cliffs I have tried, they mix their tobacco into something that I have never tasted before. I am on the finish now heavy eucaliptus, combined with a dark tea and cinnamin nuances. The gar still proceeds to burn cool but the is a definate spice on my palate as the cigar ashh burns down towards the tip of the band. I really enjoyed this smoke. I have the next seven days to indulge in good food, and some monty edmundos, cohiba maduro 5's, cupido criollos, and for the golf course perhaps a couple of cuba libre robustos. yes cuba libre. I can appreciate a $3 on dimensional as much as any $25 stick. But back to the crystal...it has given me the perfect start to my vacation. when I smoke this cigar again, and I will because I have 5 more in my humidor, I will be reminded of how it felt to be treated to this well worth it impromtu piece of paradise.

Not bad looking, good draw and that's about it
Every thing else about it is as bad as it could get. I bough 10 of them at CB and thought I was getting a real good deal. The other reviewers must have been smoking something else. I tried 5 of them in 2 months. I have smoked the professional and grand cru series and they are good cigars but not the crystal series.
Taste is like smoking a card board, to much heat when you smoke it. I wonder if others have the same experience as I did I have 5 more and I am going to give them away. Sorry to write a bad review on this one but I had no other choice.

Tried a couple of these last week. Expensive---yes, delicious---absolutely. I agree with the other reviewers, the wrapper on the Graycliff Pirate brings a totally different taste to the table. Gave off lots of aromatic smoke, wish they were cheaper.

Scored a box at auction for a fair price.Worth 2 to 3 times what I paid and definitely worth retail!!!!! Complex flavors that hung on for the whole stick and lasted for hours after. Not for the faint of heart much like an opus x or camacho corojo in the first third and mellows like a padilla miami in the second, and I would have to say all Graycliff in the last as the memory of the tastes are causing me to salivate. Definately a special occasion cigar well worth the $$

Grecian leaf? I don't know what it is, but there's something unique in this smoke. The first half is just your normal quality smoke. As I smoked it I thought, "I can see this being a big hit in resort bars." It's good, balanced and not overwhelming. The secondary smoke doesn't irritate, it has good flavor and is enjoyable. Then something happened. The cigar "kicked it up a notch". Much fuller body and a little spice for a few minutes. I switched to a good boch beer to keep the palet in the zone. The last 45% of the smoke was all TWANG, as someone else said. It must be the Grecian leaf. It's like nothing I've tasted. The word that came to mind is eucalyptus. It hovers in your sinus cavity like a balm. Truly unique. It is a little overpowering and unbalances the overall flavor a bit. But, this is not a cigar that requires you to "pay attention". It demands your attention for the last 40% or so. I can see this would be an unpleasant surprise for a novice smoker. You have to have smoked enough "normal" stuff to enjoy the "exotic-ness" of the Grecian leaf. I paid about $9/stck for a box of these, so I find the value pretty high as well.

Great looks and construction, easy draw giving volumes of smoke. Herbal start gave way to a more pleasant flavor. Overall smoking experience aided greatly by a Bell's Expedition Stout.

Got a great deal on these recently at auction, and having tried and enjoyed the blue label PG, I jumped on a box of the Crystal Pirates. Cigar looks fantastic - a nice flaired torpedo, beautiful silky wrapper, expensive looking white and gold band. Pre-light draw was also fantastic. I punched the cap and this baby lit and drew easily. The first third was very strong, so much so that it overpowered any flavors. Reminded me a little of OpusX type power. In the second third this cigar changed dramatically - it came alive with flavors, very complex, almost exotic and very good. In this portion of the cigar the power diminished to a nice spice balance. There is a Grecian leaf in the blend and supposedly this gives it that little exotic twang. I really enjoyed this part of the cigar - delicious with a great aroma. In the final third the cigar picked up in intensity again and then seemed to alternate between power and flavor. It burned great and I never needed to touch it up (a rarity for me). Definitely a special occasion cigar. Highly recommended. Now for $18-20 a pop I'd normally give it low value marks, but as I mentioned I got a great deal! =)

this as I've said is a great cigar but the price ($25.00)is way high .perhaps at 10 to 15 dollars we have a reasonable value

I enjoyed this smoke a lot, almost as much as the Expresso. It's a taste smoke with outstanding construction and a perfect burn. Now the price is something else though. Here in Cal. the taxes kill you and cigars. So there are very hard to find and quite expensive too. For that matter there expensive everywhere. Just wish I could afford more of these fine smokes.

It looks great, taste great, and burns great. It is pricey but good on special occasions.

Not for a novice. This is a complex Medium to Full bodied stick with great draw, construction and volume of smoke. Reminded me of a cuban El Rey Robusto. Overpriced but a must try.

This was a great experience. Crystal is a great name, as it smokes like it wants to be nice to you. i loved the flavor throughout. A definite multidimensional smoke.

Looked great, burned and drew great. The taste was nice, didn't stand out as originating from any one place. The flavors were interesting but not strong. I really liked everything but the price.

These are really good. They look good. They burn good. They have an extremely good flavor. If you roll up 20 one dollar bills they make about the same size package. Money cant buy you happiness but it can buy these cigars. If you havnt tried one you should.

This here cigar did me right. An expensive cigar. It has an intense rich sharpness, with a clean smooth draw. Background of Dark chocolate like flavors bouncing off a twang that almost approaches the promiseland of ISOM. That good. At a price though.

when my tobacconist said that this cigar is as close to perfect as you can get, I didn't believe him. In construction, flavor, ash that hung on forever- lilly white, draw, pre-light scent it was nearly perfect. The only non perfect thing is the price - ouch! But as a special occasion, it's so worth it!

This was a nice smoke. It was far more robust than I was anticipating. The cigar carried a nice amount of spice and power. Definatly medium boddied. Grassy with an underlying bready flavor that carried the spice for this cigar. After the first quarter, the grassy flavor of this cigar faded and the bready spicy flavor dominated. I didn't think there was enough complexity for a cigar of this size.

Once again a Greycliff cigar is good, but it's tough to live up to the price that the Greycliffs demand.

Good Smoke flavorfull, yet not too harsh. Good burn with lots of smoke. I would make these a regular smoke if they wern't $20 a stick.