CW Member Review: Rocky Patel 15th Anniversary Robusto
Cigar Weekly members Ben Lee (Mississippi Rifleman--also of Nice Tight Ash) and Tom Spicer (gpd11) of the Mississippi Gulf Coast give us a pre-release review of the heralded new Anniversary offering from Rocky Patel.
Size: Robusto 5 x 50
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan Jalapa
Filler: Nicaraguan
Available in robusto, toro, corona gorda and torpedo.
These cigars were sent to me by Patrick Vivalo of Rocky Patel Cigars via Nish Patel and Clay Roberts. This cigar is an anniversary cigar to commemorate Rocky Patel Cigars 15th year in the business. I enjoy most Rocky Patel cigars so I was looking forward to trying these, but I felt I could use another palette to help best describe some more of the nuisances of the cigar. I asked my friend, Tom Spicer (gpd11), to give me some help. These were pre-release samples which had no bands as you can see in the pictures. We got together one night and smoked the samples and gave our impressions which you can read below:
Prelight aroma
Tom: The foot smells a lot like cedar. Strong woody core. The wrapper has a rich earthy smell.
Ben: I agree. The foot does have a strong wood note. The wrapper has a barnyard smell with a nice hay aroma.
Prelight Draw:
Tom: I’m getting a strong wood note and hints of leather.
Ben: For me, I get the wood notes, but I get hints of black coffee, but just a hint.
Construction:
Tom: No large veins that I can see. I enjoy the box press shape myself.
Ben: Very smooth wrapper. Dark brown color and reminds of a chocolate bar. I love the box press shape. Construction looks great which I find is normal for a Rocky Patel cigar.
First Third:
Ben: Lots of spice right up front with a nice leather note. Further in, it's starting to get a creamy note. The spice is so strong, I can't retrohale even a third of the smoke.
Tom: I get a coffee note with the spiciness. The spice is almost searing on my palette. Tons of smoke. The creaminess is getting stronger as it get closer to the midpoint.
Second third:
Ben: I’m now getting a nice chocolate note. The creaminess has faded some, but the sweetness remains.
Tom: Not much change. I’m getting the chocolate, but it's more of a bitter chocolate like a baker’s chocolate.
Last Third:
Tom: Coffee is getting really strong at the end of the cigar. Same with the spice.
Ben: I’m getting the coffee too, and the spice has come back on strong, but it's not as overpowering as the first of the cigar.
Conclusion:
This cigar definitely is a full bodied cigar. The description is “rich, complex and full of flavor.” We have to agree with that. It’s the strongest RP that we’ve smoked. Stronger than the Patel Bros. It has a ton of smoke and a great even burn. The flavor changed a lot so it definitely keeps your interest. The strength increased as the cigar burned down. It also leaves a pretty good aftertaste. Tom says it reminds him of the Camacho Triple Maduro and I can see where he gets that. It does remind me a of a sweet, heavy maduro. I always enjoy a coffee note in my cigar and, when combined with a chocolate note, is a sure fire winner to me. I look forward to trying more of these cigars when they are released on July 30th.
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Ben Lee (mississippi rifleman) is a computer engineer for a large defense contractor and a cigar reviewer for NiceTightAsh.com. He also has a published review in Cigar Magazine. He enjoys hunting, fishing, shooting sports, bushcrafting, history and wine. He has been member of Cigar Weekly since 2004.
Tom Spicer (gpd11) is a lieutenant at a police department in Mississippi and has been an avid cigar smoker for several years. He enjoys scuba diving in his spare time and has been a member of Cigar Weekly since 2009.