Rocky Patel – Patel Bros.
Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010The Patel Bros. line is a collaboration between Rocky and his brother Nish Patel. A unique feature of this cigar is the wrapper, which was grown in Pennsylvania. I tend to be a Rocky Patel whore at times, so I had to get my hands on this to try. After purchasing, I let them sit in my humidor for at least a couple of months before this review. As always, I paired this smoke with water and offer you my thoughts.
Wrapper: Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: Toro 6.5 x 52
Price: Around $6.50
Pre-Smoke & Construction:
The wrapper was very nice looking, with no real flaws and a few small to medium veins. The wrapper had a sweet earthy barnyard odor, while the foot was more of a rich soil. The pre-light draw had slight resistance, and had a sweet earthiness with slight spice. I found a few hard spots here and there when pinching the entire length of the cigar.
The burn requires a couple major corrections in the first third, but evened out. The ash held for about an inch.
Flavor:
The first third opened up with a simple tobacco taste accompanied by a smooth spicy pepper. It didn’t take long for sweet coffee notes to kick in. It reminded me of coffee with a touch of sugar. After about 1.5 inches in, mocha or cocoa-ish flavors were noticed.
The second third kept that nice peppery edge. It had a small punch but wasn’t very strong and had no harshness. It was what I like about tobacco from Nicaragua, that “Nic-Zing” if you will. Coffee flavors were up next, with a coco-ish sweetness coming in afterwards. Lastly… There were slight notes of earth or leather.
The last third had a dominant coffee flavor. The pepper fell back a little and wasn’t quite as strong as before. The sweetness would come and go. The aftertaste was earthy and leathery. All the while, it did keep some of it’s zing when exhaling through the nose.
Conclusion:
This was a good upper medium to full bodied cigar. I wouldn’t call it a WOW cigar, but it wasn’t bad by any means. If this sounds like it’s up your ally, my pals over at Tex Cigars and Bonita Smoke Shop have em. I’d smoke these again if I run across them again. My final verdict is – Give them a try.
