Romeo Y Julieta Reserva Real Maduro
Friday, January 13th, 2012Today’s review is a random cigar that I’ve had in the humidor for a few months. Where I got it and why I picked it up eludes me. I’ll pick up almost any cigar at a shop that I know I haven’t reviewed, and I think this is a result of that. The only thing I know about this cigar is that it is a product of Altadis. It is touted at a “Wonderful smoke that will satisfy cigar connoisseurs time and time again.” That sounds like a challenge, so here are my thoughts…
Wrapper: Dominican
Binder: San Andreas Morron
Filler: Honduran & Nicaraguan
Size: Romantico 6.5 x 48
Price: Around $6.50
Pre-Smoke & Construction:
The dark wrapper had a nice somewhat oily appearance with minimal veins or flaws. The smell of the wrapper was woody and earthy. The cigar was rock solidly packed, and had some major tight spots, especially near the head. As expected, the draw was pretty tight, so I clipped off the nipple. This loosened up the draw a bit so I could at least move air through the cigar. The pre-light flavor was a bit chocolaty.
The ash held for just over an inch, and the burn required a couple minor corrections.
Flavor:
The first third had a dry woody flavor with an earthy aftertaste. Passing smoke through the nose revealed a pepper that had a little zing. After about an inch in, a dark chocolate joined in and took off some of the dry edge.
The second third was a pretty even combination of wood and dark chocolate flavors. The pepper through the nose kept it’s zing and took on sweet notes. The smoke feel became thicker and my urge to guzzle water slowed down. Basically the smoke feel became more pleasant.
The last third took on a dark coffee with dark bitter chocolaty notes. Woody notes would appear from time to time. There may have been some leathery notes as well, but I have a hard time detecting that flavor, I could be wrong here.
Conclusion:
This was a good medium bodied cigar. I would have liked it more if it started off with the same flavors as the last third. But it did have a nice buildup from beginning to end. I just preferred the flavors that were present towards the end. The only bad thing I can say pertains to the draw. It was too tight for my liking. It did loosen up a bit, but I didn’t care for the effort it took to get smoke. In the end, it was a good cigar.
