Sunday, December 16, 2007

Rocky Patel Vintage 1992 Maduro

Rocky Patel Vintage 1992 maduro toro
$15/ 5 pk., Size: 6.5", Ring 52
Ecuadorian sun-grown wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, Nicaraguan and Dominican filler

When you say the name "Rocky" to someone, a variety of images can be conjured. A crook-nosed boxer. A cartoon flying squirrel. But to a cigar smoker, "Rocky" evokes a masterful tobacco blender.

The Vintage 1992 is a box-pressed cigar, sporting a 10-year old jacket of sun-grown Ecuadorian Sumatra tobacco and some well-aged Nicaraguan binder and filler. This cigar has been around a while, so if they've been taken care of, they should be mellow and flavorful. I got a 5 pack from CBid and was a bit surprised: three were a nice chocolate brown, while the other two were much darker. Being partial to maduro cigars, I went with the darker of the cigars.

The wrapper is a dark brown, almost oscuro, with subtle veining and smooth, almost oily. The cap on mine complained about the punch, causing some flaking which spread to all three layers of cap. Once lit, the burn occasionally got warbled to the point of needing some extra torching. Still, the white ash held for two inches, then fell solid like a discarded cork. Drawing through the cigar is nicely balanced, indicating a good job of rolling the filler.

Onto the smoking bit, the flavor was mild to medium, starting with a smooth leather with dark wood notes. I could taste a distinctive tone of the Nicaraguan tobacco used. The wood note subsides mid-cigar, to be replaced by a sweet spice finish at the back of the palate. The smoke was not thin, but it wasn't particularly full either.

While not quite as full or rich as the Indian Tabac Cameroon Legend, this is still a great cigar. Chalk up another knockout for Rocky.



Good Rocky

Bad Rocky



Cigar Jack smoked a Vintage 1992 robusto back in October '07.

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