Stogie Reviews: Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Robusto
16 Jan 2008
If cigars won awards for beautiful wrappers, this Romeo y Julieta would be a big-time contender. The light brown, thin Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade tobacco is definitely ready for its close-up.
Unfortunately, the rest of this five inch by 52 ring gauge cigar isn’t on the same plane. Not that there is anything particularly wrong with it; it just isn’t particularly exciting or memorable.
The draw was fine, and the smoke was thick and white. The finish was almost non-existent. I did experience some burn trouble in the first third, but it righted itself without being touched up.
The line utilizes a Nicaraguan binder and fillers from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, creating some complexity as flavors shifted throughout the length of the stick. The cigar exhibited what I think of as a fairly typical Connecticut spice and some cedar.
Altadis describes the Reserva Real as “a rich and aromatic smoke that will arouse the desires of even the most demanding cigar connoisseur.†I don’t feel I’m all that demanding, and I managed quite easily to keep my desires in check.
Again, this is by no means a bad cigar. At about $5 a stick, though, I think there are many more enjoyable sticks available.
Our rating system describes a cigar achieving three out of five stogies as “pretty respectable.†That’s where I rank this one: three out of five stogies.
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I haven't had one of these in quite awhile, since I started moving on to stronger stuff. I may have to give these a try once again, if I recall I enjoyed them. Apparently not enough to keep them in the regular rotation though. Thanks for the review.
Loved it!
I agree…..respectable. Not real impressive, but respectable and for $5.00 a stick I can think of others that are more respectable. 😉
I respectfully disagree, although I smoked the No. 2 Belicoso. For theprice point, I found it to be an aromatic change of pace in a medium-bodied smoke. The Altadis marketing may be a little over the top, but what can you expect? If pushed, I'd give it 4 out of 5 stogies…Not an unparalleled experience, but surely better than respectable.
I just smoked the Churchill and, if I were to write a review, it would read exactly like yours. After reading some of the hype around this stick I sought out a review to see if I was the only crazy one that thought this was a very mediocre smoke. I agree with you 100% – way overpriced. I can get two cigars for the price of one of these that are FAR superior.
yeah, I thought this cigar wasn't as good as most of the other cigars I have had in this price range. Not very complex, a dark, marbly ash, and not a whole lot to enjoy, which is irritating since I was cigarless for the last three weeks and this was the one I chose for my nightly smoke. Wish I would've read this review before I picked it out of the humidor.
It is what it is. The nuances in a milder cigar are, by definition, much more subtle. The fact is that you can eliminate 75% of the negative comments about milder cigars being "bland, flavorless, boring, without complexity" since those are coming from people who have a great deal of trouble appreciating a good mild or mild-medium cigar because it isn't in the same wheelhouse with cigars fulfilling their full strength/full flavored expectations. That said, this was, at least, a fairly objective review, but not without obvious prejudices.
I agree with ROTHNH. This is meant as a very smooth mild offering, within that areana its a quite decent stick. I like the density of the Churchill which combined with the ease of draw makes a nice liesurely hour plus session. I didn't know until I read the review about the NIC binder and blended leaf. Not bad sweet genuine CONN wrapper combined with NIC and DOM leaf yet smooth as glass. If the Chu
I agree with ROTHNH. This is meant as a very smooth mild offering, within that areana its a quite decent stick. I like the density of the Churchill which combined with the ease of draw makes a nice liesurely hour plus session. I didn’t know until I read the review about the NIC binder and blended leaf. Not bad sweet genuine CONN wrapper combined with NIC and DOM leaf yet smooth as glass. If the Churchill was $5 instead of, now, almost $7 it would be easy to recomnend in the mild category. Altadis needs to consider a lower price and I think it would really fly.