The Good Stuff: Romeo is the newest offering by Romeo y Julieta, or as the company calls it, “the latest act in their love story”. Is the Romeo love at first smoke? Lets find out.

Romeo y Julieta is known for is mass marketed, mild cigars. Romeo is the first venture, that I know of by the manufacturer into a more full bodied experience. Rolled by a special team of only the finest artisans at the famed Tabacalera de Garcia factory, the Romeo is jam packed with some of the rarest tobaccos the company has ever offered. The Romeo is stuffed with Dominican Piloto and dark Olor tobaccos, bound by mountain grown Dominican Olor, and wrapped in specially selected dark Ecuadorian Habano grown in a region filled with rich, volcanic soil.

The Romeo will come in four traditional sizes: Churchill (56 x 7), Toro (54 x 6), Robusto (54 x 5), and the Piramide (52 x 6 1/8). These cigars were sent as pre-release samples from our good friends at altadis, but you should be able to find these at your favorite local B&M. If I’m not mistaken they were due out for release in late May.

Size: 54 x 6  –  Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano  –  Binder: Dominican Olor  –  Filler: Dominican Piloto/Olor  –  Body: Full  –  Strength: Medium

Prelight: alright, I’m obviously going to start off with the strange band on this Romeo by Romeo y Julieta. I’ve heard lots of people complain about how ugly it is, and while I don’t totally agree with it from a design standpoint, I can’t help but applaud Romeo y Julieta for doing something completely different then they have in their past portfolio. The crazy juxtaposition of the “ROMERO” on the front of this gold, while, and red band is sure to catch the attention of any smoker looking through a sea of cigars to make a purchase. Hell even the boxes look awesome.

That being said, the construction the cigar carries should help back up the decision to purchase. The cigar is rock solid with no soft spots and only a few smaller veins running the length of the wide bodied cigar up to the cigar’s round triple cap. I say triple cap loosely too, I am not totally convinced that these are triple cap cigars from the samples I have received. One looks like a double, one looks triple, while one falls in between. Either way, that shouldn’t really change the experience. The wrapper is hard as a rock and gives off a very, very sweet, cedar infused tobacco aroma while the foot of the cigar only puts out a very mild molasses and tobacco smell. Despite the larger ring gauge and thickness of the wrapper the cap cut very easily and clean using my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces just a ton of earthy, natural tobacco flavors. Nothing really more than that.

First Smoke: There is a lot of tobacco in this cigar and it took quite a bit of fire from my single flame butane torch to get the foot lit properly. The Romeo actually started out with a little burst of black pepper that I wasn’t really expecting. Underneath the pepper was a subtle spice, a bit of that molasses I picked up, some vanilla, and a really pronounced leather all centered around an earthy tobacco flavor. I really wasn’t expecting the cigar to start off with as much flavor as this Romeo is. The draw is just beautiful kicking out massive clouds of thick, white smoke with every puff.  Despite all the smoke on the draw the Romeo by Romero y Julieta gives off very little in the stationary smoke department. The burnline is razor sharp and dead even producing a really nicely compacted, grey and dark grey zebra striped ash.

Halfway There: Talk about a drop off in flavor. The pepper is gone, most of the earthy tobacco flavor is gone, and I am left with a leathery vanilla with some sweet molasses and only a bit of tobacco. The flavor carried like this through most of the second third until the cigar really started to ramp up in the cedar department. It got me anxious to get into the final third. As far as the burn goes, this cigar is still burning very even and clean. The retrohale really helps pronounce the cedar flavor that seems to be fighting it’s way through the cigar. I am barely feeling anything at all in the nicotine department. I think the slight bit of haziness I am experiencing is actually heat stroke. Kidding. Kind of.

Finish: As expected, the flavors really ramped up in the final third of this Romeo. This has to be the best portion of the cigar as the cedar really took over backed by that vanilla and sweet molasses. Even the spice made a brief reappearance. All in all the Romeo took me almost two full hours to take down while it required absolutely no touch ups or relights, the cigar burned perfectly all the way through. A big plus was that the huge band slid right off without any effort. Gotta love that. I finished it only feeling a very slight bit of nicotine.

Overview: The Romeo by Romeo y Julieta is a decent cigar. Not bad by any means, just not great. Primarily, I think this cigar is a gem for any mild cigar smoker looking for something really flavorful that won’t hit them hard in the nicotine department. It does have a slightly higher strength than most other cigars is the Romeo y Julieta portfolio, but not by much. This is something I’d smoke when I’ve had quite a few and want something decent that won’t put me under the table. Will I buy I smoke it again? I’m sure. It’s just not something I am going to be stocking up on.

Pairing: This is another classic example of a pairing that really brings the most out of a cigar. When I think mild cigars, one of the first beers that come to mind is Samuel Adams cherry wheat ever since the successful pairing with the EP Carrillo New Wave Connecticut. This beer’s sweet almond and cherry flavors really did the cigar a favor by uplifting the vanilla and sweet tobacco flavors the cigar produced. This is also the perfect summer beer. I really can’t think of anything besides some nice iced black tea that would have went better with this cigar.

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The Good Stuff: If you aren’t familiar with VegaFina, don’t feel bad. The line comes from Altadis, which owns brands such as Montecristo, Romero y Julieta, and H. Upman which can easily overshadow the smaller names such as the VegaFina. The Sumum, is a vintage blend created at Tabacalera de Garcia “with the best premium tobaccos, hand-selected for their unique characteristics and aged with care, for a one-of-a-kind smoke with distinct body, toasty aroma, and rich flavors” as stated by Altadis. This blend was released into the US last month, but, like the Quesada Sleccion Espana, was actually released in Europe quite a while back. I really like that manufacturers are starting to bring certain blends out of certain markets like that.

The blend starts with a two year old Ecuadorian wrapper (one of the darkest I personally, have seen), bound by a three year old Dominican binder, stuffed with a three year old filler composed of Nicaraguan, Dominican, and Peruvian tobacco. You can only find this blend in one size, the 5×54 which retails for $6.75. These samples were sent directly from the manufacturer to me. Thanks to www.stogieguys.com for all this info. If you haven’t checked out their site, I urge you to do so. Some of the most comprehensive and informative reviews out there.

Size: 5×54  –  Wrapper: Ecuadorian  –  Binder: Dominican  –  Filler:  Nicaraguan, Dominican, and Peruvian.

Prelight: The VegaFina Sumum is very pleasing to the eye. The cigar starts out with a medium/orangish brown wrapper which is pretty consistent for the most part, only bearing a few splotchy areas. The cigar isn’t very oily, but the toothyness on the wrapper, and all around density of the tobacco they used to wrap it compensate for the lack of oils. There are only one or two smaller veins running through the body of the cigar. The VegaFina Sumum carries a very simple, stylish, and elegant silver, grey, and black double band. The larger of two, carrying the “VF” logo as well as the titles “VegaFina” and “Sumum” while the smaller band boasts “Edicion Especial 2010”. The cigar is then polished off with a beautiful, round, triple cap.

As I stated before, the wrapper is very thick and durable, while the cigar in general is really heavy, and really tough. I really hope it isn’t packed so tightly that it becomes hard to smoke. The wrapper of the cigar gives off little more than a slight cedar aroma while the foot lets out a very modest spice, and citrus aroma.

The VegaFina Sumum cut very, very easily with my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw put me as ease, as it was not too loose, nor to tight producing a very natural, grainy, oaty flavor with just a touch of spice.

First Smoke: The VegaFina Sumum started off with a whole lot more pepper than I thought it would. It wasn’t overpowering by far, I just wasn’t expecting it from the cold draw. The main flavor was this really interesting plum, along with some citrus, cedar, earthy natural flavors, and a really sharp spice. The draw on this cigar is perfect, kicking out a whole mess of thick, white smoke with every little puff. The burnline started out very, very messy, but has began to straighten out as I near the end of the first third. The ash is tightly compacted with a bit of flaking, and a bright white. The ash held on well over an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: Now the VegaFina Sumum Edition Especial 2010’s true colors are starting to show. The cigar is really starting to push out this deep, mossy, cedar flavor which pairs perfectly with the spice and citrus, while the plum is still evident, but takes a back burner to the more prominent flavors. The retrohale on this cigar is great, coating my nasal passage with a very deep, smooth cedar. I could retrohale this cigar all day. The burnline is now burning dead even, and I am feeling only a very slight bit of nicotine.

Finish: The VegaFina Sumum Edicion Especial 2010 has stepped it up once again in the final third. The pepper has made a subtle re-appearance, the cedar has stepped it’s game up, the spice is still there and the citrus is rocking solid all while the body has started to ramp up. I have to say, the beginning of this cigar was a big “so-so” but what becomes of the stick in the second and final third are well worth it. I am feeling a little nicotine kick, and have experienced absolutely no harshness at all, even into the final inch. The cigar finished off smooth, and complex.

Overview: The VegaFina Sumum Edicion Especial 2010 caught me by surprise. In my opinion, Altadis cigars don’t really do much for me. It’s not that they create bad cigars by any means. They usually just don’t create very complex blends, and tend to appeal to mass market. Which is totally fine, and I hold nothing against them for that. It’s just not often that I enjoy an Altadis cigar as much as I enjoyed this one. The cigar switched up quite a bit, which kept me on my toes, while the flavors were very good, and complex enough to keep me thinking. If it wasn’t for the drop off at the start this would have been a stellar review. At the price point this cigar is definitely worth picking up a few, or even a box. It’s a great cigar to have in your regular rotation and I can only hope that Altadis produces more cigars like this one.

Pairing: Yes, another great Belgian pairing. This beer, and brewery is no stranger to this blog. In fact, St. Bernardus has appeared on more of my review than most other Belgian brews. Matching the amazing summer-esque weather, I decided to pair this VegaFina with St. Bernardus’ Tripel. This 8% ABV powerhouse is brewed at the infamous Brouwerij St. Bernardus in Belgium. The active-yeast beer pours heavy, and light yellowish orange and commands attention as it pumps out sip after sip of heavy citrus, fruit, spice, and malty flavors. I swear I can taste celery in there. Tripel’s have been a long time love of mine, and St. Bernardus is the epitome of a good tripel. The spices match perfectly with that of the VegaFina and the citrus and strong composure really helped bring the cigar to the next level.

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