Today for review, I bring to you the Rocky Patel Nicaraguan, a Famous Smoke Shop exclusive. Information is lacking on the interwebs for this specific cigar, but I will give you the information that I do know. The Nicaraguan is available in three vitolas: Toro (6 by 52), Torpedo (6 by 52), and Grand Toro (6 by 60). Single stick prices range from $6.50 to $7.50 and drops between $4 and $5 if purchased by the box. The components are not disclosed on the Nicaraguan, but based on the name I assume it is a Nicaraguan puro.

The Facts

Samples Provided by Famous Smoke Shop
Price: $6.50 per single / $79.99 per box of 20
Vitola: Toro
Size: 6 by 52
Wrapper: Unknown Country, Habano
Binder: Unknown
Filler: Unknown
Smoke Time: 1 Hour and 50 Minutes
Drink: Water

Pre-light

The Rocky Patel Nicaraguan wears an extremely dark brown wrapper that is covered in oils from head to foot. Oils glisten in the light off this gorgeous Habano wrapper leaf that is very smooth to the touch, but a few medium sized veins can be seen and it does not lack in bumps. The Nicaraguan feels solid in the hand and the cigar is rock solid. The foot appears under-filled but I do not encounter any soft spots.

Notes of barnyard, cedar, and honey are found on the wrapper, while honey, pecans, some pungency, and a sour cedar are on the unlit foot of the Nicaraguan. I find a decent draw upon clipping the double cap causing a spice tingle is on my lips. A honey sweetness is front and center on the dry draw with some potpourri-like spices.

First Third

With the cigar fired up, I immediately taken on a journey from my cold basement to a campfire on a warm summer night. The flavors are reminiscent of charred wood and roasted marshmallows. The profile is very meaty and full flavored. With the charred flavor playing such a dominating role, I assume this stick carries its fair share of ligero tobaccos, but don’t quote me on that. The finish is of earth, dirt, and black coffee, with just a hint of that honey I picked up the pre-light inspection. There is a  crazy-wavy burn, but no need to bust out the lighter.

Middle Third

The pepper is full force on the retrohale, borderline unbearable, but I like the intensity of it. Chocolate covered nuts, marshmallow sweetness, and charred flavor are making up the profile in the second third.  The smoke feels creamy in my mouth with each draw. A quick touch-up is needed to correct the burn.

Final Third

The flavors of roasted marshmallow, chocolate, and honey have dropped off, while darker flavors of  charred wood, earth, and diesel-like arrive. Pulling up to the two hour mark, I am finally beginning to feel some of the strength of this cigar. A small crack has formed, only wrapper deep, so it is not impacting the smoke production. As soon as I thought the burn got its act together, once again a touch-up is needed.

Wrap-up

The Rocky Patel was slow smoking, full flavored, and medium/full in strength. The core flavor of charred wood (campfire) held strong through the course of the cigars for almost two hours, with some additional marshmallow and chocolate sweetness in the first and second thirds that rounded out the profile. As the cigar came to a close, the sweetness faded and unrefined flavors of earth and diesel arrived. I would not consider this cigar complex but there were some change-ups throughout. A Toro vitola is not an overly-large cigar in my opinion, but it sure smoked like one considering the amount of time I spent from first light to final puff. The charred wood was intriguing at the beginning, but was a bit much by the end of the Rocky Patel Nicaraguan. I would say a smaller ring gauge of the Nicaraguan would help, but considering the Toro is the smallest in the line-up that seems out of question. Overall, I enjoyed smoking the cigar but would have been happy to close out the cigar 20 minutes ahead of schedule. With a price under $7, if the profile is in your wheelhouse, I recommend that you grab a few.

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Rocky Patel 1961

The Rocky Patel 1961 was amongst an array of anticipated cigars released in 2009 at the IPCPR show in New Orleans.

The Good Stuff: The year 1961, from what I gathered, is Rocky’s actually birth year. These limited production cigars were among the first cigars manufactured at the new Tabacalera Villa Cuba, Rocky’s newest factory.

Size: 5 x50  –  Wrapper: Ecuadorian  –  Binder/Filler: Honduran/Nicaraguan  –  Strength: Medium – Full

Rocky Patel 1961

Prelight: The first characteristic I noticed was the triple cap. I’m a huge fan of the triple cap as most of my wrapper problems usually occur at the head of the cigar. The cigar itself sports top-notch construction, with absolutely no signs of soft spots, or flaws in the construction. Rocky is known for being a stickler when it comes to the perfection of all cigars manufactured under his rule. The wrapper is very smooth and there were no real noticable veins as far as I could see. The band was remarkable, and unlike anything that I have seen come from Rocky Patel. The 1961 showcased a massive, double band. The top band is black, with light watermarked “wallpaperesque” textured, presented by a large “1961” label positioned over a halftone tobacco plant. The secondary band fits snuggly into the primary band and sports a red shimmer with the “Rocky Patel” label.  There isn’t really a lot of noticable scent coming from the wrapper of the 1961. I picked up light notes of sweetness and cocoa. The foot of the cigar smells very similar, with a touch of grain, and what seems to be something that smells similar to paint thinner. Tom from Tom’s Cigars nailed it in a recent review when he acclaimed that you should NEVER trust a cigar by its smell. Many of the best cigars I have had smelled like complete crap.

Rocky Patel 1961

Cold Draw: I was able to pull the paint thinner taste off the cold draw. Not a good sign. Let’s just hope this taste doesn’t carry into the actual smoke. I got a bit of pepper, and mixed almond as well.

First Smoke: THANK GOD the paint thinner taste didn’t make it to the actual smoke. If so, I would have never even went into the cigar for fear of throwing up. The 1961 starts off with a massive burst of pepper and spice. What a wake up call. I wasn’t expecting much taste as I couldn’t really pull anything off of the 1961 on the cold draw. The pepper even got to a point where it started to make my lips, and back of the throat tingle. Most of the undertones at this point were masked under the pepper, but there was a mixed bunch of almond and cocoa in there. The burn line became wavy, and unstable right off the bat. The ash itself was very light colored, and flaked off every chance it got. The 1961 produced an awesomely large draw with thick, almost brown smoke.

Rocky Patel 1961

Halfway There: And just as quickly as the pepper came, it went away. The pepper literally just dropped off the face of the cigar. Halfway through the smoke balanced out and became very smooth and creamy. The flavors weren’t as complex as I’m used to, Cracker/grain, cocoa, a bit of sweetness, a bit of cherry/grape, mostly earthy tones. The smoke itself smelled much like the paint thinner I pulled off the cold draw. I wouldn’t recommend smoking the 1961 around people. The burn line is getting more and more wavy as I burn through this cigar. Halfway though the 1961 went completely out on me and I had to relight before the ash actually fell off itself. Classic case of the filler burning faster than the wrapper itself.

Rocky Patel 1961

 Finish: The pepper taste I craved never made it’s comeback. Why do you tease me so 1961?! By the time I got the cigar down to the nub I reached a total of 3 relights, and countless touch-ups. For the sake of the review I wouldn’t have bothered to touch up the cigar, but it got to a point where there was more un-burnt wrapper than actual cigar left. The only characteristic that really stayed consistent throughout the smoke was the awful aroma of the smoke. I can’t imagine what made it smell that way. The 1961 started off as a powerhouse cigar. I could feel the nicotine almost instantly. But it finished as gently as a puppy. I just wish this cigar was more consistent.

Rocky Patel 1961

Overview: At the beginning of my review I stated that I wasn’t impressed much by Rocky Patel’s cigars. I hoped that the 1961 would renew what little faith I had in the company. Alas, it only made it worse. The 1961 was very bland for my taste. It lacked complexity, and consistently. I do however, see why some may find this smooth smoke attractive. I however, will probably never purchase it again.

Rocky Patel 1961

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