Cigars.ie

12 Robustos of Xmas, Day 10: Saint Luis Rey Regios

The 12 Robustos of Xmas, Day 10:
Saint Luis Rey Regio

Saint Luis Rey is one of the Habano’s brands with a very small amount of cigars produced every year. Around 60.000 cigars are produced yearly, making them quite hard to find. Their price and their reputation for having deep, intense flavours and dark shiny wrappers have built a loyal following amongst the cigar aficionados. The brand was established in 1940, however it was in the 80’s when it started becoming very popular in Europe and then the rest of the world.The Regio is a Hermoso No.4, and it is considered one of the finest Hermosos in the market. It is one of the first vitolas produced from the brand and it comes in dress boxes of 25 and cabinets of 50. The one I will be reviewing today is from the 2008 production.

Appearance & Prelight 14/15

The Regio is a beautiful cigar. The wrapper is dark brown and shiny and the veins are almost non existent. The bunch is rock solid, making me worrying about the draw! The cap is rounded and perfectly applied. Mild aromas of leather and earth are present on the foot of the cigar. The prelight draw is perfect; this cigar looks very promising.

Flavour & Body 20/25

The initial draw is very spicy and sweet. A few puffs later, the flavours settle down. The body is medium,with moist earth, spices, wood and leather in good balance. Towards the second third the cigar is no longer spicy, but very sweet, with flavours of honey and vanilla adding to the complexity. Very impressed by it so far. Halfway in the second third the cigar changes again; it is now medium to full bodied and the flavours are sharper. Peat and wood are adding to the mix, while an acidic taste appears too. On the last third the cigar becomes  harsh, leaving a bitter aftertaste. It gets so hot that I barely get into the last third. An early finish…

Draw & Burn 19/25

Although the draw is tight on at start, a sufficient amount of smoke is delivered. The ash is firm and dark grey in colour, falling after reaching an inch in length, leaving a flat coal. The burn is even at the start, but after the ash falls off, it start burning sideways. Halfway in the cigar, the ash gets flaky and the burn becomes very uneven. On the last third the cigar does not seem to burn at all! You struggle to get a mouthful of smoke and when you do the finish is bitter. The bad burn definately had a bad effect on the taste of the cigar.

Overall impression 29/35

Even thought the Regio started very promising, with deep and complex flavours, its burn issues spoiled the whole experience. After smoking some great Serie A’s, Coronas and Double Coronas, I was hoping that this was going to be the surprise in this reviews. Unfortunately, I was let down… However, I do believe it was just a bad stick. I will come back to it hoping for a better result, preferably to a stick carrying plenty of age!

TOTAL 82/100