Times are coming when Habanos tasting is not only an enjoyment for aficionados but also a good time to treat our acquaintances to the latest novelties of Cuban cigars, as well as new presentations of other vitolas.
In our visits to the cellars of the main Spanish tobacconists in recent weeks, we have been able to find novelties in the form of new vitolas, as in the case of the Montecristo Wide Churchills, surprising launches in packaging formats and even special humidors.
The latest novelty to arrive in cigar shops throughout Spain is the Montecristo Wide Edmundo, which responds perfectly to its name due to the width of its 54 ring gauge and its 21.43 millimeters in diameter, with an excellent draw.
Montecristo is a classic Habanos brand that was created in the Cuban capital in 1935 by the then owner of the H. Upmann brand, the Asturian Alonso Menendez, and throughout its eighty-seven years it has proven to be a favorite among aficionados around the world, for it is not in vain that it holds the record of having the best-selling Habano of all times with the Montecristo No. 4, of which more than a billion have been consumed throughout its history.
Precisely, the world presentation of this new vitola of one of Habanos’ global brands was held on the first Saturday of October in an evening organized by the Pasión Habanos Private Club at the Metropolitano stadium and attended by several hundred people.
The new Wide is part of the Edmundo Line, born in 2004 precisely with the vitola so named (135 x 52), and is the fourth of the vitolas in this series, which uses Premium tobaccos from the Vuelta Abajo area in the western province of Pinar del Rio, one of the highest-quality Cuban demarcations in its vegas.
But in our best moments as aficionados during visits to the cellars, we have also been able to find the Romeo y Julieta Wide Churchills in a gift box of five cigars, as well as the Hoyo de Monterrey Petit Robustos in a special humidor with 25 cigars.
In the case of the Romeo y Julieta Wide Churchills, it is a cigar that since its release twelve years ago has won the favor of aficionados due to its medium/high strength, its good tobacco weight and especially its splendid draw.
As for the Hoyo de Monterrey Petit Robustos, something similar happens. For Cuban cigar smokers, it represents not only a tasty cigar with a strength rated as one of the lowest in the Habanos vitolary, but also with a short smoke, an excellent draw and a good mouthfeel without any sharp edges on the taste buds.
The quartet chosen for these winter times is a symphony of flavors and aromas that can accompany those of us who delight in them and also the people whose attention they deserve from our gifts.
MONTECRISTO WIDE EDMUNDO
FORMAT: Length: 125 mm. Diameter: 21,43 mm. Strain: 54.Weight: 15,78 gr.
TOBACCO: Vuelta Abajo (Pinar del Río, Cuba)
BEFORE LIGHTING: Color: colored. Aroma: fresh hay
COMBUSTION: First third: smooth and with good tobacco flavors. Second third: white pepper and some earthy tones appear. Third third: increasing strength of flavors mixed with notes of cocoa.
Smoking time: 55/60 minutes
SHOT: Excellent
ASH: Light gray
COMMERCIAL PRESENTATION: Boxes of 25 cigars
COMMENT: This is the latest vitola incorporated into the Montecristo brand, with the widest diameter, a large amount of tobacco, full of nuances and without any sharp edges in the mouth.
ROMEO Y JULIETA WIDE CHURCHILLS
FORMAT: Length: 130 mm. Diameter: 21.83 mm. Strain 55. Weight: 16,65 gr.
TOBACO: Vuelta Abajo (Pinar del Río, Cuba)
BEFORE LIGHTING: Color: carmelite. Aroma: hay
COMBUSTION: First third: tasty and intense from the beginning. Second third: wood, spices and some mild white pepper. Third third: powerful flavors and very rounded in the mouth.
Smoking time: 55/65 minutes
SHOT: Excellent
ASH: Medium and consistent gray
COMMERCIAL PRESENTATION: Humidor pack with five cigars
COMMENTARY: Splendid cigar of vitola de galera called Montesco in which its good weight and excellent draw makes us perceive perfectly all the tobacco traces of its blend, with a medium/medium strength.
HOYO DE MONTERREY PETIT ROBUSTOS
FORMAT: Length: 102 mm. Diameter: 19,84 mm. Strain: 50. Weight: 10,43 gr.
TOBACO: Vuelta Abajo (Pinar del Río, Cuba)
BEFORE LIGHTING: Color: carmelite. Aroma: vegetal
COMBUSTION: First third: mellow at the beginning with some spicy notes. Second third: some hints of wood are inscribed along with some spicy touches. Third third: powerful flavors and very balanced aromas and flavors.
Smoking time: 30/35 minutes
SHOT: Perfect
ASH: Light gray
COMMERCIAL PRESENTATION: Special humidor of 25 cigars
COMMENTARY: Rich and tasty small format in which the soft traces of tobacco are well perceived, with an evolution in which it shows unique nuances with hardly any strength, as it has a rating of one out of five.
MONTECRISTO No. 4
FORMAT: Length: 129 mm. Diameter: 16.67 mm. Strain: 42. Weight: 8.46 gr.
TOBACCO: Vuelta Abajo (Pinar del Río, Cuba)
BEFORE LIGHTING: Color: carmelite. Aroma: herbaceous
COMBUSTION: First third: simple, smooth beginnings and good traces of tobacco. Second third: spicy notes well present and some cocoa. Third third: mild earthy tones, with a great balance of flavors and aromas.
Smoking time: 35/40 minutes
SHOOT: No problems
ASH: Midtone gray
COMMERCIAL PRESENTATION: Boxes of 25 and packs of 5 and three cigars
COMMENTARY: This galera vitola called Mareva is the cigar that has sold the most in the whole world in the history of Habanos and the favorite of many older Spanish smokers for its size and fidelity to the pleasant and tasty blend of the Montecristo house.
