Initial Thoughts
I had the great pleasure to meet the founder of Roberto P. Duran premium cigars a couple of months ago here in Nashville. I had previously smoked a couple of his cigars from the Premium line, and I was impressed. Obviously I wasn’t going to pass up the chance to meet the man behind the cigars. By the way Roberto is one of the nicest people that I’ve met in the industry, we stood and talked shop for about an hour. Talking about the good ole days, and what was currently going on in Cuba and his thoughts on the pending demise of the embargo. All while smoking his cigars. Doesn’t get any better than that. As we were finishing up our conversation I went ahead and picked up a couple sticks from each of his lines. I wanted to dedicate an entire week of reviews to this great man and his cigars. Without further ado we’re gonna jump right in on this Roberto P. Duran Premium line.
The Premium line is the backbone of releases from Roberto. This particular blend comes in 4 sizes:
- Rio Toa: 5 x 52
- La Punta: 6 x 54
- Tainos: 6 x 56
- Cacique Guama: 6 x 60
Today I’m smoking the 5×52. I have a couple of the 6×60’s as well resting in the humidor. What I love is that all of the vitolas are named after landmarks from the city of Baracoa in Cuba. This city is where Roberto’s Duran side of the family is from. You can see all the references in the Roberto P Duran catalog on their website, it’s well worth checking out!
You know me, I love having a good backstory behind the product and I feel like naming the vitolas this way really contributes to full story of the cigar. With Roberto being Cuban, he obviously has strong ties there and his roots are firmly planted in the island, and this is a great way to pay homage to his country. I think it’s time to dive into this beautiful looking cigar.
Looks
The Roberto P. Duran Premium is covered in a Habano Criollo wrapper that has a gorgeous Colorado coloring to it. That beautiful reddish brown is always a welcome site in my humidor. The wrapper is produced in Ecuador and it’s flawless. I was talking to Roberto and he said that only mature this leaf to 70% of full maturation. It helps get that perfect color that they’re going for with this cigar. He said that a by-product of this process can sometimes result in a poor burn line. I’m not too worried about that though, but it is great information to have.
It’s hard to miss the band on this cigar. A big bold kind of navy blue color to it. The band itself almost has a shield type shape to it. The background has a castle tower and a leaf in front it. Right below that the brand name is displayed: Roberto P. Duran Premium Cigars. Simple and to the point, but it looks great every time. The band is trimmed with a nice bit of silver piping that makes it pop just enough to reflect some light and catch your eye.
Function
Rolling this cigar between my fingers I couldn’t pick up on any soft spots in the filler. It was pretty tightly packed. Not much bounce back on this one. The foot looked to be well packed as well. The cap was beautifully laid into position. It doesn’t quite look like a triple cap, but you can clearly see the seam on it. Either way I made quick work of it with my Xikar Xi cutter.
I began testing the draw and it was a bit firm at first offering some resistance. However, I went ahead and put the flame to it and began puffing to see if it would open up any more.
Smoking
Once some smoke starting coming through the barrel of this Roberto P. Duran Premium the draw began to open up as well. I was able to get a good amount of smoke which obviously helps with the tastes. The smoke is fairly thick and quite solid. It doesn’t have a blue hue to it that you sometimes see.
Throughout the first third I never really had a problem with the draw or smoke. The ash held around 1″ and was a bit flaky, but at least I didn’t drop any on me, so you know it was a good day. The rest of the way through this cigar continued to smoke very well, I never had an issue with the draw. In my book it’s a win! So it draws good, smokes good, but does it taste good? Let’s find out!
Flavor
Right after clipping the cap off I began dry drawing this Roberto P. Duran Premium. Immediately I picked up a nice sweetness, and a natural tobacco flavor. That sweetness reminded me of a sorghum or molasses note. So I’m really interested in trying this with a sweeter bourbon or rum and see how it pairs. Could be very exciting.
The retrohale on this cigar gives that classic Cuban profile, you get some great tobacco notes, but there are hints of citrus, very floral with bites of pepper along the way as well.
During the 2nd third I began to pick up on a very distinguished creamy note that became the backbone of the flavor profile. I was blasted by pepper on the retrohale, but it was calmed down with that creamy note very quickly. For me the citrus disappeared in the 2nd third but came back in the final third. Another flavor that appeared in the final third was a bit of a hickory flavor. It could be that it’s due to the build up in the tobacco in the barrel, but it was a nice savory note that added a bit more complexity.
For me, this cigar never built to more than a medium-full. It had bouts of strength along the way, but it stayed in that range. I loved the flavor complexeties along the way as well. Ranging from citrus to hickory, I enjoy diversity, if it’s done well. Overall a really great cigar!
Would I Buy It Again?
Without a doubt.
Is It an Every Day Smoke?
Potentially, if I could get them around $5-7 it could be an every day smoke.
Would I Buy a Box?
This cigar is definitely box worthy.
Conclusion
I’m a big fan of this Roberto P. Duran Premium line. It offers a nice range of flavors, it’s not overpowering with the strength and I feel like with those flavors it can pair well with a range of spirits. I could see this settling in with a nice scotch, bourbon, or rum and offering up differences throughout the entire line up. So if you get a chance when you’re at your local shop ask them if they carry this line. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what it has in store.
