Rocky Patel Tavicusa Robusto

[Don Fernando]

When Rocky Patel entered the cigar industry, back in 1995, he started to work with the Placencia family. And that relationship is still going strong as all the Rocky Patel cigars made in Honduras are actually made in a factory owned by Plasencia. Now the factory has all the Rocky Patel logos, it is, in fact, the factory where Rocky hosts his factory tours but he doesn’t own the factory.

About ten years ago, Patel teamed up with Amilcar Perez Castro

 and together they opened a factory in downtown Esteli, Nicaragua. The name of the factory is Tabacalera Villa Cuba S.A., or in short Tavicusa. And to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the factory, Patel named a cigar after his Nicaraguan operation. The Rocky Patel Tavicusa.

Name: Rocky Patel Tavicuso
Country: Nicaragua
Factory: Tabacalera Villa Cuba SA
Size: 5.5 x 50
Vitola: Robusto
Wrapper: Mexican San Andres
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Price: € 9,75 (Netherlands)
Cutter: Xikar X2
Lighter: single flame
Smoke conditions: indoors with ventilator
Smoke time: two hours thirty minutes
Purchased at Cigaragua

The cigar ring looks a lot like if it’s a part of the Hamlet family, yet it’s not. The white, blue and gold ring with the Tavicusa name in roman style letters have the same style as the Hamlet cigars, also made by Rocky Patel. The secondary ring carries the classic RP logo. The dark wrapper looks like leather with a few veins. The cigar feels well packed with a beautiful triple cap. The aroma is strong, like walking into a stable on a barnyard.

The cold draw, which is flawless, tastes like milk chocolate, raisin, and dry tobacco. The chocolate mixed with earthy flavors shows up too after ligtjing the cigar. Then a mild peanut butter flavor with some pepper shows up. The mouthfeel is sticky and creamy. Then the cigar turns mildly sweet, with a more vegetal flavor profile and some leather. After an inch, the flavor turns to dry leather with nutmeg, a metallic sweetness and a bit of pepper. The peanut butter comes and goes. The second third starts with nuts and herbs with some oak. Halfway the cigar turns more peppery with nuts and leather. There’s a hint of green herbs with some oak. The final third is pepper on full blast with some wood and sweetness.

The ash is white, relatively firm. The smoke is decent, could be a bit thicker though. The burn is great and the draw is flawless. This cigar, with a smoke time of two hours and thirty minutes, is full bodied and full flavored

Strength: Medium
Flavor: Medium

For the final score with a scientific diagram, a video and pictures, go to: https://ministryofcigars.com/rocky-p...icusa-robusto/