Hey...there was no way I was going to write a review without scoping out everyone else's opinions first. Mamma didn't raise no fools. (Well, maybe one, but not me.). As I've written in a few other Famous reviews, for years I avoided Rocky Patel cigars. I always thought of Rocky as a Milwaukee attorney who got an ingrown hair in his nether region and decided to make some cigars. His early Indian Tabacs reminded me of those Indonesian boom sticks without the odor. Remember those? You had to wash your hands with Ajax to get rid of the smell.
Anyway, I bought several of Rocky's The Edge, when they were first released, based on the recommendation of several of my cigar junkie friends. I was stunned. The cigars were extraordinary. How could this be? And, of course, the answer was that Rocky had contracted with another manufacturer. Simple answer. Next stop was a bundle of Famous' RP Factory Select Torps. Incidentally, these are Sun Grown, and in the Famous listing of cigars it just says, "RP Factory Select." I guess you're supposed to guess the wrapper until you click your mouse?
Truthfully, I thought the first bundle I received had been anointed by the Cigar Gods. Every cigar was bee-yoo-tee-full and smoked wonderfully. So, I thought it was time to try a few more of Patel's sticks. I ordered a 20 stick sampler of RP blends that Famous had in their summer '07 sales sheet. That's when I had my first Rocky Patel Cuban Blend Toro in maduro.
Boys and girls, in some of the other folks' reviews that I read, these sticks are panned pretty emphatically. All I can think of is that some people have a totally different perception of what a medium to full bodied cigar should taste like. After I smoked one Cuban Blend, I thought, "Steve, treat yourself and have another." And, I did. No B.S., no hyperbole: These don't taste like Cuban cigars. Okay? Why Rocky and Famous decided to name them Cuban Blend is beyond me. I'd guess that neither Rocky nor Famous actually know the blend of this cigar, so it became the "Cuban Blend." If you read the description, all it says is that it contains "Honduran Ligero". Hmmm....maduro wrapper, Connecticut Broadleaf? Brazilian aparica? Mexican San Andres? Maybe an H2000....Hey...it's a Cuban Blend! I enjoyed the cigar(s) and frankly, think a lot of the wrapper, binder, filler descriptions are little more than promo copy. I've got a box of Cuban Blend Toros on order. If they're anything like those in the sampler, I'll enjoy all twenty, except for those mooched by friends.
- RSteve (Herfers Paradise)
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