Wrapper: Two wrappers, Habano (outside) and Ecuadorian Connecticut (inside, binder)
Filler: Mix of Nicaraguan, Honduran, and Cameroon
Strength: Medium-Full
Price: $7.25, single; $119, box
Grade: 8.8
I would put Rocky Patel’s Vintage line up against just about any line of cigars out there. The 1990, 1992, and 1999 Connecticut are three of my favorite smokes. So, when Rocky released the Fusion, a mixture of the fillers used to comprise the ’90 and the ’92, I was excited to fire one up. On a spending freeze with a new baby, it took me a bit longer than I expected to grab one but Jed was nice enough to slide one my way.
The uniqueness of this stick lies in its use of a double wrapper; combining a Habano exterior with an Ecuadorian Connecticut interior wrapper, used as the binder, promises to create some unique and powerful flavors. The filler mix has also received nice praise.
Appearance, 1.9: The Salomon is a very unique roll; it has a Torpedo head with a funneled or tailed foot. This is a fun roll that also creates a unique ash and a bit of conversation. The Habano wrapper is very clean and smooth with minimal veins. As with most Rocky Patel’s, the Fusion is elegantly double banded. The stick has a great weight to it as well, with the 56 ring gauge. The only exterior defect is a slight wrapper gap toward the foot, where it appears the roll fell short.
The aroma on this stick is very nice and unique; it is quite sweet but also has a peppery scent that burns the nose. The mixture of sweetness and pepper is most closely described as roasted peppers or salsa. The pre-light draw is excellent and the cut is very clean.
Burn, 1.8: The pre-light draw was excellent and the smoke certainly reflects this with billows of thick smoke. The ash created by the uniquely shaped Salomon foot created a very clean and arrowed ash. The ash stacked well, except for a slight flaking in the first inch, and was a very clean whitish grey. The transition from the tailed foot into the body of the smoke was smooth, which I was a little worried about before lighting. The smoke was very thick and burned very cool throughout. The only issue I had with the burn was after the first ash, in which the cigar’s draw tightened and eventually went out. It re-lit with no issues however and burned very well throughout, with no harshness in the re-light.
Flavor/taste, 2.7: There is a very strong pepper in the first 5 puffs or so, announcing well the medium-full body, which eventually fades into a very mellow, hay-like flavor. This continues throughout the first third of the smoke, with minimal flavor profiles. In the second third of the smoke, the pepper forcefully returns and is nicely complemented by a creaminess; these two flavors alongside each other resembles the roasted pepper detected in the pre-light draw and aroma. The final third maintains solid body and remains creamy and the pepper is replaced by the return of barnyard flavors. Overall, this was a stick with several transitions, each of which interested my palate.
Overall, 2.4: I struggled a bit with this cigar because I love the flavor profiles and complexity found in Rocky’s cigars but I also prefer a Medium bodied smoke and the Fusion, along with the large Salomon size, was a bit much for my strength preference; I actually began to sweat a bit during this one! There was a deduction based on the value of this smoke and the overall enjoyment and desire to buy again. I would definitely purchase another Fusion, in a smaller size, but I would not consider a box purchase, even if it dropped to around $80-90.
I would put Rocky Patel’s Vintage line up against just about any line of cigars out there.
No offense but that is the first and probably last time I ever read that. Are you a new smoker? I know when I was a new smoker I enjoyed Rocky Patels but in hindsight they were pretty bad and one-dimensional. The first box I bought were Rocky Patel Vintage 1992 Toros-I probably gave 15 out of the 20 away.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Presley,
"Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." George Washington
Posts: 4383 | Location: Ohio | Registered: July 20, 2007
Been smoking cigars for about 15 years or so; I love the '92 and the '99 and I've also enjoyed the Decade; Indian Tabac is also a great value smoke. The Conuco is good, produced by RP for Famous Smoke Shop and the Reo is also pretty good. I like Rocky Patel a great deal.
Originally posted by matthewjmichael: Been smoking cigars for about 15 years or so; I love the '92 and the '99 and I've also enjoyed the Decade; Indian Tabac is also a great value smoke. The Conuco is good, produced by RP for Famous Smoke Shop and the Reo is also pretty good. I like Rocky Patel a great deal.
I think most people here would agree that all of those brands range from poor to mediocre, save the Decade. Don't get me wrong -- smoke what you like. But since you've been smoking cigars for 15 years, it may be time to branch out a little. There's a lot of more interesting stuff out there.
Wow guys, really? Our local shop had an RP event this weekend and everyone was real excited by the Summer and Spring Blend and Old Reserve. By no means do I only smoke RP--probably only smoke a handfull a year.
Let's open this up; I haven't heard a bunch of negativity on RP, maybe I'm reading the wrong stuff.
Originally posted by matthewjmichael: Wow guys, really? Our local shop had an RP event this weekend and everyone was real excited by the Summer and Spring Blend and Old Reserve. By no means do I only smoke RP--probably only smoke a handfull a year.
Let's open this up; I haven't heard a bunch of negativity on RP, maybe I'm reading the wrong stuff.
What is everyone's opinion of RP?
All that really matters is that you enjoy them. As Extensioncord said, those brands are pretty bad. The RPs have gotten consistently worse, even The Decade, which seemed to be okay at first, has changed for the worse. To me, the only thing worse than Rocky Patels cigars are his constant presence in the CI Catalog looking like a complete fool.
"Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." George Washington
Posts: 4383 | Location: Ohio | Registered: July 20, 2007
I totally agree that I am tired of seeing Rocky ripping a CI mag in half; the only RP I've had that was no good was the Fuma, which was probably the worse cigar I've had. But I just can't agree w/ you on the Vintage line...
Had an old '90 the other day that was very nice! Maybe they've gotten worse, I haven't bought any recently.
Maybe he's pushing them out the door too fast and they need some age. I don't remember liking the last '90 that I had (last year), but this one was very, very good. It had mellowed somewhat, but still had the spice overtones.
I do like (again, haven't bought any lately) the OWR maddie.
~~~ "I'm stupid, but I might not be crazy." - Hanno Breuckner
I still like the Decade, I thought the ITC was okay. I definitely grew out of the Vintage 92. I am interested in the OWR... but RP puts out more new smokes than I have time to try them.
"Knowing is not enough, you must apply; willing is not enough, you must do." - Bruce Lee
Posts: 1842 | Location: Signal Hill, CA | Registered: April 26, 2007
Fusions are a grass cutting cigar...smoke half and chew on it. I had a box of the torpedos. Every one of them split half way through and were completely one-dimensional. Best deal out there on Rockys are the vintage seconds. If you can score some at auction for cheap, that is. I think everything Rocky does is good at first, but like most things gets waaaayyy overproduced. The edge missles were delicious, but now taste nothing like when they first came out. Maybe my taste has changed, but that's my two cents.
I have enjoyed RPs on a few occasions. I liked the decade (only ever had one) and the 92 (had a 5 pack). I thought the 92s were a cut above the other smokes I had at the time, which were mostly 3 dollar smokes. I'm not the type of smoker that can identify all those flavours that appear in reviews, except for the bad ones. I know when something is just bad. Actually I didn't like the RP Renaissance.
A divine falsehood is more powerful than any human truth.
He is just doing to much stuff. The decade is ok. The only one I will seek out is the edge lite. I once liked the 90 line but then I found other better cigars.
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