Cohiba Robusto Supremo Edicion Limitada 2014

Description

Product Specifications

It was loud, it was lively and the city lights were doing that twinkling dance they sometimes do when the air is heavy and the night is young. Leo was already there, his elbows propped against the glass railing with a glass of amber something in his hand. He didn’t just wave when he saw me, but rather gave that look of “it’s about damn time.” We spent the first 20 minutes yelling over the house music, rehashing the big things — marriages, moves, jobs we hated and those we tolerated. But as the crowd dispersed toward the end of the terrace and we found a pocket of relative calm, I knew it was time to deploy some heavy artillery.

I dug into my travel humidor and selected two sticks that resembled small cannons more than cigars. I handed one to Leo. Sending his pupils wide, he stared at the double band — that now-iconic yellow and black checkerboard which perches above a gold “Edición Limitada 2014” ring. He didn’t say “thanks.” He paused, and said just: “You’ve been keeping these?” I just nodded.

I’d been waiting for a reason to burn this stuff, and rekindling(ish) a connection with someone who knew me back when I wasn’t buying a factory-seconds bundle every few months seemed like the time. Clipping caps, sparking torches, and for the next hour or so, all the rooftop noise just kind of melted away. That smoke? The
Cohiba Robusto Supremo Edición Limitada 2014 This is my answer.
.

It’s a beast, flat-out. The Specs
Product Name
Cohiba Robusto Supremo (Edición Limitada 2014) I have had nothing but terrible experiences with the Cohuba EL cigars since they have been released.

Factory Name
Magnificos
Vitola de Galera
Magnifico (Robusto Gordo)
First Impressions & Construction
When you first pick this thing up, the size is the first thing that strikes you.

A 58 ring gauge is no joke. I’ve held many a cigar, but this is one that feels substantial in a way that’s almost daunting; psychically and even physically it won’t be ignored. It’s the fattest Limited Edition Habanos has ever released, and you can feel every millimeter of that girth when you’re attempting to get a clean cut. I went with a straight cut, and I had to be careful not to shred that gorgeous, dark Corojo wrapper.

It’s oily, even toothy in the glass, as well that rich, deep-chocolate color that screams I’ve seen some really long aging time on this one — at least two years from the books, but it feels like it should be more than that. The cold draw was also surprisingly very easy for a cigar this size. Some of these fat ring gaugers can be so you’re sucking a milk shake through a straw, but not this one. I smelled a lot of cold cedar and something very distinct — sort of like unroasted cocoa beans plus the barest hint of vanilla.

Solid construction, no soft spots, just a dense and well-packed cigar that promised to produce monster clouds of smoke.

I gotta say, it felt right for the setting in my hand, its weight. If you’re going to smoke something this large, you have to be somewhere where you feel as if you own the joint. The Burn: First Third
This took a minute to light.

You can’t just torch a 58 ring gauge with one flame and expect an easy ignition. I was in no hurry and toasted the foot until it was glowing uniformly. The first couple of puffs were a slap in the face. Upon lighting up, I slapped in the face with a wave of rich cedar and strong black peppery sensation through the nose.

It wasn’t harsh, though. It was that fine, fine Cuban spice, the kind that pricks the back of your throat but doesn’t force you to cough. After about ten minutes or so the roasted coffee notes began to register. It recalled to me of a dark roast espresso — bitter but well-rounded.

The smoke volume was massive. Each drag brought forth thick, white clouds that lingered in the humid night. Leo looked out and grinned. “This is a lot of cigar,” he said. And he wasn’t wrong.

It’s a confident beginning, that makes it clear the Ligero in the blend is going to deliver it. The Evolution: Second Third
As I made my way into the middle of the stick, the flavors began to come together.

The whole of that first pepper receded some for a creamy cocoa sweetness. It’s a transition I’m always tickled to find in a Cohiba, and the Robusto Supremo gives it all you could ask for. I began to pick up some toasted almonds and a honeyed sweetness that was playing great against the earthier elements below. It’s a complex profile; one second you’re considering a candy bar and the next, it smacks your palate with a floral undertone that reminds you that (Your) smoking upper-echelon tobacco from the Vuelta Abajo.

The burn line remained almost perfectly straight, which I liked. I don’t enjoy having to touch up a cigar because I’m in the middle of a good story.

It produced a light grey ash holding on for almost two inches before knocking it off. The strength duration: a nice and solid Medium-plus, that never went dizzy on you, but it surely was hangin’ around. -In this stage, the smoke has a kind of “meatiness” to it and is heavy on the tongue, so to speak; you feel like you could chew on it. The Finish: Final Third
By the time I reached the last third, Leo and I were discussing the future — where we were headed, what we wanted from the next five years.

The cigar felt similarly as though it mirrored that move into deeper waters. The flavors intensified. The cocoa transformed into dark, bittersweet chocolate and the honey was replaced with aged leather and even more spice. That isn’t black pepper from the get-go, but more of a warm, kitchen-spice thing-think nutmeg or cloves.

There was Cohiba’s “signature” velvet texture everywhere on the end. Then it hangs on the palette long after you’ve exhaled the smoke. And as the cigar shortened it didn’t get hot or bitter. I smoked it down so low that I was practically burning my fingertips, largely because I wasn’t yet prepared for the experience to end.

It’s a long finish smoking you finish it with oak and that deep earthy Cuban soil. It took a little over an hour for me to put this baby out, which is really just a testament to how slow and cool this thing burns if you are good to it. Pairing Recommendations
If you’re going to smoke a Robusto Supremo, you need a drink that can smack it upside the head.

On that rooftop, I was drinking a neat pour of 12-year-old Caribbean rum — something sweet and oaky enough to complement th