maverickdrinker Posted December 3, 2012 Posted December 3, 2012 I was invited by the LCDH in Toronto to participate in a preview tasting of the 2012 Edicion Regional Canada Vegas Robaina XV Anniversario Sublime in Havana last week. Simon Robillard of Montreal was invited by the fine people at the LCDH in Montreal to attend as well. There were a number of Canadian and international retailers at the tasting, including Ajay Patel from LCDH in Teddington, London. Carlos Robaina and Jorge Maique Fernandes, President of Habanos SA was also in attendance. 15 people in total were invited to the tasting. Roger of Havana House handed out some gorgeous samples to smoke. Let's see how it fared.... The 2012 Edicion Regional Canada Vegas Robaina XV Anniversario Sublime is a gorgeous cigar. It is a sublime format which is a 54 ring gauge and 6.5 inches in length. This is the sixth regional release under the Vegas Robaina marca and the second time a Vegas Robaina regional has been allotted to Canada. The first Edicion Regional Canada release was the 2009 Petit Robaina that came out in 25 count boxes. 1,200 numbered boxes were released. There will be 5,000 boxes of 10 cigars being released shortly. We smoked from box 261 out of 5,000. More on this later. The wrapper is very dark and oily. No soft spots; very firm throughout the cigar. This was rolled with love and care. Like chocolate velvet... The construction of the cigar is impressive. Solid, well packed foot and an immaculate triple cap. Aromas of chocolate, nut meg, barnyard and honey emanate from the wrapper. The triple cap takes well to my punch. Cold draw is also cocoa, net meg, honey and earth. The draw is first class. Time to take this to the flame....
maverickdrinker Posted December 3, 2012 Author Posted December 3, 2012 First Third Initial draws are very spicy. A slight hint of amonia. Full bodied but no harshness. Very earthy. A touch of oolong tea. Very chewy. The draw is impeccable. Just the right amount of resistance but able to get full, expansive draws. Impressive for such a large and fresh cigar. The cigar is tannic. Dried out your mouth. It is like tasting a young wine. Typically, a young wine will make your lips pucker due to the tannins. This is the best way I can describe this effect. Should age well. Will need some water to counter the dryout. The burn is razor sharp. Lit this with a soft flame and really came out well. The ash itself is a 'Dirty' white. Very slow burn. Starting to get some leather notes. Very slow burn. Gonna be here for awhile. Nice long after finish. Chocolate, earth, leather are the key flavours right now. Very robust. Second Third Strength has settled down now. In the medium bodied category. A nice adjustment, seeing that we started off with a bang. pure leather, earth, chocolate and oolong tea. There is a purity in the flavours at this point. Very nice. long finish. Still tannic and drying out my mouth a bit. Sipping this slowly so I can enjoy with water. Might have to take a shot or two of rum as well. LOL Great construction and a nice, long ash. Still hasn't broken off. Very impressive. mostly earthy, very complex. Nice nuances throughout the second third. The oolong tea note comes in and out, poking its head in but not staying too long. Final Third Great burn line and excellent construction. The ash has only broken off once since lighting up this cigar. As I smoke this, I can't help but think of the 2007 Edicion Regional Espana Vegas Robaina Maestro. This is eerily similar. That is a good thing as the Maestro is a fantastic cigar. Core flavours are earth, leather, chocolate and a hint of oolong tea. very robust and lush flavours. Still tannic but tolerable. You can feel the flavours on your teeth. It coats every aspect of your palate and mouth. Copious amounts of smoke come through the foot and head of the cigar and form storm clouds as they rise up. LOL
maverickdrinker Posted December 3, 2012 Author Posted December 3, 2012 Final Impressions This is a great stick. Highly recommended. I hope that the price point is agreeable as I would like to have more of these in my humidor. It will rival the Vegas Robaina Maestro as one of the top regional releases of the marca. The fact that they are releasing this in 10 count boxes should also make this more palatable to the pocket. They didn't mention when it will be released though.... I spoke to Carlos Robaina to get his impressions of the cigar. I asked him 'Was the cigar true to the Vegas Robaina marca?' His response was Muy Bueno!!! He loved the cigar. Carlos said that it captured the essences of what Vegas Robaina was all about and that he was proud of the results. There were some empty boxes left over and I asked him to sign one for me. He graciously accepted. Carlos is such a classy individual. He took his time to say hi and spend time with each person attending the tasting. A class act.
Sutton Posted December 3, 2012 Posted December 3, 2012 Wow! Fantastic review, Looks like it was a pretty fun function. Would love to get my hands on a box of these.
Hubba Posted December 3, 2012 Posted December 3, 2012 Wow Art looks like it was a great evening! Look forward to hearing more about this release......no idea about price point?
ohioldd Posted December 4, 2012 Posted December 4, 2012 Thanks for the great review Art...as always..
maverickdrinker Posted December 4, 2012 Author Posted December 4, 2012 They didn't mention price point at the tasting. Hoping that it is reasonable....
Strada Posted December 4, 2012 Posted December 4, 2012 They didn't mention price point at the tasting. Hoping that it is reasonable.... IIRC didn't they say it was going to be north of 40$ shy of 50$ ?
maverickdrinker Posted December 4, 2012 Author Posted December 4, 2012 More speculation than anything. I didn't think there was anything concrete for pricing
Strada Posted December 4, 2012 Posted December 4, 2012 More speculation than anything. I didn't think there was anything concrete for pricing True
backslide Posted December 4, 2012 Posted December 4, 2012 I need that RA SHIRT!!! No kidding, that's freaking awesome.
Puros Y Vino Posted December 4, 2012 Posted December 4, 2012 Ah so that's why you guys got up early for? Great review Art.
cigarconnectionvn Posted December 10, 2012 Posted December 10, 2012 Where can i find to buy that box ?
maverickdrinker Posted December 10, 2012 Author Posted December 10, 2012 hopefully, it's out before year end. One to buy for sure....
zappaFREAK Posted December 10, 2012 Posted December 10, 2012 Those look and sound extremely tasty! Nice gig!!
Mr.T Posted December 17, 2012 Posted December 17, 2012 Great review and pics! I'll be in Toronto in mid-January. If there are any out by then I'll pick up some singles to bring home with me.
Strada Posted December 18, 2012 Posted December 18, 2012 Remember those photographers Art Here is the whole article about the tasting of this great cigar we did! http://habanosnews.h...ada-tasted-cuba
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