El Presidente Posted October 12, 2015 Posted October 12, 2015 With the Regonal Release Program coming up to 10 years, how would you define it's contribution to the world of Cuban cigars......a success?...a pass?....a fail? Your favourite Regionals from the decade? Your worst Regionals from the decade? Keeping in mind that the the following Global Brands are excluded from the Regional Release Program (Cohiba/Upmann/Hoyo De Monterrey/Partagas/Montecristo/Romeo y Julieta).........from the brands remaining, if you could come up with a Regional......what would you put forward and bring to market
investandprosper Posted October 12, 2015 Posted October 12, 2015 Some great cigars have come out of the regional program. Top of mind for the best are the Ramon Allones Celestiales Finos and Bolivar Short Bolivar. I can't recall any that I would brand as the worst, but I'm sure they're out there. I'd love to see a Bolivar dalia. Germany had a Boli lancero which was excellent.
Orion21 Posted October 12, 2015 Posted October 12, 2015 I haven't had all the regional editions, not even close, but the ones I have had were hit and miss. However, the Asian RE's have never failed to impress me. I think the first I ever sampled was the Punch Super Robusto from 2006/2007. It was an eye opener. I would have to say the RACF has been my favorite by quite margin. They keep getting better and better. Finally, I have even been impressed with the ERDM Aniversario. It seems PCC really puts a lot of though into their regional editions to not only build a fantastic cigar, but they keep true to the marca. What I would like to see come to the market are more RACF!!!!!
polarbear Posted October 12, 2015 Posted October 12, 2015 As with any new release I think there were an equal number of hits and misses Some hits took a while to show their true potential but some have (in my opinion) have achieved legendary status. My main complaint with them is the rise in price in recent years REs didn't used to command the premium they seem to these days, so that has put me off. That and the steady stream of unimaginative short robusto format RAs and Bolivars as there seems to be at least one of each released into a different region every year The top RE's from the few I've tried Edmundo Dantes 109 (Mexico) Edmundo Dantes 54 (Mexico) RA Grandes (Spain) RA CF (Asia) JL#4 (Asia)
CigSid Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Favorites: La Escepcion Selectos Finos Bolivar Especiales No 2 Edmundo Dantes El Conde 109 PL Magnificos Worst: SLR Pacificos (have not tried them lately) Ramon Allones Estupendos (poorly constructed)
Puros Y Vino Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 They're a success in that they've generated a lot of interest from smokers the world over. Some of my all time favourites are from this program. For instance: La Escepcion Selectos Finos RACF RA Gladiator RA Gorditos. But, then on the flip side. This program has made these cigars HTF and somewhat of a fail in that regards. If you're into the collecting/selling side this is great news for you. If you just want to smoke them. Good luck. Depending on the region, many cigars can be very hard to procure and/or the local tax hikes can make them more expensive. I'd like to see some of these cigars become part of their respective marca's regular lineup. Especially Ramon Allones. There far more RE's in this marca than there are regular production. That's just not right. The glut of short robustos showing up is kinda lame too. I'd like to see some of the more popular cigars become regular production. With that said. I think it's a great program especially in that it "rewards" the distributors in the various regions by offering them something unique to sell. The H&F 225's being a great example. That is such a nicely put together release. Cool vitola, limited edition humidors for the more well heeled smoker and a special batch of HC too. Too bad it was released in one of the more expensive markets. I personally don't feel compelled to try or buy every single one out there. So far Ive been fortunate in tracking down the ones I do want. And to reiterate, I would like to see some of these become regular production. (see list above) 2
polarbear Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Favorites: La Escepcion Selectos Finos Bolivar Especiales No 2 Edmundo Dantes El Conde 109 PL Magnificos Worst: SLR Pacificos (have not tried them lately) Ramon Allones Estupendos (poorly constructed) Whoops Forgot about the La Escepcion 1
kuma Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 1st: price point to high 2nd; re. production good or better in terms of taste. 3rd; Confusing when they roll them out. 4th; don't make enough 5th; If you get to the county were they are made for very hard to get them even if you are there. Given up on them stick to aged or reg. production with some down time on them. Stopped trying to many - vs +....not worth the effort.
pbibby Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I have not had too many as I don't smoke enough. I echo the thoughts of those above. Some absolutely stellar cigars. And some duds as well. Seems to me that the price of these are creeping into the stratosphere. Again as others have said, too many stupid short robusto sizes. All that said though, and two of my top 5 cigars are REs. La Escepcion Selectos Finos and RACF. Both of those were absolutely top notch cigars. I just wish HSA would put that much effort into all of their cigars.
Bartolomeo Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Have tried most of them and I like a handful, off the top of my head LGC Deliciosos, Gloriosos PL Legendarios, Mags, Robustos Conde 109 SLR Pacificos VR Anniv RA Gladiator, Super Ramon
Lant63 Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I love most I have tried: 1) ED 54 or 109 2) PL Legendario 3) Pl RDL 4) pl Robusto 5) Punch Platino 6) RA super Ramon what sucked ERDM choix de le epque What I want to see: LGC, VR, Edmundo Dante, PL especiales and Britanicas PL sublimes in 25
shlomo Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 The "best" are usually from easy to find sources. AP, UK, Spain, Swiss, Italy.... Odd how not much love for that Canadians. Gorditos, Simones, Super Ramon, VR PR, VR XV, RA PU..so many legends. Some harder or odd REs have been incredible for me. Bolivar 681 and RA PR Israel are top of my mind. I'm a fan of the RE releases, but agree with much of what bundwalla says. If you buy and collect and sell, it's great. If you are a smoker......often frustrating not being able to get some before the hogs clean them out. 1
Charltonc Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 PL magnifico, PL robusto and encantos SLR Pacificos Conde 109 and 54 RA belicoso from uk and Germany
dtrott Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Love the few that I've sampled.....VR Maestro ,SLR Pacifico and JL #4
Fuzz Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Of the REs that I've had and can recall: Success: RACF 2009 PL Encantos 2010 PL Robusto 2007 RA H&F 225 2015 Pass: Punch Sabrosos 2011 SLR Pacificos 2009 VR Petit Unicos 2012 Fail: RA Phoenicio 2008 RA Gorditos 2010
dangolf18 Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 All the Geman REs have been stellar for me. Also have really enjoyed thw French REs. 1
Fumadoro Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I think the regionals program has been a success to the extent of producing good cigars, in my opinion. Unfortunately, I think the program has become too cumbersome as seen by the delays in distribution.A new standout for me is the RA Estupendos. I know this cigar doesn't get a lot of love, and maybe that is generally justified, but I smoked one today and and it was astounding. Unfortunately, it is the only one I've had and the only one in my posession. I took notes, so I'm tempted to share a review.What I would love to see is a long panatela/lancero LGC that is true to the old blends of the marca outside of the Medaille d'Or series.
Habana Mike Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 While not a full-fledged RE hunter I have truly enjoyed the diverse vitolas and blends that have been put forth through the program. I appreciate that there have been the occasional more traditional (and long forgotten in some cases) vitolas produced such as the Britanicas, Cervantes/Dalias, Delicados/Parejos, and 109s. Some of my favorites have included the German Boli Especiale #2, Italian La Escpecion Selecto Finos, APAC RACF, Boli Short Boli, ERDM Anniversario, Punch Sabrosos . UK La Flor de Cano Gran Cano, Spain's Por Larrañaga Secretos & Vegas Robaina Maestros, Canada Ramón Allones Petit Unicos & Vegas Robaina XV Aniversario, Portugese Punch Descobridores & RA Lusitanos, and most recently the Serbian Sancho Panza Eslavo and Russian Emperador, many of which I'm fortunate to have found a box or two and still have a smattering of. Others I really enjoyed yet only had opportunity to sample one or two include the UK PL Magnum, Mexico Edmundo Dantes El Conde 109, India Punch Platinos, Libyan Ramón Allones Phoenicios and the China Boli Distinguidos. It is a shame that these have moved from being close to in line with standard production pricing to now where the costs are 2-4x for a similar regular vitola. That and the limited production making them harder to procure though that I think keeps the blends more true. 3
sheppsea Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I really enjoy the RE programme, I really like the idea of trying to get hold of them and trying as many as possible, but unfortunately there are a number of what seem to be similar cigars (names Short Robusto etc), it would be good to get a bit more variety, although it does seem to be the major distributors who get the most interesting cigars My favourite REs have been the PL Magnificos and ERDM Vikingos, but there are also a few others I have really enjoyed I didn't really enjoy the RA Petit Allones (although the last one I had was an improvement so maybe age will help them) and the RA Especial de Allones were the only RE that I remember as being a terrible cigar
Lotusguy Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I've been lucky (or stupid - depends on the point of view ) enough to try most of the RE that are somewhat obtainable. My guess is, about 70% of all of them. Overall, I think they are a success. Few have been true disappointments for me (PL Encantos, QdO Superiores, RA Estupendos come to mind). Several are amongst my favorites of all times (Boli Especial #2, Boli 5ta Avenida, RA Belicosos Extra, La Escepcion, ...). I agree there are too many Petit Robustos and too many RA. It's sad when the regular marca is so decimated and then there is a flood of REs for the same marca. The pricing is getting out of hand, but I would say the same for the LE program and increasingly for the new regular releases. What I would like to see is more LGC RE and, of course, more <50RG - that's one reason I am so stoked about the RA 898 and La Escepcion and I do hope that their success will inspire more releases in that area.
Popular Post El Presidente Posted October 13, 2015 Author Popular Post Posted October 13, 2015 I would have to rate the program as a success. It generated (and still does) a litle bit of excitement and anticipation. The down side to the program (in my opinion) is three fold. 1. the gene pool is getting smaller the longer the program goes on and the limitation to available marques. 2. the palpable lack of risk distributors are willing to take on. Lower numbers produced in a lot cases. Lot's of fatties (long and short). No distributor wants to be holding the bag on a heap of unsold stock for too long. Looking ahead, the times of Regionals being around for 5 years looks like being over. 3. Tabacubas inability to deliver on time....or anywhere near time. It kills the creative juices of distributors let alone the anticipation of the market. Without touching the "global brands" I would love to see distributors commissioning their own cigar (should they wish) under their own name. Can't see it happening in the short term but long term something will likely have to change or the cannibalisation of sizes/marques will progressively get worse. 5
Jeremy Festa Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Someone take a risk and release a corona or corona gorda, in whatever marque, but release it in cajóns! Of a hundred! Sent from my iPhone 3
RijkdeGooier Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 The program offers interesting cigars but little consistency. Some of my favorites per annum Bolivar Libertador Francia 06 RA Gran Robustos Benelux 07 RA Phoenicia 08 Punch Poderosos Suiza 09 Juan Lopez #3 Benelux 10 La Escepcion Italia 11 RA Eshmoun Libanon 12 RG Petit Piramides Allemania 13 RA 898 Allemania 14 RA HF 225 UK 15 1
CigSid Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Successful here, if the contents of my cabinet are any indication. Most stocked...PL Robustos, PL Encantos, RACFs, RA Eminencias, PL RdLs and PL Lonsdales. I've been loving it. I think we've seen some terrific variety in sizes in PL, which has long been my favorite line. Thanks Hutch, forgot about the PL Lonsdales, fantastic cigar...
Smallclub Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Libyan Ramón Allones Phoenicios Lebanese. Libya is in full anarchy, I doubt cigars are still imported there.
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