RA 898 review - Original vs. RE Alemania

[ChanceSchmerr]

Hey everyone! Been very excited for baseball season to start, only to see my Blue Jays stink out the joint twice in a row against the damn Red Sox.....so I changed my attention to something more enjoyable that I've been meaning for a while - comparing the RA 898 to the new German RE!

First - the Original RA 898....

My box is a 2002 box that a good friend in the Army picked up for me at Dubai years ago. I treasure it greatly, now less than 10 left in that box and I will be rationing these out carefully over the next few years. They have been among some of the best cigars i have ever smoked. Refined, subtle and yet full of flavour.

First thing that gets me is the silky smooth wrapper. Seems almost too delicate to touch. Despite that, there remains light oils in the wrapper, a light brown in colour, uniform with no touches of colorado redness.

I love the tinges of green oxidation in the RA band. It really adds to the aged, stately appearance.

A clip of the head, and a perfect draw, no resistance and yet not a wind tunnel either. Pre-light draw yields light tobacco notes on the palate.

I paired this with a Bruichladdich Bere Barley whisky from my good friend Ross.

First Third

Slight fruit and tasty tobacco at the start. a very pleasant beginning, with little insistence....just an old friend come to say hello, but not saying much yet.

As we continue, some clever sour notes start to appear, along with a light sweetness, almost like candy. Rich flavour starts injecting into my puffs, growing with each draw.

A creamy texture starts to coat the palate, framing everything perfectly. A rich and woodsy palate is now at the fore, with fruitiness coming and going.

I get the impression that this is now aged perfectly. I may have to smoke the remaining ones sooner rather than later...

Middle Third

A touch of earth now - interesting!

With the earth comes rich stewed fruits, the classic aged RA flavour. everything is now in harmony, sour fruit notes along with the stewed dessert fruits (think plums, prunes, stone fruit...) Very fine indeed.

Rich and creamy, I'm loving this. Medium bodied, with a perfect draw and burn.

Such a classic cigar. If only they were all like this....

Final Third

Just a touch sharper now.
All the same, still creamy and fruity. The only real change and evolution now is that the flavour has just a slightly shorter finish, but the only thing this does is make me want to smoke it faster to keep the flavours coming....but I pace myself, don't want to over heat this baby!

Right to the nub, this keeps delivering perfect RA flavours. Refined, elegant stewed fruit and sour candy notes. Just so damn tasty.

Final Thoughts

I wish I had boxes more of this....but then I might take it for granted. An elegant, classic cigar, perfectly balanced and aged now. A numerical grade seems pointless....but if I had to give it one, I'd go 98. 2 points taken away because....well I don't know. 99 then. BRILLIANT!

RA 898 RE Alemania

RAE JUL 15

Forgot to take a picture of this before lighting....whoops.

This cigar is a little darker, little more oils than the '02. Some reddish notes in the wrapper, a definite Cororado wrapper.

A clip brings a very good draw, a touch of resistance but nothing to worry about. Interesting, neither cigar had a divot in the head. Not that it needs one....

Paird with a ***** Pure Malt (Black) whisky...also from my great mate Ross

First Third

Wow, this is much more in-your-face flavour. Bold fruitiness, it doesn't waste any time announcing it's presence! Hello!

Rich nutty notes abound. Not much sourness, just straight and juicy fruit, which is very enjoyable on the palate. This definitely satisfies, and doesn't take close attention to enjoy.

Something different - lots of grassiness in this one, especially through the nose as I exhale. A strong hint of youth, I'd say!

Middle Third

Been trying to describe the overall character of the palate. It almost comes across as...meaty. Interesting! Something of an umami flavour. Very unique, havn't tasted this in a long while! Not since I first tried the ridiculously expensive Karuizawa whisky.

Such full flavour, much more than the medium-bodied classic RA 898. I'd definitely call this a full-flavoured cigar.

Rich, almost heavy notes of fruitiness. The smoke is heady....very much so. A real barn-burner!

Final Third

A bit of creaminess now - mixed with the grassiness. Nice - something in common with the RA 898 Classic!

Roasted tobacco comes to the fore. Starting to get a bit discombobulated in the final inch. The youth is showing here, which isn't too surprising, or unwelcome!

The final inch gets more and uneven, both in burn and palate. I put it down with half an inch to go.

Final Thoughts

This showed me a lot, and was definitely enjoyable as well as strong. It showed me quite a lot of depth that indicates great ageing potential, and yet was satisfying and flavourful to smoke right now. I'd give it a 92 at this point...but it could end up much higher indeed.

Overall Comparison

Two cigars rolled 13 years apart....so a comparison isn't easy since the aged Classic has more than a decade under it's belt to smooth out the edges it may have had at infancy. And yet - both were enjoyable, satisfying and a pleasure to smoke. Are they related? Most definitely, the fruitiness was a dead ringer for RA and they share the same DNA with the creaminess developed fully in the classic cigar already starting to show in the RE. Will the RE live up to the classic with the same age? Of course, time will tell, but it has enough strength and depth to age very well, and I look forward to giving mine the time to refine. I went deep on the RE's, and I don't regret it, because if they don't end up as good as the Classic 898 - they won't be far off in my estimation. The classic 898 was a glorious cigar and a highlight of my day. The RE would be just as much a highlight if it hadn't be preceded by the classic, and one of the best cigars I've had in a while otherwise.

The blenders of the RA 898 RE nailed it, in my opinion, and I look forward to enjoying the fruits of their labour in years to come. And if our prayers are answered and the RA 898 comes back sometime in the future, we know they can come up with the same quality of cigar they used to roll, this RE proves that in my book.

If you've got the RE's - enjoy a few now, but leave the rest to age for a while - I would wager you wouldn't regret it!

Thanks for reading, everyone! Have a great weekend!

[shlomo]

Lots of love for the new RE. Am I the only one who has had a bad experience with them?

[BonVivant]

Thank you for the info - German release killed the old RA898 sales

Partagas 898 from 2014-15 is something to try

[LordAnubis]

Chris was kind enough to give me a german one to try. I did not like it. Horses for courses.

Great review and comparison mate!

[westg]

Nice write up Chris cheers.

[El Presidente]

Excellent review Chris

I am a fan of RA. The 898 is a classic. The RE 898 needs a little time to my mind. I haven't had one since December but you have peaked my interest to delve in again!

[JohnS]

Great review Chris. Thank you for sharing this comparison!

[Nino]

Great and very detailed review of my favourite Marca, Chris, thanks for sharing !!

When you come back to the pharmacy we can smoke both versions here ...

[billh1]

Great review! Thanks for sharing. I've not had the pleasure of smoking the original 898 but I do have some of the 898 REs. I've only smoked one so far and rather enjoyed it.

Cheers!

Bill

[Puros Y Vino]

Great review Chris. I enjoy both as well, the original is hard to beat but the RE is a damn fine cigar and does indeed share similar DNA.

[irratebass]

Excellent review Chris! I felt like smoked both of the, with you

[Onsto]

Great reviews Chris.

[saintsmokealot]

Great write up

[Erm310mce]

Great reviews Chris

[DWC]

Thank you for this side by side review. It's exactly what I've been waiting for.

I have some of the RE's and love the one that I've smoked so far, but was very curious how they compare to the original.

You did a great job reminding us all that its a subjective comparison, reviewing fresh to aged.

-Dan

[Smallclub]

I much prefer the original but again, at the same age the original was almost unsmokable. I doubt the german release has the same ability to age that long; I may be wrong but I believe in 2029 the german release will be a very weak cigar, past his prime…

[TheMonk]

Great detailed reviews and comparison, thanks for sharing!

[ToothlessCog]

Great review! Thanks!

[Napa_Smokes]

Great comparison /review. Thanks!

[LLC]

Really enjoyed the review Chris. Well done.

[JoeyGunz]

Great review Chris, looking forward to smoking the one you gifted me!

[Fugu]

Thanks for a great review and comparison!

While I haven't had the pleasure to enjoy the original, I fully agree with your assessment of the ER. Whether it has the legs we'll see (I believe yes, ...perhaps just because I want it to...), but it certainy is an excellent cigar. And, unike some other recent releases, I find them to be very consistent.

[avaldes]

The '02 898's and their brothers the RAC's were "strong as death" when first rolled. I can still remember getting sick after smoking one in 2012 when they hit 10 years. Haven't had the opportunity to smoke a German 898, but it sounds like they weren't rolled to the same strength for the long haul. Doesn't mean they are a bad cigar though. 898's from 1998 and 2001 didn't have the strength of those '02's either.

[Orion21]

Great reviews and I really enjoyed them! I guess I don't see the similarity other than the fruit. Having not smoked either of these it's interesting to read about a classic and the fans that hoped this German RE would be redux. I guess only time will tell.

What do you think Nino? Blood brothers or distant cousins?

[luv2fly]

Great review and comparison. If memory serves, and I have doubts, I think I have had an OR RA898. All i remember is that it was a top 5 for me. Hope to try the RE at some point.