Vegas Robaina Famoso BSM DIC 19 (XNYRW2)

[bishop532]

I love VR and I don’t smoke them enough. Tonight I decided to light up a 2019 Famoso that I got from a friend. The R on the band was a little offset but I’m familiar with the vendor and based on performance I think that’s just a quality control issue. 
 

 

The weather is unseasonably warm right now, and I sat outside in the garage and watched the rain as I smoked. 

The wrapper was a light color and thin. Cold draw tasted like hay with a touch of dark chocolate. The foot looked a bit loose, but the rest of the stick felt perfect. 

The first third was toasted tobacco and light chocolate notes. Didn’t notice much difference on the retrohale. It was a good, slow-building flavor, and everything was burning straight. 

On the second third, a nice cinnamon flavor crept in. Combined with the chocolate note, it added up to a sort of chocolate cake flavor. On the retro I started to get some cedar notes. 

The final third was coffee and cream mixed with that cinnamon note. There was also some more cedar and a little spice in there. Very good flavors for this time of year. 

This was a delicious cigar with fantastic construction. I need to get some more of these or some Unicos; I always enjoy them when I have them. 
 

Score: 91/100

Total Smoking Time: 1 hour 12 min

[NSXCIGAR]

3 hours ago, bishop532 said:

This was a delicious cigar with fantastic construction. I need to get some more of these or some Unicos; I always enjoy them when I have them. 

Famosos are a staple for me. Been rock solid since 19. Big fan.

The Unicos are just too mellow for me. No interest whatsoever. 

[bishop532]

9 hours ago, NSXCIGAR said:

Famosos are a staple for me. Been rock solid since 19. Big fan.

The Unicos are just too mellow for me. No interest whatsoever. 

I like a mellow cigar sometimes. I’ll smoke a PL just as quickly as a Bolivar; just depends on what I’m in the mood for and the time of day. 

I’ve only had Unicos a couple times, so I’m still getting familiar with them, but both times I really liked it for what it was. 

[SmokyFontaine]

Cinnamon is the prevailing flavor in the best Famosos for me. When I hit that right away, it's gonna be a good night. 

[NSXCIGAR]

5 hours ago, SmokyFontaine said:

Cinnamon is the prevailing flavor in the best Famosos for me. When I hit that right away, it's gonna be a good night. 

I never get any cinnamon. I think Rob's description has always been dead on--semi-sweet chocolate with a dried prune background. Maybe a touch of espresso in there as well. Not overly complicated but a great combo and perfectly balanced. 

Reminds me a bit of the old Bolivar blend with the earthy core and dried fruit/raisins background. It's definitely the closest you'll get to a pre-2000 Bolivar blend, although nowhere near as rich and powerful. 

14 hours ago, bishop532 said:

I like a mellow cigar sometimes. I’ll smoke a PL just as quickly as a Bolivar; just depends on what I’m in the mood for and the time of day. 

I’ve only had Unicos a couple times, so I’m still getting familiar with them, but both times I really liked it for what it was. 

If you like something mellower than the Unicos are an excellent option. The rare times I'd smoke something mellow would be maybe early in the day and I'd usually opt for something small like a Monte MC. I just get too bored with a larger mellow cigar. 

[SmokyFontaine]

This is why cigars are so much fun. Different nuances for different folks. For me it's stick cinnamon. I don't get fruit at all, even with Ramon Allones, which might be one of the big reasons why that marca does nothing for me. Current Bolivar are hands down my favorite.

[bishop532]

1 hour ago, SmokyFontaine said:

This is why cigars are so much fun. Different nuances for different folks. For me it's stick cinnamon. I don't get fruit at all, even with Ramon Allones, which might be one of the big reasons why that marca does nothing for me. Current Bolivar are hands down my favorite.

I definitely get dried fruit with RASS pretty often. Usually a pretty strong raisin note. But not as much with VR. I get chocolate and smoky wood flavors most commonly. This was the first time I noticed cinnamon, but I definitely enjoyed it!