Romeo Y Julieta Prince of Wales SUA JUN01

[stever]

From El Prez’s aged Churchill sampler, I select the lesser known of the R&J Julieta No.2 s, the Prince of Wales. I really know nothing of this cigar, other than it is allegedly lighter than the R&J Churchill. Not sure if it has also been discontinued.

The wrapper is a nice rich brown color, and feels smooth, with only one noticeable suture-like vein running halfway down the back. The cigar is box-pressed and fairly hard to the touch, but there is some resiliency along the sides. I hope it’s not plugged. Overall, construction on this is pretty good.

Prelight nose is of sweet, mildly pungent barnyard and leather notes. A notch cut yields a rather firm, maybe too firm, draw revealing sweet stewed-fruit flavors and leather. I light the cigar and taste a sweet toasted nuttiness and light leather flavors. Soon, I pick up some toffee and light coffee notes.

Body and smoke volume is initially on the light side because of the tight draw. The ash is ghostly white and pretty firm. Burn is pretty even, but I do have to relight the cigar after the first inch. For the next half inch, I stoke the cigar and work out some of the hardness about 2 to 3 inches from the end. Thereafter, there are no burn issues and both the body and the draw pick up.

At the 1 ½” mark, hints of caramel mix with the toasted nut flavor, and a sweet tea flavor begins to overlay the toasted tobacco finish. Cedar notes come through at the 2” mark, and the cigar as a whole becomes more medium bodied and develops a rich lushness. The more I smoke, the more I’m pleasantly surprised. Despite the light/medium body, there is a depth of complexity and a subtleness of flavor to this cigar that I am not expecting. It is definitely grabbing my attention. :-P

At the halfway mark, I start to pick up rich dark fruit flavors and a sweet cedar nuttiness that leaves my lips tingling. Aromatic floral notes, reminiscent of an aged ERDM Tainos, also appear. The cigar really hits its stride at this point. As the smoke progresses, it becomes richer and the flavors become more intense. Overall, however, the flavor profile remains pretty consistent and is very well balanced through the end.

The smoke lasted 1:50 with 1” left. I really think this is a good cigar and I need to get more if only to see what a better drawing example reveals. The Prince of Wales is definitely not the same as its brother, the R&J Churchill. It may not have the body of the Churchill, but I also think its flavor profile is entirely different. Albeit, I’ve only smoked one Prince of Wales, and it did not have the best draw. I’d love to hear others’ impressions of this cigar.

[ThreeD]

I liked your review and it sounds as if you liked the cigar.

[Matthew]

Excellent review; I've always felt they were too light, but I don't think I've given one a try in a couple of years. Maybe they've aged into a better cigar...

[genevapics]

Very nice review of a lesser known/smoked cigar. Well done. I have never smoked this cigar, but based off of your review, I would certainly try a few. Thanks again for the review.

[wp2]

I have an 01 box I got from Rob almost a month ago. It is resting some more until the Christmas holiday, then I'll try one.

Nice review, thanks.

[Colt45]

Another I've never tried, and one you don't hear much about. Keep up the good work!