Cuvee Rouge - Robusto

Size: 5x50 Robusto
Wrapper: Sun-Grown Dominican
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican
Body: Medium-Full
Strength: Medium
Humidor time: 1 Month


I went ahead and continued on my Cuvee tour with the Rouge after trying the 151 and giving my throat some time to heal. I got this cigar with my purchase of the 151, it too had one month of time in my humidor resting away. This cigar is also beautiful, the wrapper holds a red hue to it that is quite inviting. This particular stick did have a minor triangle shaped tear at the foot, but it never split and become worse. The cigar is firm, the wrapper is spicy like many others.

The cigar lit up with lots of toasty smoke. It was not pleasant, the flavor was ashy with a tinge of ammonia. The ashy ammonia was prevalent throughout the cigar as it burned down. It was unpleasant to say the least.

The ash was white, but flakey, causing concern to make sure it dropped in the ashtray instead of on me. I do ash more often then some, so it bothers me that I have to keep my eye on the ash to make sure I do not end up with a hole in my pants. The burn was nothing exciting.

During the smoke I noticed a tingling feeling, some may call it a tang, but it was different than I am used to. I picked up a good amount of cocoa, coffee flavors and cinnamon. During the smoke I tried to discern if the tingle feeling I got was the cinnamon or not, but it was a bit of work to figure it out and I never did.

During the smoke I had written in my notes several times the ammonia I would get as the cigar burned. This cigar turned out to be another disappointment for me. I am wondering if the tobacco is too young, the amount of ammonia I got during the smoke was way too much. The tobacco certainly was used too soon and should have been fermented longer, unless strong ammonia is what Cusano was hoping to accomplish with this cigar.

I am certainly going to give my other Cuvee Rouges a long time to rest before lighting up again. I cannot recommend this cigar unless you enjoy ammonia.

Appearance 2-I Liked It
Construction 3- Good
Burn 1- Okay
Ash 1- Flaky
Flavor 1- Great smoke, lots of flavor
Smoke Profile 1.5- Perfect, no harsh spots at all, smooth and nice
Aroma 1- Enjoyable fragrance, but stinks up the skin

=10.5 Points

Cuvee No. 151

Size: 5x50 Robusto
Wrapper: Costa Rican Corojo
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaraguan and Costa Rican
Body: Full
Strength: Medium
Humidor time: 1 Month

Every now and again a cigar comes along that begs to be enjoyed, it wants to be one of the best out there, but there is only one way to find out. This Cuvee 151 came into my humidor with a passion. it sat there along with my other cigars almost taunting them because of how great the corojo wrapper looks. I purchased a couple of these and had to keep away from them, so I tucked them under other cigars so I would forget about them. Unfortunately I saw one after a month of resting and figured enough time has passed to let one acclimate to my humidor, it was time to light at least one up.

Did I mention how beautiful this oily dark firm cigar looks? The Corojo is amazing. It is a cigar that must be seen in person to truly appreciate. Even if one does not care for corojo cigars, one would admit to its beauty.

The cap cut cleanly and the pre-light draw was loose giving flavors of cocoa and strong spice threatening to ravage harm to the back of the throat. I am not kidding about the spice, it was wicked. I do not remember much about the aroma as I was worried about the injury I was causing my throat, as such I am not going to give it a bad rating, if the aroma was bad I would have noted it.

The stick lit up nicely and quickly, the smoke volume was thick and tasted of strong rich cocoa. The smoke was smooth and creamy, but harsh on the back of the throat. The ash was bright white and held strong to the cigar, dropping only upon command in the ashtray. The burn was even all the way around.

I was given flavors of cocoa and nuts with that spice in the background causing harm. The complexities were okay, but with age they might be better. I am hoping the sandpaper effect I was getting on my throat will also fade with age. I am going to return to this cigar, but it will not be for a year. I was disappointed by this cigar, having a rough smoke is never fun and wanting to write up this review I went ahead and smoked the cigar down to one and a half inches, I could not nub this one even if I wanted to. I am only glad I got a robusto rather than anything larger. I would not recommend this cigar out of the box, if you have one with age, good luck. I would like to know what others think of this cigar.

This cigar gets a descent rating due to everything but the smoke profile, if I was not having such a hard time with my throat I probably would have picked up a lot more flavors. This was a huge disappointment for me.

Appearance 2-I Liked It
Construction 2- Good
Burn 2- Perfect
Ash 2- Wow
Flavor 2.5- Had good flavor, but masked by pain, real bummer
Smoke Profile 0.5- Ouch, oh but smooth and creamy, ouch!!
Aroma 2- Nice and not overpowering, Aromatic, enjoyable fragrance

=13 Points