Rocky Patel 15th Anniversary Toro
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Size: 6½" x 52
Strength: Full
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Filler: Nicaraguan Estelí
Binder: Nicaraguan Jalapa
Pres.: Boxes of 20 cigars / 5-Packs / Singles
Location smoked: Leaf Cigar Bar
Paired with: Vodka & Tonic 

Construction and Appearance: About as good as it gets. Wrapper is solid dark chocolate-hued with a silky feel. A few noticeable veins that did not distract from the overall appearance of the cigar. The cigar is perfectly packed, and has a nice balanced weight to it. (BTW, this cigar is rolled using the "entubar" method in which each leaf is individually rolled inside the other.) This method is a little more expensive, but makes a big difference in terms of draw, burn and flavor.

Pre-light flavor: Sweet with a nip of cocoa.

Toasting & Light: Cigar toasted and lit perfectly. First puff was especially creamy, and you could taste the base flavors immediately.

Base flavors: Earthy, dark chocolate, espresso and sweet tobacco.

Retrohale: Earthy and peppery

Aroma: WOW!

Burn / Ash Quality: Whistle-clean burn. Ash is exceptionally firm with an attractive gray/black marble pattern.

Balance of flavors: Spectacular.

Consistency:  All of the base flavors, and a few nice surprises were present in every puff. The cigar burned "cool" from end to end and never became too strong or bitter.

General Observations: This is one of those cigars that you can look at and your gut-check will tell you, "this is gonna be good."  I was impressed with just about every aspect of this cigar. I loved its complexity, balance of flavors, sweetness, and extraordinary aroma. There's little more than that I can add. That said, if I had to compare it to another cigar in its class, I'd say there was only a baby's hair of difference between it and a Padrón 1964 Anniversary Maduro Imperial.

Summary: This was actually my first Rocky Patel 15th Anniversary. I purposely brought it to Leaf, where Rocky was hosting end of their weekend long 1st Anniversary celebration. I'd had it in my humidor for a while, so it was about time to set it free. When I arrived I showed it to Rocky who remarked that this particular stick was a personal favorite. I can see why now. Considering the excellence of this cigar, I was surprised to see that the box price for the Toro was well under $200. I highly recommend this masterpiece, especially for those who are beginning  to move up to more full-bodied, complex cigars. (Yes, I nubbed the hell out of it.)

Rating: 96

Rating scale
75-79 = Fair to Middling
80-84 = Good
85-89 = Very impressive
90-94 = Excellent
95-99 = Spectacular!