Cigar Review: Padilla Miami Robusto

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This cigar review of the Padilla Miami Robusto is part of a series of reviews on the Top Ten Made in the USA cigars of 2006 For more information, and for more reviews of premium cigars from around the world, check the Cigar Review archive.

Like the Tatuaje Cabinet Tainos reviewed in Part I of this series, Cigar Aficionado also chose the Padilla Miami 8&11 Robusto as a Top 25 Cigar of 2005.

The “8 & 11″ in the name — which Padilla Cigars seems to have dropped in favor of calling this gem simply the Padilla Miami — came from the location of the factory where the cigar is expertly rolled. It memorializes the corner of 8th Street and 11th Avenue in Miami’s Little Havana: the address of Jose “Pepin” Garcia’s El Rey de Los Habanos factory.

Yes, the Padilla Miami, like the Tatuaje cigar line, is made by Don Pepin. Pepin Garcia makes some very good cigars.

The Padilla Miami is a Nicaraguan tobacco puro. The wrapper is Cuban-seed Corojo. The binder is Cuban-seed Criollo. The filler is a blend of Cuban-seed Corojo and Criollo.

That is it. Corojo and Criollo tobacco grown in Nicaragua from Cuban seed stock.

Sound boring?

It isn’t. This is a full-flavored and full-bodied powerhouse of a cigar that is not recommended for anyone but seasoned smokers. “Cubaneque” does not really do it justice.

This one has a kick.

The Padilla Miami Robusto is a five inch, 50 ring beauty that has superb construction. Don Pepin only employs grade 8 or “master” grade rollers in his factory. They worked at some of the top Cuban factories before coming to the United States. The cigars are Cuban-style, down to the triple-seam caps.

They also have great draw, good burn and exceptional flavor and complexity. Cigar Aficionado, in awarding it a 92 rating, commented on the cigar’s caramel, chocolate and spice notes and it’s long finish.

If you have ever smoked a really good Cuban cigar of full body and full flavor, then you will find the Padilla Miami comparable to what you remember. If you have never smoked a really good Cuban…smoking one of these is very close to what you have missed from the old days.

There are a lot of powerful cigars around, from various makers and nations. There are also a lot of cigars that are refined and have sophistication. There are not many cigars from any nation that combine all of those characteristics in the same stick. The Padilla Miami is in rare company.

Ernesto Padilla, the man behind this cigar, has been in the cigar business for less than six years. You would never know that based on sampling his products. The Padilla line offers cigars rolled in Nicaraugua, the Dominican Republic, and in Miami, Florida. All are very good, but the consensus is that the best Padilla cigars to date are the ones rolled in Miami under the guidance of Don Pepin.

To quote Ernesto, “I think these are among the best cigars being made in the world today.”

That is not marketing hype. That is a simple statement of fact, and one that I agree with.

I’m going to repeat a warning here that I made about the Tatuaje line. Corojo tobacco (and Criollo, for that matter) absorbs a lot of moisture. These are cigars that are made with nothing but Corojo and Criollo, and they are like little cigar-shaped sponges in your humidor.

You will have burn problems with high-Corojo-content cigars if you keep them at a relative humidity that is “normal” for your other smokes. They simply absorb too much moisture at 70%, and wet cigars do not burn well or smoke well. They do much better below 65%. Personally, I prefer a humidity in the lower sixties for these kinds of cigars.

If you are investing the amount of money that a box of Padilla Miamis or Tatuajes cost (or even the price of singles, for that matter), then do yourself a favor and pick up a small, inexpensive humidor for storing just these cigar blends. You can usually get small humidors for bargain prices on Cigarbid. You will be amazed at the difference a drier humidor makes in the way these corojo-heavy premiums smoke and taste.

Speaking of price, what exactly are you going to have to pay to sample the Padilla Miami line?

Again, these are small production, limited edition cigars with an extremely good reputation. Only 5,000 were made in 2005.

They are not cheap. Not many places have them. They are not often discounted. These are genuinely good cigars and not just a hyped brand.

The best price I know of on these at the moment is U.S. $199.95 per box 20 of at Abner’s World of Discount Cigars, which is $10.00 per cigar. Black Cat Cigars lists them at the same price. Famous Smoke Shop has them at $220.00 per box ($11.00 each) and that is the manufacturer’s suggested retail price of the cigars.

The sources I know that usually have samplers and packs are either sold out on these or do not carry Padilla Miami samplers. My best advice if you don’t want to invest in a box would be to either keep checking the major retailers and see if things change, or go in with two or three friends and buy a box together.

You can also check the Padilla Cigar Company website. They have a list there of local shops that carry their cigars. I can’t give you a direct link to the page since they have a Flash-intensive site, but go to “Store Locator” and click on your state. That may be your best way to sample this truly exceptional cigar.

If you like full flavored, full bodied cigars with power and punch, this is a cigar that you will really want to try.

Hurry before they are all gone.