In March 2013, RoMa Craft Tobac released a new cigar called the Fomorian, which used the internal blend of the CroMagnon EMH while replacing the normal Connecticut broadleaf wrapper with a candela leaf from Ecuador. Only 250 of the original Fomorians were released, and they were only available to attendees of the D.C. Cigar Tweet-Up.

Fast forward to January of this year, when the company announced that the Fomorian would again be produced for the D.C. Cigar Tweet-up, this time in much greater numbers and at a slightly higher price point.

We covered the news in a news story back in January:

RoMa Craft Tobac will decuple the release size of the CroMagnon Fomorian for this year. Decuple, increasing by a factor of 10, is not a common activity in the cigar business, but given that the last year’s release of the candela-wrapped EMH was only 10 boxes, nothing is quite standard with this release.

Earlier today, Michael Rosales of RoMa Craft Tobac tweeted a picture of the upcoming cigar.

For the Fomorian, RoMa Craft Tobac replaces the Connecticut broadleaf wrapper normally found on the 5 x 56 CroMagnon EMH with an Ecuadorian Connecticut candela wrapper.

Pricing is set identical to the EMH, although after the company’s 2014 price increase, it will be $7.75 per cigar instead of $7.50 as it was last year.

The cigar is once again being made for the DC Cigar Tweetup, which will take place on March 14-15. Skip Martin told halfwheel that RoMa Craft Tobac will offer any boxes not sold during the event to its retailers on a first-come, first-served basis.

With the addition of the newest incarnation of the Fomorian, there are now 16 vitolas in the CroMagnon line.

Note: The following shows the various Cro-Magnon vitolas. Some of these cigars may have been released after this post was originally published. The list was last updated on Oct. 9, 2023.

cromagnon-vitolas

  • CroMagnon Anthropology (5 3/4 x 46) — Grand Corona — February 2011 — $8 (Boxes of 24, $192)
  • CroMagnon Cranium (6 x 54) — Gran Toro — February 2011 — $8.50 (Boxes of 24, $204)
  • CroMagnon EMH (Early Modern Human) (5 x 56) — Robusto Extra — February 2011 — $7.75 (Boxes of 24, $186)
  • CroMagnon Knuckle Dragger (4 x 52) — Petit Robusto — February 2011 — $6.50 (Boxes of 24, $156)
  • CroMagnon Mandible (4 1/2 x 60) — Petite Gordo — February 2011 — $7.25 (Boxes of 24, $174)
  • CroMagnon Mandible XL (6 x 60) — Gordo — February 2011 — Sampler Only (Not Pictured)
  • CroMagnon Atlatl (7 x 38) — Lancero — November 2012 — $9.50 (Boxes of 10, $95)
  • CroMagnon Slobberknocker (7 1/2 x 56) — Gordo— November 2012 — $12 (Boxes of 10, $120)
  • CroMagnon Blockhead (6 x54) – Box-Pressed Gran Toro – March 2013 — $9
  • CroMagnon Fomorian (2013) (5 x 56) – Robusto Extra (Candela) – March 2013 — $7.50 (Boxes of 24, $180)
  • CroMagnon Epoch (7 x 49) – Churchill – February 2013 — $10 (Boxes of 10, $100)
  • CroMagnon Mode 5 (5 x 50) – Perfecto – $6.50 — March 2013 — (Boxes of 24, $156)
  • CroMagnon Venus (6 1/2 x 56) – Petite Salomon – September 2013 — $10 (Boxes of 10, $100)
  • CroMagnon Fomorian 2014 (5 x 56) — Robusto Extra (Candela) — March 2014 — $7.75 (Boxes of 24, $186)
  • CroMagnon Fomorian Barber Pole (5 x 56) — Robusto Extra — March 2014 — Unreleased
  • CroMagnon Breuil (5 1/2 x 37) — Panetela — September 2014 — $7.50 (Boxes of 10, $75)
  • CroMagnon Fomorian 2015 (5 x 56) — Robusto Extra (Candela) — March 2015 — $7.75 (Boxes of 24, $186)
  • CroMagnon Pestera Muierilor (4 x 46) — Petit Corona — August 2015 — $6.26 (Samplers of 2, $62.50)
  • CroMagnon Firecracker (3 1/2 x 50) — Petit Robusto — June 2016 — $6 (Boxes of 20, $119.99)
  • CroMagnon Timeline (6 1/4 x 50) — Toro — August 2016 — $12 (Bundles of 10, $120)
  • CroMagnon Femur (10 x 133 1/3) — Femur — November 2013 — $50 (Box of 1, $50)
86 Overall Score

The candela wrapper seems to be hard to blend around, as the vast majority of the ones I have smoked over the years have had an overwhelming grassy or hayish flavor that dominates the profile. The CroMagnon Fomorian has those flavors in spades, but does manage to remain fairly balanced throughout the smoke, and the black pepper on the retrohale is a nice addition as well. Overall, a fairly good candela wrapped cigar, but I prefer the regular CroMagnon blend to this any day of the week.

The company also made  a barber pole version of the Fomorian that was not offered for sale, but given out to a few people. Unlike last year, the remaining boxes of Fomorian that were not sold at the event have been offered to RoMa Craft Tobac’s retailers.

CroMagnon Fomorian 2014 1

  • Cigar Reviewed: CroMagnon Fomorian
  • Country of Origin: Nicaragua
  • Factory: Fabrica de Tabacos NicaSueño S.A.
  • Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Candela
  • Binder: Cameroon
  • Filler: Nicaragua
  • Size: 5 Inches
  • Ring Gauge: 56
  • Vitola: Robusto Gordo
  • MSRP: $7.75 (Boxes of 24, $186.00)
  • Date Released: March 14, 2014
  • Number of Cigars Released: 100 Boxes of 24 Cigars (2,400 Total Cigars)
  • Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 2

Covered in a striking pale green wrapper that is totally smooth to the touch, the RoMa Craft CroMagnon Fomorian features an abundance of veins running up and down its length. It is extremely hard when squeezed, with almost no give at all, and the aroma from the wrapper is a combination of strong hay, earth and leather. The cold draw has more of the same hay and earth, but adds a indeterminate sweetness to the mix as well.

The CroMagnon Fomorian lights up cleanly and easily, and I am immediately rewarded with flavors of earth, dry hay, creamy cedar and leather, along with a great black pepper on the retrohale that seems to be getting stronger slowly as the first third progresses. The sweetness that was noticeable on the cold draw is in the background, but just not very strong at this point, and there is a very obvious bitterness on the finish that I am hoping dies down. Construction-wise, the draw is excellent, and while the burn is far from perfect, it is not bad enough to give me any major issues so far. The overall strength starts off just below medium and is rising.

CroMagnon Fomorian 2014 2

There is not much change in the profile during the second third of the Cromagnon Fomorian, with notes of hay, grass, creamy leather, earth and bitter coffee flitting in and out, although the grass flavor is dominant at certain points near the halfway point. The sweetness from the first third is now strong enough to place as a very dark and very dry cocoa, but it is still not strong enough to do much to affect the actual profile. The black pepper on the retrohale has dissipated a bit, and while it is still noticeable, it seems to be fading quickly. The burn has evened up wonderfully, and the draw continues to impress me, while the smoke production actually picks up a bit. Strength-wise, the Fomorian hits slightly above the medium mark but is still increasing by the end of the second third.

CroMagnon Fomorian 2014 3

The final third of the CroMagnon Fomorian offers almost a carbon copy of the second third including the same basic flavors of grass, hay, earth, bitter coffee, creamy leather and black pepper on the retrohale. The dark and dry cocoa sweetness is still in the background, but never really goes anywhere, staying mostly in the background until the finish of the cigar. Both the burn and draw are excellent until I put the nub down, and the smoke production is still strong until the end as well. Interestingly, the strength really bumps up in the final third, and while it does not reach the full mark, it comes pretty close.

CroMagnon Fomorian 2014 4

 

Final Notes:

  • According to lore, the Fomorians were pirates of ancient Ireland that had one eye, one leg and one arm.
  • RoMo Craft announced the so called Panatela project back in March, it will add another size to the CroMagnon line.
  • The name for this release is misspelled all over the internet, with the most common mistake being Formorian.
  • After consistently rejecting the idea, RoMa Craft Tobac added bands to the CroMagnon line at the IPCPR show in 2013. The bands on the CroMagnon line are exceptionally nice, with a duel band: the bottom band is a creamy white and is embossed with the RoMo Craft logo and depictions of cave art, while the band on top is jet black, and has the word CroMagnon embossed into it.
  • Skip Martin has one of the most impressive Instagram accounts I have seen in the cigar business: constantly updated and full of great photos and information.
  • Although noticeably thin, unlike quite a few of the candelas I have smoked, the wrapper on the Fomorian is quite durable, and gave me no problems at all with splitting or cracking as I was smoking them.
  • Do not puff on this cigar too fast or too hard, or it will punish you with overwhelming bitterness.
  • Cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
  • The average smoking time for both samples I reviewed was one hour and 35 minutes.
86 Overall Score

The candela wrapper seems to be hard to blend around, as the vast majority of the ones I have smoked over the years have had an overwhelming grassy or hayish flavor that dominates the profile. The CroMagnon Fomorian has those flavors in spades, but does manage to remain fairly balanced throughout the smoke, and the black pepper on the retrohale is a nice addition as well. Overall, a fairly good candela wrapped cigar, but I prefer the regular CroMagnon blend to this any day of the week.

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Brooks Whittington

I have been smoking cigars for over eight years. A documentary wedding photographer by trade, I spent seven years as a photojournalist for the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star Telegram. I started the cigar blog SmokingStogie in 2008 after realizing that there was a need for a cigar blog with better photographs and more in-depth information about each release. SmokingStogie quickly became one of the more influential cigar blogs on the internet, known for reviewing preproduction, prerelease, rare, extremely hard-to-find and expensive cigars. I am a co-founder of halfwheel and now serve as an editor for halfwheel.