My Father Federal Le Bijou Connecticut Edition Petit Robusto

After the runaway success of the original release of the My Father Le Bijou 1922 Federal Cigar 91 Cervantes Connecticut, Rick Gadway of Federal Cigar asked My Father to produce more cigars in close to the same blend to be sold solely at his store in New Hampshire. Rick received an initial shipment of 100 boxes of each of the three sizes but expects the cigar to remain as a house blend through continued production, depending on demand.

Charlie had this to say in the original news story:

Federal Cigar has added to its collection of My Father exclusive by receiving an additional three sizes that are expected to remain an ongoing fixture at the New Hampshire store. One cigar is identical to the original My Father Le Bijou 1922 Federal Cigar 91 Cervantes Connecticut, which took the Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper from the Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition 2011 onto a Lonsdale of a tweaked My Father Le Bijou 1922 blend.

There are three different vitolas in the My Father Le Bijou 1922 Federal Connecticut Edition:

• Cervantes (6 1/2 x 44) — $8.00 (Boxes of 23, $165.60)
• Corona Gorda (5 5/8 x 46) — $7.50 (Boxes of 23, $155.25)
• Petit Robusto (4 1/2 x 50) — $6.50 (Boxes of 23, $134.55)

In addition, here is a photo of the limited edition cigars from the past two years that have used the Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper:

• Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Connecticut (4 1/2 x 50) — March 30, 2012 — 250 Boxes of 20 Cigars (5,000 Total Cigars)
• Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Connecticut (5 1/2 x 52) — March 30, 2012 — 250 Boxes of 20 Cigars (5,000 Total Cigars)
• Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Connecticut (6 x 54) — March 30, 2012 — 250 Boxes of 20 Cigars (5,000 Total Cigars)
• Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Connecticut (6 x 60) — March 30, 2012 — 250 Boxes of 20 Cigars (5,000 Total Cigars)
• Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition 2011 Connecticut (6 1/2 x 52) — August 2011 — 3,700 Boxes of 1 Cigar (3,700 Total Cigars)
• My Father Le Bijou 1922 Federal Cigar 91st Cervantes Connecticut (6 1/2 x 42) — February 1, 2012 — 50 Boxes of 23 Cigars (1,150 Total Cigars)
• My Father Federal Le Bijou Connecticut Edition Cervantes (6 1/2 x 44) — June 6, 2012 — Regular Production
• My Father Federal Le Bijou Connecticut Edition Corona Gorda (5 5/8 x 46)— June 6, 2012 — Regular Production
• My Father Federal Le Bijou Connecticut Edition Petit Robusto ( 4 1/2 x 50)— June 6, 2012 — Regular Production

• Cigar Reviewed: My Father Federal Le Bijou Connecticut Edition Petit Robusto
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Length: 4 1/2 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 50
• Vitola: Petit Robusto
• MSRP: $6.50 (Boxes of 23, $134.55)
• Release Date: June 6, 2012
• Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 4

The cigar is compact and dense when held in the hand with a cedar sleeve covering the cigar up to the band. Taking the sleeve off, there is a golden brown wrapper that is dry yet smooth to the touch and smells fairly strongly of barnyard, chocolate, hay and cedar. The Federal Petit Robusto is very hard when squeezed, but does have a tiny amount of give.

Starting out the first half of the My Father and I am struck instantly after lighting with a great creamy profile, along with flavors of hay, leather and earth. About ten puffs in, a great honey sweetness starts to develop and it gains in strength throughout the first third. There is also a bunch of smoke and burn and draw are both stellar. There is some pepper on the retrohale, but it is not strong enough to notice in my mouth. Strength starts out as a mild-medium, and while it does get stronger, it is more of building as opposed to all at once.

Coming into the second half of the My Father Le Bijou 1922 Federal Connecticut Edition, and the creaminess of the profile increases, as does the sweetness, which is now more of a vanilla note, and the overall strength. There is also an added retrohale note that reminds me of a hot cinnamon note. Other flavors of nuts, cedar, hay, white chocolate and earth round out the profile and all of them combine together quite well. Construction remains fabulous for the entirety of the Petit Robusto and the strength ends up a strong medium by the end. It finishes easily without getting harsh.

• I smoked one of each of the other sizes (Corona Gorda and Cervantes) to compare to the Petite Robusto, and I have to say, despite my well-documented love of the Corona Gorda format, I actually enjoy the Petit Robusto the most of the three. It seems to be the most complex, albeit not by a bunch, and is definitely has the sweetest profile of the three. The Corona Gorda is spicier with an added hashness, and the Cervantes is stronger than the other two.
• I must say, I am really loving the Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper that has been used on some of the My Father releases. While I was not the biggest fan of the Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Connecticut, the other three recent releases that use it are all winners, with the Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Connecticut Limited Edition 2011 being the standout.
• While I love the look of the cedar sleeves that are used, I am always wary of getting mold due to moisture getting caught underneath. This is a huge problem with some other cigars (Añejo), and while there is no history of it in this case, it is something to be watchful for.
• Like the original Cervantes, this blend produces quite a bit of smoke.
• The finish is extremely dry.
• The original Cervantes has really gotten quite bit better in the four months it has been resting since it was first released. If you have any of them left, I suggest you revisit them, as the slight harshness and bitterness that was present is now totally gone.
• The strength is not as strong as I expected and ended up being more of a strongish medium, but that could just be the vitola. Don’t let others fool you.
• I have never been overly impressed with the regular Le Bijou blend, as I find it much too harsh and one dimensional to my tastes. However, over the last year, there have been two different blends released were tweaked from the original blends: the Puff n Stuff Corona Gorda and these new Federal Connecticut Exclusive. In my opinion, both of these exclusive releases are FAR superior to the regular release Le Bijou blend, which I find to be bland and uninteresting for the most part.
• I was a bit surprised at how fast the Petite Robusto smoked and the final smoking time for both samples were a relatively quick one hour and five minutes.
• If you would like to purchase any of the My Father Le Bijou 1922 Federal Connecticut Edition, the only place you can get them is Federal Cigar. You can find a direct link to all of the sizes here, or you can call them at 877-424-4270. Don’t forget to tell them halfwheel sent you.