Emilio Limited Edition LJZ Robusto

I don’t want to say that my redux humidor has been letting me down lately, but I haven’t been getting the results I usually want from it.

My general approach to redux reviews is to try and find something that I reviewed right around a year ago, or if possible several years ago, but generally within the same month. For instance, this is August 2022, so finding something from August 2019 would be ideal, but I’ll gladly take something from August 2021. That hasn’t been the case recently for whatever reason, though spoiler alert, November seems like it’s going to have plenty of choices.

But what that means is I get to revisit some cigars that got passed over for one reason or another, such as the Emilio Limited Edition LJZ Robusto.

The cigar was released in October 2020 as a limited edition to the Emilio LJZ line that was released in July 2017. The line is named for Louis J. Zucca, the person behind the LJ Zucca company, and grandfather to Scott Zucca, the owner of the Emilio brand.

“LJZ is a cigar that has been 70 years in the making. In 1947, my family started LJ Zucca from my grandfather’s front porch and it’s grown into the regional distribution company it is today,” said Scott Zucca in a press release when the cigar was announced. “The LJZ cigar is a tribute not only to them and its many employees, but also to the hard work, character, and entrepreneurial spirit that makes this country great. I believe it’s our best Emilio cigar release yet.”

The limited edition’s blend used two Nicaraguan habano leaves for the wrappers, while the binder was also a Nicaraguan habano leaf and the filler consisted of undisclosed varietals from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. The blend was created by James Brown of Black Label Trading Co. and Fábrica Oveja Negra, the factory currently producing the entire Emilio portfolio.

The Emilio Limited Edition LJZ Robusto would go on to finish #13 on halfwheel’s Top 25 Cigars of 2020.

Here’s what I said about the Emilio Limited Edition LJZ Robusto when I reviewed it in December 2020:

As a fan of Nicaraguan habano in general, I’m always on the lookout for another option to put in my rotation, and I’m happy to report the Emilio Limited Edition LJZ Robusto definitely checks pretty much every box to earn a place in it. The flavors are clean and bright, as well as generally complex and well-balanced. Outside of some pepper, nothing gets too out of balance, and even when that happens it’s generally quick and still palatable. Construction on each cigar was very good, though I would have liked a bit more consistency among the draw of the three samples. Other than that, there’s not much to complain about, except that there were simply far too few of these made.

• Cigar Reviewed: Emilio Limited Edition LJZ Robusto
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Fábrica Oveja Negra
• Wrapper: Nicaragua (Habano)
• Binder: Nicaragua (Habano)
• Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua
• Length: 5 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 52
• Vitola: Robusto
• MSRP: $10 (Box of 20, $200)
• Release Date: October 2020
• Number of Cigars Released: 250 Boxes of 10 Cigars (2,500 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Redux: 1

After removing the Emilio Limited Edition LJZ Robusto from its slightly darkened cellophane, the barber pole design is quite easy see, a similar to experience to the one I had when I first smoked this cigar. Between that stripe and what could be referred to as an unconventional band design, it presents a fair amount of visual intrigue. The cigar looks well rolled, as the barber pole design is created well and the cap is applied quite tidily. The cigar has a bit of give to it, with a bit of pillowy firmness that I more commonly find with box-pressed cigars. The foot has an inherently complex aroma with Chex Mix being the first thing I detect and then a dry, dusty earth comes along behind that. There’s a very faint amount of pepper mixed in among all that, though it takes some pretty focused sniffs to get to it. The cold draw is a bit more open than I would like as air moves with little restriction. The cold draw has a bit more Chex Mix, though more just the cereal parts as opposed to the pretzel and other components. There’s also a bit of soft chocolate chip cookie, though more the dough than the chocolate.

The Emilio Limited Edition LJZ Robusto starts with the taste of dry tobacco, a sensation that tingles my tongue with some pepper while also sucking the moisture out of it. After that, a bit of creaminess comes in to fill out the body of the smoke before contributing to the flavor. As for retrohales, they are sharp with a metallic pepper that is a bit harder to enjoy, let alone to pin down just how to describe it. The sensation also lingers for a while, turning into the kind of sensation I get from wasabi or a really minty mouthwash, though not so much in terms of flavor. While I like to retrohale my cigars as much as possible, this is one where that might not be the case given just how pronounced the retrohales are, not to mention that enough of the smoke from each puff makes its way into my nose and gives me just enough to be satisfied. The puffs leading up to the midpoint bring the individual components together a bit better than they have been, with the creaminess tying everything together very well. Construction and combustion have been good on the whole; after the first inch or so, the cigar begins to put off a lot of thick, creamy gray smoke, both on puffs and when at rest. There is a small section of the wrapper that merited a touch-up, but otherwise it has been problem-free. Flavor is a vibrant medium, body is a smooth medium, and strength is mild.

I decide to retrohale the cigar as the second half gets underway to see if might have mellowed out a bit, which it hasn’t. The smoke going through my nose has a bit less of a metallic edge than earlier, but it is still plentiful with white pepper, which in turn results in a pretty decent stimulation. The finish of each retrohale seems to have shortened a bit and isn’t quite as nostril-opening, but it is still a lot for the senses. The flavor, meanwhile, continues to coalesce around the creaminess before picking up a bit of light, dry earthiness as the second third comes to a close. The retrohales finally down a bit and are in much better alignment with the flavor. The  pepper is still there but it is a bit less vibrant, and while I’m all for distinctive and unique flavors, it was too contrasting earlier. The final third brings about the first taste of sweetness, as candy cane emerges almost out of nowhere. It’s an interesting development as the cigar gets smokier, yet somehow the two work well together. Smoke continues to billow off the cigar as it enters its final inches, with the candy cane making a quick departure and the smokiness beginning to drive the profile and black pepper becomes more vibrant. It’s the fullest the profile has been, finishing up near medium-full, while body is medium-plus and strength is shy of medium. Construction remains very good, though I do have to relight the cigar once despite not seemingly changing my puffing rate. Smoking time was a fairly quick one hour and 20 minutes.