June 1, 2011 Brooks Whittington Cigars,  Dominican Republic,  La Aurora,  Main,  Prerelease,  Reviews

Review: Guillermo León Robusto (Prerelease)

For those of you that don’t know…

During the IPCPR Trade Show in New Orleans last year, La Aurora released a brand new line of cigars, named after the President of the company, Guillermo León…In fact, he had this to say about the release:

“Obviously, this cigar is personal for me. It is part of my family’s legacy for the past 107 years. In this cigar, I wanted something with deep complexity yet also a stronger smoke than most of our offerings. I think this is something that will please today’s smokers.”

The Guillermo León has an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, and a very interesting double binder with both Corojo and Cameroon. The filler is from 4 different countries: the Dominican Republic, Peru, Nicaragua and Brazil. With the addition of the Robusto, the Guillermo León lineup includes 5 different vitolas, with prices ranging from $7.60 for the Corona to $9.80 for the Gran Toro:

  • Corona (5.5 x 42)
  • Robusto (5 x 50)
  • Gran Corona (6 x 47)
  • Belicoso (6.25 x 52)
  • Gran Toro (6 x 58)

Here is a photograph of the Guillermo León Robusto next to a Gran Corona:

Guillermo León Robusto 1.png

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But enough of that, let’s get down to business, shall we?

Guillermo León Robusto 2.png

  • Cigar Reviewed: Guillermo León Robusto
  • Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
  • Factory: E. León Jimenes Tabacalera
  • Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
  • Binder: Corojo and Cameroon
  • Filler: Dominican Republic, Peru, Nicaragua & Brazil
  • Size: 5 Inches
  • Ring Gauge: 50
  • Vitola: Robusto
  • Est. Price: n/a (Boxes of 20)
  • Release Date: Early June 2011
  • Number of Cigars Released: Regular Release*
  • Number of Cigars Smoked for Review: 1

*200 Boxes ship Friday and another 300 boxes will ship before the end of June.

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The cigar itself looks identical in almost every way to every Guillermo León I have smoked (and I have smoked a lot of them!), with a medium reddish brown color, beautifully constructed, although there are a few prominent veins running up and down the length of the stick. The wrapper smells of sweet chocolate, cinnamon and black pepper. It is very firm when squeezed (but not too firm, it does have some give), and the predraw is of a very sweet oak (woodish flavors), pepper and espresso.

Guillermo León Robusto 3.png

As you would expect, the flavors are very reminiscent of the Guillermo León lineup, with notes of dark chocolate, wood (oak), coffee and cinnamon throughout the cigar, however, unlike the Belicoso and Grand Corona, there is a distinct black pepper note (especially in the first third) that almost overwhelms the rest of the flavors (and sticks around for quite a while after that, you can taste it, especially on the retrohale after the second third. The Robusto also did not seem to have as much of that wonderful sweetness that really makes this blend shine in the other vitolas. You could taste a sweetness in the background, it just was not as strong.

Guillermo León Robusto 4.png

The construction was wonderful as always, with the burn being even for pretty much the whole stick. The Draw was a bit loose to start, but really evened out after the first third.

Guillermo León Robusto 5.png

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The Bottom Line: I have made no secret of the fact that the Guillermo León is one of my favorite cigars and I always have a box in the humidor. While the Robusto had quite a few things in common with the rest of the line (of course), there was a bit more (black) pepper in the first third then the other vitolas, that almost seemed to overwhelm the sweetness that is one of the great things about this blend. While still a good cigar (and WELL worth the time and money to pick up, especially if you love smaller vitolas), I have to honestly say that I like the larger vitolas more (and you are not going to hear me say that often), with the Belicoso being the best of the bunch, in my humble opinion….

Final Score: 90

Dominican Republic E. León Jimenes Tabacalera Guillermo León Guillermo León Family Reserve Guillermo León Robusto IPCPR 2010 La Aurora Robusto
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Brooks Whittington

I have worn many hats in my life up to this point: I started out as a photojournalist for the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, then transitioned to photographing weddings—both internationally and in the U.S.—for more than a decade. After realizing that there was a need for a cigar website containing better photographs and more in-depth information about each release, I founded my first cigar blog, SmokingStogie, in 2008. 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, and it was one of the predecessors to halfwheel, which I co-founded.

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