Room101 Hit & Run Redux Gordo

Seven years ago, Matt Booth announced he—and the Room101 brand that he founded—were retiring from the cigar business after he opted not to renew his latest contract with Oettinger Davidoff AG/Davidoff of Geneva USA, the company that produced and distributed Room101’s cigars at the time. However, just six months later, Booth returned to the industry, announcing that he was collaborating on two projects with Robert Caldwell of Caldwell Cigar Co.

One of those projects was Hit & Run, a five-vitola line made in the Dominican Republic at Tabacalera William Ventura. Those cigars started shipping in August 2017 and were made with an Ecuadorian habano wrapper covering an Indonesian binder and Dominican tobacco in the filler.

In 2018, Booth and Caldwell teamed up again to release the sequel to Hit & Run, the aptly named Hit & Run Part Deux (Rip & Dip). While those cigars were once again rolled at Tabacalera William Ventura, the blend of the four-vitola line was different than the original release: a habano wrapper from an undisclosed Central American country covering a mixture of American, Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers.

Earlier this year, Booth announced a third incarnation of the brand named Room101 Hit & Run Redux. Blend-wise, the cigars are made with a Mexican San Andrés wrapper covering an Ecuadorian Sumatra binder and filler tobaccos grown in Nicaragua—including corojo 98 and an undisclosed varietal—and Pennsylvania. Like the original cigar, the newest version of the brand is being produced by the Ventura family in the Dominican Republic, though not at Tabacalera William Ventura as that factory was destroyed during a September 2022 fire and has not yet reopened.

“I’m thrilled to bring another Room101 sub-brand back to life with this expression of Hit & Run,” said Booth in a press release. “The brand was born of a collaborative seed between myself and Robert Caldwell. It’s about our creative process as much as it is about two like-minded psychopaths who’ve stuck together over the years. This cigar is the physical and combustible manifestation of an intergalactic connection which proves that an authentic friend and a good cigar can help more than you may imagine.”

The Room101 Hit & Run Redux launched in four different sizes that started shipping to retailers in March 2024:

• Room101 Hit & Run Redux Robusto (5 x 50) — $12.99 (Box of 20, $259.80)
• Room101 Hit & Run Redux Toro (6 x 50) — $13.29 (Box of 20, $265.80)
• Room101 Hit & Run Redux Gordo (6 x 60) — $14.39 (Box of 20, $287.80)
• Room101 Hit & Run Redux Perfecto (5 1/8 x 60) — $16.99 (Box of 10, $169.90)

• Cigar Reviewed: Room101 Hit & Run Redux Gordo
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Tabacalera William Ventura
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Ecuador (Sumatra)
• Filler: Nicaragua & U.S.A.
• Length: 6 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 60
• Vitola: Gordo
• MSRP: $14.39 (Box of 20, $287.80)
• Release Date: March 2024
• Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

The massive Room101 Hit & Run Redux Gordos are covered in pale, dark espresso brown wrappers that are dry though relatively smooth to the touch. All three cigars feature some significant mottling as well, though there are very few overt veins present that I can see. My first cigar has a small soft spot under the secondary band. Aromas from the wrappers are all over the place: my first cigar features an abundance of sweet wood and earth, the second cigar has more coffee beans and leather and the third cigar is dominated by notes of hay and barnyard. However, the scents emanating from the feet of all three cigars are extremely consistent and include sweet nuttiness, black pepper, gritty earth, barnyard, coffee beans and dry straw. After punch cuts, the cold draws are also quite similar, with creamy cedar, hay, dark chocolate, plain white rice and almonds.

Bitter espresso and black pepper start the Room101 Hit & Run Redux Gordos. While the black pepper sticks around, after about five puffs, the espresso flavor moves to the background, replaced by main notes of anise and earth. Secondary flavors include dark chocolate, cornbread, leather tack, almonds and dried tea leaves, while there is plenty of both black pepper and caramel sauce sweetness on the retrohale. The flavor ends the first third at medium-full, but both the body and strength lag behind at a point just under the medium mark. In terms of construction, one cigar needs a quick burn correction to stay on track, but the other two cigars are fine in that regard, and all three cigars feature excellent draws and massive smoke production.

A combination of cedar and creamy almonds takes over the top spot in the profiles of the cigars during the second third, followed by flavors of hay, cocoa nibs, sourdough bread, coffee beans and generic nuttiness. A noticeable mineral saltiness also shows up on the finish for two of my three cigars—the second and third ones—which really bumps up my enjoyment of the profile, especially when it is combined with the black pepper and caramel sauce sweetness that is still very much present on the retrohale. There is an increase in both the body and strength—which hit a solid medium and a point just over medium by the end of the second third—while the flavor bumps up to full. Construction-wise, two cigars need a couple of minor touch-ups with my lighter to stave off larger issues, but once again, there are no problems at all with the smoke production and draws for all three cigars.

While the creamy almond flavor remains one of the top notes during the final third of the Room101, the charred meatiness from the second third is replaced by a less exciting gritty earth note. Secondary flavors of barnyard, toasted bread, bitter espresso, leather, oak and some light chalkiness show up a various points. There is a bit more black pepper on the retrohale and a noticeable decrease in the amount of caramel sauce sweetness, resulting in a less engaging exuberance until the end of the cigar. Flavor decreases to medium-full, and the body remains at a point just over the medium mark, but the strength increases to land at medium-plus. Minor burn issues remain a problem for two of the three cigars—each needs two corrections—but the draws are excellent, and the large amount of smoke flowing from the feet of the cigars barely wanes until I am finished.

Final Notes

• Room101’s cigar brand is now owned by Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG), which purchased the brand in 2022. Booth serves as creative director for STG.
• The ash on these cigars is extremely flaky and falls with almost no provocation.
• There is quite a bit of dense, gray smoke emanating from the foot of this cigar pretty much all the time.
• I really love how the colors in the “leaves” of the Room101 logo has changed from release to release.
• The second third of this cigar in this vitola is easily the best: the sweetness increases enough to overtake the black pepper present on the retrohale and make a noticeably positive impact on the profile.

• These cigars are officially listed as being 6 x 60.
• General Cigar Co. advertises on halfwheel.
• The cigars smoked for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• The final smoking time for all three cigars averaged out to two hours and 24 minutes.
• If you would like to purchase any of the Room101 Hit & Run Redux cigars, site sponsors Cigars Direct and Smokingpipes have them for sale.