Just before IPCPR this year, in June, Robert Holt of Southern Draw announced a line extension to the Rose of Sharon: Rose of Sharon Desert Rose. This is a slightly stronger version of the Rose of Sharon and was shown off at IPCPR 2019. The original Rose of Sharon lines have scored a 92 for the lancero and a 90 for the toro on Blind Man’s Puff as well as making our Top 25 Cigars in 2017.
This cigar was reviewed blind (no bands) by a panel of at least 4 reviewers. They did not know what they were smoking beforehand. The scores are an average of all the reviewers' scores with outliers removed. All of our cigars reviewed are shipped to the panelists with Boveda packs to ensure optimal smoking experience.
The blend starts with a Ecuadorian cloud-grown Claro wrapper, Habano binder from Condega, Nicaragua, and a new filler combination that uses Corojo 99 and Piloto Cubano ligero from Honduras and the Dominican Republic. As with all other Southern Draw lines, Rose of Sharon Desert Rose is rolled at A.J. Fernandez Cigar Co. It comes in one size: a box-pressed Belicoso Fino measuring 5.5 x 52. Only 75,000 cigars were made in 2019 with 150,000 to be made each year after that. MSRP is set at $11.99 per cigar.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Belicoso Length: 5 1/2″ Ring Gauge: 52 Country of Origin: Nicaragua Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Binder: Nicaraguan Habano Filler: Dominican Republic, Honduras Factory: Tabacalera Fernandez Blender: Robert Holt Number of reviewers: 4 – John A.(Bostoneo) Mickey T.(irratebass) Ryan H.(Ryan H.) Doug S.(Unpossible_1) Price: $11.99 Age: 5 Months Release Date: July 2019 Contributed by: Southern Draw Cigars
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 91
“Lovely honey hue on the wrapper, soft box press torpedo. Firm, but not without a bit of give to it so it doesn’t feel overly stiff.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
Aroma: 90
“On the nose, scents of light barnyard, leather, marzipan and caramel tantalize the senses. The cold draw reveals flavorful notes of must, berries and leather. ” –John A. (Bostoneo)
First Third
Blind Cigar Review: Southern Draw | Rose of Sharon Desert Rose
Flavor: 91 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
“Upon lighting up, an peppery earthy cream spews out with intensity. A fourth of an inch in, light vanilla, wafer cream filled cookie notes, and a charred barrel flavor transition out the former light up flavors to last the rest of this blissful third.” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“First few puffs while lighting it yield more honey and butterscotch, with a light grassiness. These are flavors I’ve come to associate with most cigars with lighter wrappers. What separates good ones from not so good ones is whether or not these flavors are muted. Let’s see how this cigar holds up. So far, very light in body and strength, but not quite what I’d call mild. Just a touch over. About an inch in now and the melody of butterscotch and grass continues. Works well together, one never overpowering the other. Let’s see what some retro yields. Honey and pepper, fantastic! My mouth is coated with a light touch of pepper, followed by some sweetness that cascades into my nostrils. How delightful!” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
Second Third
Blind Cigar Review: Southern Draw | Rose of Sharon Desert Rose
Flavor: 90 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Medium
“Cigar is pretty smooth light medium. Cream is still the heavy hitter cedar begins to be undetectable. Cigar drops in strength to light medium. Grass joins the cream and cedar departs.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“The cigar really takes off here. There seems to be more baking spices that move up front, however as I continue on the spices take a backseat, and the cream returns but mixed with a coffee flavors that is quite nice, so quite a bit of transitioning going on here. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Final Third
Flavor: 88 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Medium
Blind Cigar Review: Southern Draw | Rose of Sharon Desert Rose
“Sweet creamy cedar profile continues at the start of the last third. A chocolate malted shake flavor jumps into the fray later on to finish off this tasty cigar.” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“Last third is more of the grass and hay and less sweetness. Not overly bitter, but there isn’t much in the way of the sweetness I had earlier. I go for some retro….hey, there’s the sweetness! I found it again, in the retro of all places. This cigar has barely reached the medium mark, but it has been quite enjoyable regardless. You don’t always need power. Subtlety can be just as rewarding. Final inch and I get some burnt sugar and pepper. Could be partly due to the cigar getting hotter to smoke in general. Even the retro offers a bit more oomph and pepper. This cigar wants to end on a high note!” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 89
“I used the “Dickman” cut on this cigar, and didn’t get any issues with this torpedo. Quite open and plenty of smoke. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Burn: 96
“Mostly even burn that required little to no touch-ups.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
Construction: 96
“Another close to perfect rating. The construction was really nice. Big chunks of ash, open draw, plenty of smoke and it never smoked hot on me.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Overall Strength: Medium Overall Body/Complexity: Medium Experience Overall: 91
“This was a phenomenal cigar. If some the bitterness didn’t pop its head in every so often this would of been one of the best sticks I’ve smoked this year. Regardless, this is a must try stick and encourage everyone to try at least one, I know I’ll get some more myself.” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“This was a good cigar. It was pretty mild in strength and would pair well with your morning coffee. I could see myself smoking more of those when I want just a smoke, and nothing to concentrate on. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
“It was an enjoyable cigar the profile wasn’t the most enjoyable and the burn was under-performing but it was a good experience.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“Never really reached anything more than medium and wasn’t overly complex. That being said, it was a delicious after dinner cigar much like a dessert. I wouldn’t mind having a few of these on hand for those times where I want to enjoy a cigar and not feel like I’m going to miss out on an otherworldly experience of complexity if I’m reading a book or watching some football. ” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.
Blind Cigar Review: Southern Draw | Rose of Sharon Desert Rose
Overall Score – 91 – Very Good
Blind Cigar Review: Southern Draw | Rose of Sharon Desert Rose
Summary
"This was a phenomenal cigar. If some the bitterness didn't pop its head in every so often this would of been one of the best sticks I've smoked this year. Regardless, this is a must try stick and encourage everyone to try at least one, I know I'll get some more myself." -John A. (Bostoneo)
