JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Toro – Blind Cigar Review

Cigar Info

JRE Tobacco released two new Aladino Vintage Selection sizes this year. They officially debuted at the PCA trade show this July, but saw soft launch to a small number of retailers in May. The two new sizes are the Elegante (Lancero 7 x 38) and Toro (6 x 50).

The Aladino Vintage Selection originally came out in 2020 in only one size, a 4 1/2 x 48 Rothschild. The Aladino Vintage uses JRE‘s authentic corojo tobacco, a trademark of Aladino cigars. The blend uses tobacco all grown at the company’s Finca Corojo farms outside Danlí, Honduras including a habano wrapper, a corojo binder and corojo filler. We reviewed the original Rothschild here.

With the new Toro size, the company says you can expect the same experience as the original rothschild, just in a larger size. This is opposed to the lancero, which they say delivers a little more strength and body and allows the wrapper to shine. Both the new toro and lancero’s sell for $8.00. One other difference between the original release and these new sizes is that the original Rothschild had four to five years of age after being rolled before being sold, these new sizes do not have the same age.

Vital Stats:

Vitola: Toro
Length: 6″
Ring Gauge: 50
Country of Origin: Honduras
Wrapper: Honduras Habano
Binder: Honduras Corojo
Filler: Honduras Corojo
Factory: Las Lomas
Blender: Julio Eiroa
Number of reviewers: 4 – Sean F. (fullermaine) Kevin A. (Kevin A.) Matt Cade (CadeTNCC) Allison T. (The Yoga Ash)
Price: $8.80
Age: 2 Months
Release Date: July 2021
Contributed by: JRE Cigars

Initial Impressions – JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Toro

Appearance: 86

“A beautiful coffee-colored cigar that’s veiny with a minor blemish.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)

Aroma: 88

“Prelight took a bit to really get a sense of the aroma from the foot as I had to really take some deep inhales to pull new soil, black tea with old wood in the background.” –Allison T. (The Yoga Ash)

First Third

Flavor: 93
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“The first few puffs have strong notes of espresso, leather, and pepper, with black pepper being the predominant note on the retrohale, quickly firing up the sinuses! The intensity mellows almost a quickly as it began, and the pepper assault on the sinuses subdues. Barnyard and leather come to the forefront, with baker’s chocolate sitting on the finish. The retrohale is now primarily leather and baker’s chocolate which takes on more of a bitter profile. The lemon zest that was present in the retrohale returns just shy of the one-inch mark along with a sweetness that can almost be described as rock candy. The sweetness greatly improves the profile of the cigar and makes the initial part of this cigar pretty well balanced. Burn is wavy but good, and draw almost where it should be, if not a little bit on the loose side. Strength is medium, as well as body and complexity.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)

“After clipping the cap, airflow seems good and I pick up an interesting floral note on the cold draw. Upon setting the cigar on fire, there’s a medium white pepper spice via the retrohale and a bold earthiness on the draw. At around the one inch that floral note shows up through the nose and it’s accompanied by a slight mineral component, when paired with the pepper it all makes for a highly enjoyable retrohale.” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)

Second Third

Flavor: 91
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“That bold earth is still by far the dominating presence through the draw, although a very slight hint of coffee has now slid in on the backend. The retrohale remains the superstar of the smoking experience at the halfway mark with that trio of white pepper, mineral, and floral notes all playing extremely nicely together. Construction has been very good up to this point, the burn line did begin to develop a bit unevenly but a quick touch up with a single flame lighter seemed to easily rectify the situation and get things back on track…” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)

“Getting into the middle part of the cigar, the pepper kicks up a notch, as does the baker’s chocolate. The leather fades a little bit to the background, while the lime zest is still there and the last note to leave my tongue. The retrohale is silky smooth, and still leather and baker’s chocolate. The overall sweetness has faded slightly, letting the bitter notes take the lead on the overall profile. The burn remains good and the draw has not loosened up any farther. Smoke output is light and the ash is loosely packed but hangs on well. Strength body and complexity are all still medium at this point.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)

Final Third

Flavor: 93
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“The earthy draw begins to grow a bit harsh in the final third with the coffee note that was never very pronounced to begin with completely exiting the party. Fortunately, the retrohale flavors remain so smooth and satisfying that they more than makeup for it. In fact, a buttercream icing note has joined in with the spice, mineral, and floral flavors to ensure this cigar’s place as one of the most interesting and enjoyable retrohales I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing in quite some time. Construction was great in the final act, once the wavy burn line was corrected earlier it burned evenly till the very end.” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)

“Toward the end, a lot of different notes come through. Notes of black pepper, hickory, chocolate, and celery.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)

Overall Impressions – JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Toro

Draw: 89

“The cigar featured a great draw from start to finish.” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)

Burn: 88

“Burned a little wavy but solidly all the way to the end never requiring a relight.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)

Construction: 88

“Overall construction was very good throughout the smoking experience with a very smooth draw and minimal burn issues.” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)

Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Experience Overall: 92

“Great smoke from beginning to end. Nice notes of wood, spice, sugar, chocolate, and celery. A cigar I’d add to my humidor and smoke again.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)

“I have always said how a cigar look does not translate to how it performs. I have smoked some elegant-looking cigars that just didn’t deliver. This one was definitely not a beauty queen, but it was a very good cigar. It kind of started to head in the direction of bitter in the middle, but recovered admirably in the final third, making for a cigar that transitioned and developed very well from start to finish. It was also a relatively slow burner. With the burn and draw on point and the strength never getting overwhelming, this is a cigar I would have zero issues handing to a new smoker, nor would I hesitate to hand one to a seasoned aficionado. Looking forward to finding out what this one is!” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)

“If you are a cigar smoker who doesn’t blow smoke regularly through your nostrils, I imagine your opinion of this cigar will be very different from mine. While the earth dominant draw is honestly rather boring, the retrohale is outstanding in that it delivers four distinct elements that all work very well together and raise the overall smoking experience to another level. I will definitely be interested to learn what this cigar is and give it another go in the near future.” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)

“Boring book to bitter lover gave way to me tossing 1178 in the ashtray like I was slapped in the face from the lack complexity in the first third to nauseating taste on the last third.” –Allison T. (The Yoga Ash)

Smoking Time (in minutes): 79

To view the complete scores and notes, click here.

JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Toro – Blind Cigar Review