Rocky Patel Edge Habano (Nicaraguan Edge)

The Rocky Patel Edge Habano was one of six new blends launched by Rocky Patel Premium Cigars at the 2012 IPCPR Trade Show.  The Edge Habano becomes the sixth blend to join the popular Edge series, and the second Edge blend release in 2012 – joining the Edge Candela.   This cigar is also being called the “Nicaraguan Edge” as this is an all-Nicaraguan puro – marking the first time a puro has been incorporated into the Edge line.  I recently had an opportunity to sample the Nicaraguan Edge and I found this to be a very good addition to this line of cigars.

The Edge line has proven to be one of Rocky Patel Premium Cigars’ most successful lines.   This line has been successful by basically being a no-frills looking cigar that does not have a lot of marketing behind it.   Prior to the Edge Habano, there have been five other release in the Edge line:  Corojo, Maduro, Sumatra, Lite (Connecticut Shade), and Candela.

Without further adieu, let’s take a closer look at the Edge Habano and see what it brings to the table.

Blend Profile

As mentioned, the Edge Habano is a Nicaraguan puro.  While the wrapper is a Nicaraguan Habano, the binder and filler are described as tobaccos from “Esteli, Condega, and Jalapa”.

Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano Seed
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan


Vitolas Available

Currently the Edge Habano is available in two vitolas.  The cigars is sold in boxes of 100.

Toro: 6 x 52 (SRP $6.15)
Torpedo: 6 x 52 (SRP $6.40)

Appearance

For this cigar experience, I went with the torpedo vitola.  The Rocky Patel Edge Habano has a leathery looking medium-brown colored wrapper.  The wrapper itself is oily in complexion.  There are several visible wrapper seams and several visible veins giving the cigar a rugged look to it.

The band of the Edge Habano is a sea blue version of the Edge band.  Across the band is a pattern consisting of the RP logo, the scripted text “Rocky Patel”, and the text “The EDGE” – all in black font. The positioning of the band is interesting.  The Edge series traditionally has used a footer band.  The torpedo vitola follows suit here.  However, I have seen some of the Toro vitolas have the band in the traditional spot toward the cap.

Rocky Patel Edge Habano – Toro

In the original press release, the band for the toro was on the footer.

Let’s take a closer look at the Rocky Patel Edge Habano and see what this cigar brings to the table.

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

For my smoking experience of the Rocky Patel Edge Habano Torpedo, I went with a straight cut into the tip of the cigar.  I then proceeded to with the pre-light draw.  The dry draw notes of the Edge Habano provided a mix of wood, cedar spice, and cherry.  Overall it wasn’t the most exciting pre-light draw, but since we do not factor the pre-light experience into our score or assessments, there was no loss of points here.  At this point it was time to toast the foot of the Edge Torpedo and see what the cigar experience would bring to the table.

Flavor Profile

The start to the Rocky Patel Edge Habano had a mix of black pepper and cherry notes to start.  The pepper definitely had the upper hand early on.  As the smoking experience progressed through the first five percent, the cherry notes did increase, but still were in a secondary role to the pepper.  Around the ten percent mark, I also detected some caramel sweetness in the background.  By the end of the first third, some wood notes joined the caramel and cherry as secondary notes.

The flavor profile had some changes in the second third.  The pepper notes were still primary, but the cherry notes diminished.  The wood notes that were in the background became more of a classic coffee flavor.  Meanwhile the caramel notes were now a tertiary note.  

The flavor profile would hold until about the 3/4 point.  In the last 1/4, the flavor became primarily woody (again) and peppery.  The coffee and cherry notes were still in the background.   This would be the way the cigar experience would come to a close.  The end of the cigar was spicy, but not overly harsh.  The resulting nub was soft to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn and Draw

Many times I have written that I do not opt for torpedo vitolas because I feel they fall short when it comes to the construction attributes of burn and draw.  When I do sample a good torpedo, I feel it is fair   to select it as the vitola to assess.  In the case of the Edge Habano Torpedo, the burn was outstanding.  It remained straight from start to finish requiring minimal touch-ups.  The resulting ash was firm with a salt and pepper color.  The burn rate and burn temperature were ideal.

Burn of the Rocky Patel Edge Torpedo – Note: I moved the footer band from the footer

As for the draw, it was outstanding – especially for a torpedo.  In fact, I really didn’t think much about the fact that I was smoking a torpedo.  It provided a very enjoyable smoking experience.

Strength and Body

From a strength perspective, the Rocky Patel Edge Habano Torpredo had a little bit of a kick to it.  I assessed the cigar to have just enough pop to be to be medium to full in strength.  As for the body, the Edge Habano has some nice depth to it.  I assessed the cigar to have enough body to be full-bodied.  When looking at the attributes of strength and body, I give the body a slight “edge” over the strength.

A note on the Edge Habano Toro, I found this cigar to be more dialed back in terms of strength and body.  In fact, I found the toro to be medium strength and medium to full in body.

Final Thoughts