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| Re+United |
The Re+United is a joint collaboration between E.P. Carrillo’s Ernesto Perez-Carrillo and General Cigar Company’s Michael Giannini. As the name indicates, this project marked a reunion for these two industry veterans. Following General Cigar Company’s acquisition of Perez Carrillo’s La Gloria Cubana company, both Perez-Carrillo and Giannini worked together at General. When Perez-Carrillo left General to form E.P. Carrillo, the two remained friends. After running into each other in a hotel, the two decided to work on a joint project together – and thus the Re+United was born. This cigar has recently hit the shelves and today, I take a closer look to see what the end result turned out to be. Any time two major players in the cigar industry collaborate on a project, it will stir interest – and in the Re+United certainly is a cigar worth looking at.
The Re+United project is a true joint collaboration. It features tobaccos from both the General Cigar Company and E.P. Carrillo. The cigar is being rolled at Ernesto Perez-Carrillo Jr.’s Tabacalera La Alianza S.A. and also distributed by his E.P. Carrillo company.
Without further ado, let’s break down the Re+United and see what this cigar brings to the table.
Blend Profile
As mentioned the tobaccos are split between the two companies. The wrapper comes from General Cigar Company, the binder from EPC, and the fillers from General and EPC. The wrapper leaf was grown by Oliva Tobacco Company and features an eighth priming Ecuadorian Havana leaf that is hard to get.
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Havana (General, grown by Oliva)
Binder: Connecticut Broadleaf (EPC)
Filler: Dominican Piloto Cubano (General), Nicaraguan Jalapa (EPC)
Vitolas Available
The Re+United is being made in one size – a 6 1/2 x 54 toro. Production is being limited to 1,500 boxes of ten.
Appearance
The Ecuadorian Havana wrapper has a nice coffee bean color with a slight rosado. Upon closer examination, some darker marbling can be seen. There is a slight amount of oil on the wrapper. The wrapper itself has bumpy surface. There are some visible veins and some visible wrapper seams. The cigar is finished with a triple cap.
The front of the band is gold with gold embossed font. It features the initials of Ernesto Perez-Carillo and Michael (Patrick) Giannini arranged in a cross pattern surrounded by a cross shaped outline. The initials “EPC” go horizontal while the initials “MPG” go vertical – with each of the initials intersecting with a “P”. The crossed initials are surrounded by a gold ring. To the left of the gold is a metallic gray background. The initials “MPG” are in thin black font. In landscape mode, parallel to the left side of the gold ring is the text “RE UNITED” in thin black font. To the right is a mahogany wood look with the initials “EPC” in gold font. Also in landscape mode, parallel to the right side of the ring is the text “RE UNITED” – also in thin black font.
Preparation for the Cigar Experience
Prior to lighting up the Re+United, I went with my usual choice of a straight cut to remove the cap. It was then immediately on to the pre-light draw stage. The dry draw notes provided an nice fusion of flavor. The best way to describe it was a sweet, creamy cedar-spice. Overall I considered the pre-light draw to the Re+United to be excellent. At this point I was ready to light up the Re+United and see what this cigar had in store.
Flavor Profile
The start to the Re+United provided a mix of pepper and cedar-spice spice. The spice lingered around for a few minutes, but then a sweet berry cream flavor emerged. The spices soon diminished into the background, but still at times provided a pepper “bite” (my way to describe a sharper flavor). The retro-hale provided not only a pepper spice, but a touch of cedar sweetness as well.
In the second third, the sweetness changed into more of a natural tobacco flavor. The finish provided some notes of cream. I also detected some of that pepper bite in the background.
By the last third, the cigar changed up again. I found the pepper increase and the notes in the forefront beam more earth-like. The sweetness that was more prevalent in the first half was now a distant secondary note. The resulting nub was soft to the touch and slightly warm in temperature.
Burn and Draw
The burn line of the Re+United did require a few touch-ups along the way. I’d probably categorize this as slightly more than I prefer. The resulting ash was thick and was slight loose. The ash started out silvery early on before becoming more of a salt and pepper color. The burn rate was ideal. In each of the Re+United cigars I smoked, I did find the second half of the cigar burned slightly warm.
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| Burn of the Re+United |
The draw was open. It still was a good draw. The Re+United produced an ample amount of smoke as it was smoked.
Strength and Body
From a strength perspective, I found the Re+United to have what I term “just the right amount of kick”. In this case, I had it on the upper end of the medium range of the strength spectrum (just below medium to full). The flavors did have some weight on the pallet. It almost seemed like there was more body to this cigar earlier on when it was carrying the sweetness. I still assessed this cigar as being medium to full-bodied from start to finish. In terms of strength versus body, I gave a slight edge to body.
Final Thoughts
Cigar Collaboration projects are often as exciting as when musicians team up in the studio for a project. It’s always going to be something to check out. I thought the Re+United started off excellent. However, somewhere along the way it lost some of its steam. The sweetness seemed to slowly dissipate and by the last third the cigar became just more ordinary. I was also a little concerned about the warm burn in the last third and that could factor into what happened flavor wise. Still, the Re+United did provide me enjoyment – especially in the early parts. I think this cigar could benefit from some time in the humidor. It wasn’t a young cigar, but it might develop some better flavors. This is a cigar I’d give to a either a novice or experienced cigar enthusiast. As for myself, this is a cigar will check out again – and it’s definitely a “Try One” in my book.
Summary
Burn: Good
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium to Full
Finish: Good
Assessment: 2.5 – Try One
Score: 88
References
News: Re+United to be a Joint Project Between Foundry Tobacco Company and E.P. Carrillo
Price: $10.00
Source: Purchased
Stogie Geeks Podcast: n/a
Stogie Feed: n/a
