Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña

In 2016, Habanos SA released a regional release to Great Britain under its Juan Lopez line known as the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edicion Regional Gran Bretaña. Looking at the massive portfolio for Habanos SA, the Juan Lopez brand is one of the smaller ones. However over the years it has sustained a popular following by cigar enthusiasts. Habanos SA is known for doing many exclusive regional releases and despite the fact that Juan Lopez is one of the smaller brands, it has been no stranger to regional releases in areas such as France, the Caribbean, Switzerland, Andorra, Asia Pacific, Benelux, Portugal, Austria, Germany, and Canada. There was even a previous regional release in 2010 to the United Kingdom with the Selección SupremoEdición Regional Reino Unido. Today we take a closer look at the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña.

The Juan Lopez brand has origins that go back to 19th century Cuba. The brand was created in 1876 by Juan Lopez Serra (known as Juan Lopez Diaz). The brand was eventually passed to his heirs and then sold to Sociedad Cosme Del Peso y Cía in 1918. When the Cuban Revolution occurred and Cuba’s cigar business was nationalized, the brand was taken over by the Cuban government. It would eventually become a part of the Habanos SA portfolio.

Without further ado, let’s break down the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña and see what this cigar brings to the table.

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

Wrapper: Cuban
Binder: Cuban
Filler: Cuban
Country of Origin: Cuba
Factory: n/a

Vitolas Offered

Habanos SA Edición Regional releases, for the most part, offer special and exclusive sizes for a brand to a particular region. The Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña is no exception. It is offered in one size – 150mm x 54 – which translates roughly to 5 9/10 x 54. The vitola is the Cuban Geniales size.

At a 54 ring gauge, it is one of the larger sizes offered under the Juan Lopez brand. Edición Regional releases for Andorra and France have seen 55 ring gauges while Switzerland received a 54 (measuring 164mm in length).

Appearance

The wrapper to the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña has a medium brown color with a rosado tint to it. Upon closer examination, there is some mottling that can be seen on the surface. There wasn’t much in the way of oil on the wrapper. The surface of the wrapper had a bumpy surface. There were some thin visible veins and the wrapper seams were that were visible were minimal.

There are two bands to the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña. The primary band pays homage to the Juan Lopez Selección Suprema Edición Regional Reino Unido in that it is a very similar band. The band has a red background with gold trim, gold adornments, and text in white font. In the center of the band is a gold crown. Above the crown is the text “JUAN LOPEZ” and below the crown is the text “HABANA”. Across the center of the band is the text “SUPERBA SELECCION”. (the one difference from the Selection Supremo Reino Unido band) The left and right sides of the band have the text “CUBA” and “HABANA” respectively.

The secondary band is similar to ones found on other Edición Regional cigars. It is red with white and silver trim with the text “EXCLUSIVO GRAN BRETAÑA” in white font.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw

A straight cut was used to remove the cap of the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña. Once the cap was removed, the dry draw delivered a mix of wood, natural tobacco and subtle notes of chocolate and citrus. Overall, this was an excellent pre-light draw. At this point, it was time to light up the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña and move on to the smoking phase.

Tasting Notes

The start to the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña produced notes of chocolate, wood, grass, citrus, and a mix of red and green pepper. The chocolate and wood notes moved into the forefront early on, with the chocolate notes taking over as the primary flavor later. Meanwhile, there was a layer of cedar that came from the retro-hale.

During the second third, the chocolate notes remained in control. As the Juan Lopez Selección Superba moved through the second third, there was an increase in the sweetness stemming from the citrus. As the cigar moved past the midway point, there was an increase in both the pepper and grass notes. The grass notes increased in intensity at a more rapid rate.

By the last third, the grass notes joined the chocolate in the forefront as primary notes. While there was more grass in the profile, the chocolate/citrus sweetness and pepper notes rounded out the flavor profile nicely. Some of the woody notes still remained as well. As the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición cigar experience came to a close, the resulting nub was soft to the touch and warm in temperature.

Burn

For the most part, the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña maintained a straight burn path. There was some jaggedness and curviness on the burn line, which required slightly more touch-ups above what I would consider the norm. The resulting ash wasn’t overly firm, but wasn’t loose or flakey either. This ash had a mostly dark gray color. The burn rate was ideal. While for most of the cigar experience the burn temperature was ideal, toward the last third, I found it skewed toward the warmer side.

Burn of the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña

Draw

The draw to the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edicion Regional Gran Bretaña was on the open side, but I’d stop short of calling it a loose draw. It still was slightly more open than I personally prefer. At the same time, this was a cigar that was quite easy to derive flavor from.

Strength and Body

The Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña is a cigar that started out with mild to medium strength and medium body. The strength increased and by the second third, it moved into medium territory where it remained for the duration of the smoking experience.

Meanwhile, the flavors delivered were medium-bodied from start to finish. There wasn’t much in the way of variance of the intensity levels. When it came to strength versus body, the body had a slight edge throughout the cigar experience.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

I have personally found Juan Lopez to be one of the more enjoyable brands from Habanos SA. When it comes to the Juan Lopez Selección Superba Edición Regional Gran Bretaña, I found this to be a good cigar, but not one that is great. Each time I smoke it, I seem to get something different from it. This s a cigar that also has seemed to improve with age. Still closing in on the $40.00 USD price point, it’s an expensive cigar and it’s a little difficult to recommend more than encouraging you to see if you can try this cigar first. In the end that is going to be quite a tall order because this is only available in Great Britain and quite limited.

Summary

Key Flavors: Natural Tobacco, Baker’s Spice, Fruit, Black Pepper, Bread, Wood
Burn: Very Good
Draw: Good
Complexity: Medium Plus
Strength: Mild to Medium (1st Third), Medium (Remainder)
Body: Medium
Finish: Very Good