Gran Habano Corojo No.5 Gran Reserva 2012 Gran Robusto

Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No.5 2012 Gran Robusto

In 2018, Gran Habano cigars introduced its fifth cigar in its Gran Reserva line known as the Gran Habano Corojo No. 5 Gran Reserva Gran Robusto 2012. The cigar is an off-shoot to the popular regular production Gran Habano Corojo No. 5. The Gran Habano Gran Reserva line incorporates well-aged vintage tobaccos. The company says the Gran Reserva line is made using the top 10% best leaf from the yearly crop and aged an extra seven to eight years after being rolled. Typically the actual Gran Habano Gran Reserva cigars go through a period of four to six years aging, however the company says the 2012 installment has been aged an additional three years longer than the previous Gran Reserva releases. Today we take a closer look a the Gran Habano Corojo No. 5 Gran Reserva in the Gran Reserva line.

As mentioned, there have been five Gran Habano Gran Reserva releases. The first two were extensions of the Gran Habano No. 3 (Habano) lines while the subsequent three were based on the Gran Habano Corojo No. 5 line. For completeness these cigars are listed below:

Gran Habano Gran Reserva No. 3 2008
Gran Habano Gran Reserva No. 3 2009
Gran Habano Gran Reserva No. 5 2010
Gran Habano Gran Reserva No. 5 2011
Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012

Without further ado, let’s break down the Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto and see what this cigar brings to the table.

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

The Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 is a Nicaraguan-forward blend featuring Nicaraguan tobaccos in the wrapper, binder, and filler. The filler also includes tobacco from Costa Rica. The cigar was developed by the father and son team of Guillermo and George Rico. The cigar was produced in Honduras at Gran Habano’s GR Tabacalera Unidas factory in Honduras.

Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan and Costa Rican
Country of Origin: Honduras
Factory: GR Tabacaleras Unidas S.A.

Vitolas Available

The Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 is available in five sizes. Each is presented in 20-count boxes.

Corona Gorda: 5 5/8 x 46
Gran Robusto: 6 x 54
Imperial: 6 x 60
Czar: 6 x 66
Grandioso: 7 x 70

Appearance

The Nicaraguan wrapper of the Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto had a coffee bean color. There was some oil and mottling on the surface of the wrapper. While there were some visible veins and visible wrapper seams, this cigar had a relatively smooth wrapper.

Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No.5 2012 Gran Robusto – Cedar Sleeve Removed

The Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No.5 2012 has a red-colored band. On the band is the text “GRAN RESERVA NO. 5 GRAN HABANO 2012” in white font. There is a white pinstripe on the middle of the band on both the left and right side that extends away from the text. Just below the left side is the text “Hand Made” in a black font. To the right is the text “By George Rico” – also in a black font. There are two gold pinstripes on both the top and bottom portions of the band. The pinstripes closest to the top and bottom of the band contain a rivet-like pattern.

The cigar is also covered with a cedar sleeve that goes from the footer up to the band. In landscape mode are three “GRAN RESERVA 2012” black-colored stamp impressions. The footer of the sleeve has a thin red ribbon around it with the text “2012” in gold font on it.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw

After removing the cedar sleeve from the Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto, a straight cut was used to remove the cap. After removing the cap, it was on to the pre-light draw experience. The dry draw delivered a mix of coffee and cedar notes. While it was a simple flavor profile, this cigar still had an excellent pre-light experience. At this point, it was time to light up the Gran Reserva No.5 2012 Gran Robusto and see what the smoking phase would have in store.

Tasting Notes

The Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto started out with notes of coffee, cedar, lemon, and earth. Early on the coffee and lemon notes became primary with the earth and cedar settling in the background. As the cigar moved through the first third, the lemon diminished into a secondary note and the coffee remained grounded as the primary note. There was a slight bitter component to the coffee from time to time. Toward the latter part of the first third some black pepper also appeared on the tongue. The retro-hale also delivered an additional layer of lemon and black pepper.

During the second third, the coffee notes remained in the forefront, but there was a gradual increase in both the pepper and cedar notes. There was definitely a more intense increase of the cedar notes. Meanwhile, the lemon and earth notes remained in the background delivering secondary flavors.

The final third of the Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto saw a lot more in the way of spice. The cedar notes were now in control as the primary note. There were secondary notes of pepper and to a lesser extent coffee, lemon, and earth.

Burn

The Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto maintained a relatively straight burn path. This cigar did need some touch-ups along the way to remain on the track. The burn line wasn’t the most even at times, but it was manageable throughout the smoking experience.

Burn of the Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No.5 2012 Gran Robusto

Draw

The draw to the Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto performed exceptionally well. It had a touch of resistance to it – which is something that I like. In the end, this was still a low maintenance experience to derive flavor from.

Strength and Body

The Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto started out as a medium strength, medium-bodied cigar. There was an increase in the intensity level of both attributes and by the final third, the intensity level moved into medium to full territory where it remained for the duration of the smoking experience.

Both the strength and the body balanced each other nicely with neither attribute overshadowing the other.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

One minor comment that doesn’t affect the outcome of the review: “Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto” – way too many “Grans” in there. There had to be a simpler way to name this.

I’ve said it many times, but when it comes to delivering a very good cigar under $10.00, it is hard to compete with Gran Habano. This company continuously delivers excellent cigars with excellent value and the Gran Habano Gran Reserva Corojo No. 5 2012 Gran Robusto certainly falls into that category. It’s one of those cigars that is going to have a better first half than second half, but in the end still gets positive marks. This is a cigar I would recommend to a seasoned enthusiast, but wouldn’t discourage the novice from trying either. As for myself, it’s one I would smoke again – and recommend buying one to smoke as well.

Summary

Key Flavors: Coffee, Cedar, Lemon-Citrus, Black Pepper, Earth
Burn: Very Good
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium (1st 2/3), Medium to Full (Final Third)
Body: Medium (1st 2/3), Medium to Full (Final Third)
Finish: Very Good