HdM Petit Robusto

[Islandboy]

Had the first one out of my ENE 16 box yesterday (and first ever) and I’m pretty blown away, especially given the young age. The aroma and each puff off of it was like sticking my nose in a bag of brown sugar and taking a big whiff. It was a beautiful thing.

I have to admit that the latest review in CA was what prompted me to buy it: "A near-pristine short robusto with a sweet, toasty maple and brown sugar quality. Hints of wood and nutmeg usher in the slightly sharp finish."

I found this description to be astonishingly spot-on.

But looking at all of the previous CA reviews for this stick, going all the way back to 2006, there’s absolutely no mention of this brown sugar I experienced. In fact, very little mention of any sweetness. All previous descriptions seem to indicate this cigar went through a profound change in taste in 2016, with everything before that having more of a peppery, leathery, even meaty taste - none of which match what I had last night. Anyone notice such a change over the years? It just seems like a pretty drastic transformation judging by the previous tasting notes.

[Professor Twain]

Great cigar. I think of it more as gingerbread. I don't think the flavors have changed, you can't really rely on these reviews.

This is one of my favorite cigars to introduce people to cigars and to the special joys of Habanos.

[El Presidente]

Just now, Professor Twain said:

Great cigar. I think of it more as gingerbread. I don't think the flavors have changed, you can't really rely on these reviews.

This is one of my favorite cigars to introduce people to cigars and to the special joys of Habanos.

Spot on.  It is probably just me but I have found the flavours to be more "intense/vibrant" in the past 18 months. 

[mwaller]

I have a 15-pack from 2015(?) and they have been incredibly harsh and unpleasant.  To make matters worse, the draw is very loose.  They look gorgeous, but I'm disappointed every time I try one.  I'm guessing mine are from a bad batch...

[MPfit]

I've got 3 left from a box from 2010. Every year they've gotten better. Will be finishing the rest this year as they've gotten amazing: gingerbread and some honey style sweetness with clove / cinnamon spices through the nose. Lovely cigar - more intense flavors sounds like I'll need another box as they were fairly mild to just at the medium for me.

[HoyoFan]

Great to hear, I've been looking to pick up a box. How do they compare in flavor to the Epi 2s?

[jcorona]

5 hours ago, PadronFan said:

Great to hear, I've been looking to pick up a box. How do they compare in flavor to the Epi 2s?

I've been wondering the same thing. Is it just a sawn off version of the epi 2 or are the blends different? 

[Islandboy]

They are different. I do have a box of both, but unfortunately I haven’t smoked enough of either to really be able to elaborate on flavors much. I’ve only smoked 2 of the Epi 2’s, and I do recall thoroughly enjoying them. My last one was a few months ago so I might get this all wrong. More complex flavors than the PR, not as heavy on the gingerbread/brown sugar, more grassy/honeyed similar to the classic Cohiba taste, but very smooth. On the other hand, the PR was a little brown sugar flavor bomb, pretty straight-forward with no surprises. Hope someone with more experience can chime in.

[agentdaffy007]

I would say the box of HdM PR 2006 that i finished last year was more cinnamon, nutmeg, sweet woody taste and bitter coffee grind.

 

I am now working on a box of 2005. They are getting better this year but nothing beats that box from 2006!

[MPfit]

Epi No2 in my opinion is a better cigar. Not only because I prefer the full robusto vitola- but it has some of the unique flavors of the petite and then some. It has that cinnamon + honey I've seen in the PR and it has some bread flavors that make it stand out. Both are good; the Epi2 is excellent. I've only smoked PRs with 3+ years on them, and enjoyed them all. But I've had Epi2's I loved ROTT. To put it in perspective; I purchased my boxes of PR's hoping for a cheap mans Epi2. It's not- it is a good cigar in its own right, but the Epi2 is superior.

For What it's Worth: I am biased as the Epi2 is my favorite smoke. 

[Cigarjerk]

I have two boxes from 2011. They are enjoyable right now, but they are still getting better from year to year. The PR really needs some time. 

I also prefer the E2, but the PR is a good quick smoke.

[M82]

Glad I came across this thread. As a total newbie to CC as well as cigars in general, I am torn between which one of the two would be better. I plan to order the 20 stick "New to Cubans" sampler as well as a 25 box of PR or Epi2. Can't decide and this thread actually made my choice tougher   I gather both are good - Which would be better for me..?

[Islandboy]

They both taste very good to me, and neither of them is super strong, so the big difference becomes one is a 30-40 min smoke, and the other nearly twice that.   

[jcorona]

8 hours ago, JFox said:

Glad I came across this thread. As a total newbie to CC as well as cigars in general, I am torn between which one of the two would be better. I plan to order the 20 stick "New to Cubans" sampler as well as a 25 box of PR or Epi2. Can't decide and this thread actually made my choice tougher   I gather both are good - Which would be better for me..?

Get both. I recently bought a 15 ct box of the petit robusto, now I'm eyeing a 25 cab of epi 2. I like the hdm profile, so getting both makes sense to me.

[Professor Twain]

I don't smoke enough of these from multiple years to know whether they are becoming more intense. I would suggest you trust Rob on that, he is in a unique position to comment on this. But you can't have too many of these, either the Petit Robustos or Epi 2s. No better cigar when smoked fresh. Buy Hoyo des Dieux if you want to age a Hoyo!