A New Nicaraguan Romeo With A Dark Oscuro Wrapper
Five years ago, cigarmaker A.J. Fernandez was tasked by Altadis U.S.A. to create a Nicaraguan version of its Dominican Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real line. He came up with the Reserva Real Nicaragua. Altadis has asked him to do it once again, and in mid-March we’ll be seeing the Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Nicaragua Profundo, an all-Nicaraguan cigar cloaked in a dark wrapper made with tobacco grown on Fernandez’s farms.
Like many Nicaraguan brands from Altadis U.S.A., the Reserva Real Nicaragua Profundo is a collaboration between Fernandez and Rafael Nodal, vice president of product capability for Tabacalera USA, Altadis U.S.A.’s parent company. According to Nodal, Profundo is a medium-to-full-bodied blend defined by its dark, “extra-fermented oscuro wrapper.”
The new line comes in four sizes: Robusto, measuring 5 inches by 50 ring gauge ($11.25); Toro, at 6 by 54 ($11.90); a 6-by-60 Magnum ($12.95) and a Churchill that measures 7 by 50 ($12.75). All come in 25-count boxes, save for the Magnum, which comes in boxes of 20.
The band’s purple hue is meant to be a merging of the original Reserva Real’s red band with the blue band found on the Reserva Real Nicaragua.
For a vertical brand tasting of the Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Nicaragua Profundo, see a future issue of Cigar Insider.
