Rocky Patel Vintage 1990 Churchill

Very well constructed cigar. A very smooth draw and fine tast. This is a perfect cigar for afternoon relaxing or on the golf course.

Great...Cocoa, smooth, M/F body but smooth. Great draw. Oily. Just about everything I want in a cigar. Too small for a church. CigarBid is the only place I buy these so they have to be put in the humi for a time so I have found with most CI gars.

The first thing I notice when approach this stick, is the aroma of the wrapper: it has a really nice floral scent, slight rose-like. ok, not like a frickin' Glade aor freshener, just the slightest undertone that accompanies the cedar, leather and cinnamon tones.

Well constructed, I've never had a bad one, and I've smoked two full boxes (so far) of the 1990, my favorite over the 1992 by far. Draw is always good, the burn usually perfect, sometimes an odd-ball one-sider, but who cares?

My only gripe is that it's not really a Churchill, now is it? It's almost a Lancero, and certainly equivalent to a Lonsdale.

My most expensive individual smoke to date, I was a little saddened with the smoking experience, though it was my first churchhill and maybe the length was too long. Had an average flavor on my yet refined palate. Will give another chance at some point since I had two of them. Had a decent burn and nice draw.

I knew I'd be in the driveway for a couple hours so I decided to smoke a churchill - a rarity for me. This cigar had great flavor, but the draw was much too tight to be truly enjoyable. Also, I had to relight a couple of times, but that's probably because I left it too long. Still, it tasted nice and spicy with some cinnamon and cocoa right from the start, and the last third was really fantastic, very rich and full. Next time I'll cut 2" off the end and start from there.

Next to the Torpedo, this is my favorite cigar. It has wonderful flavor, very easy draw, and is smooth in despite of its complex spice. Nearly perfect. The only real flaw is that the Churchills tend to burn out before reaching nubbiness. It's a trifling concern, but this cigar looks too much an old man's skinny middle finger for my taste.

This is one of my go-to cigars in my humidor. I have to agree with others that newly bought they tend to have a good spice characteristic, with a good even earthtone flavor that reminds one of Fall after a rain. Let them season a bit in your humidor and they get much creamier but never over-powering. The only complaint I have is its a fifty-fifty with uneven burns. The burn gets better it seems, if they age for a while. Price is quite good if you can find some online resources, and from your local shop the price is average.

the taste is amazing it is tightly rolled so that its like you have to force the ash to fall, worth more than i paid.

Smoked one of these last night, after it sat in my humi for about 6 months. Started off peppery for the first 1/4", then hints of cocoa for 1/2", then.....nothing. It lost all pleasurable taste, and was like smoking a bad cigarette. Very disappointing.

I reviewed this months ago, and after six months in the humi, I'm still having issues! The draw on this was ridiculously tight, to the point that I had to tak almost an inch off of the cigar to even get any smoke. The flavor was a non-descript tobacco taste that just did not excite the palate at all. Now, I am a bigger fan of the 1992 line, which seems to have more a bite and a more robust flavor, but this cigar was a lame duck with numerous draw problems and a taste that was lame, to boot. Rocky needs to step up on the quality control.

I got 2 5ers of these with my first ever Cbid order well over a year ago. Half of them are left, and I hadn't smoked one in a long time. I remembered this cigar as being medium to full bodied, and fairly spicey. Now, while this is still medium to full bodied, the spice is gone and it's just a really nice, creamy smoke that never gets harsh. This is a very smokeable cigar for those mild smokers looking to graduate to something with a little more umph. The nicotine is never overpowering, nor is the flavor. You can get them for really good prices on Cbid!

The first few puffs didn't seem to be all that special but it really took off after the first inch or so. Rocky Patel got the blend right here as it has a perfect marriage of full flavor and balance. I really loved how each draw filled the palate with a complex mix of seemingly all the nuances of tobacco smoke. There was leather, cocoa, wood, spice, nuttiness, coffee, etc... Like a swarm of flavors. For the hell of it I tried to smoke it hot by puffing fast and I couldn't get any harshness. In fact it just made the nuances more pronounced and more delicious. I guess 17 years of age will do that to a great tobacco leaf. A full flavored cigar like this is a beautiful thing. A luxurious smoke and worth the $$$.

I smoked this aged beauty a friend gifted me. It had an additionally 2-3 years in his humi. It had spice, leather, and black coffee w/floral finish.

This was my first RP and I enjoyed it very much. Was unsure what to expect but this stick had a nice draw, flavors were leathery with hints of chocolate, one of the better values for around $6.

I smoked a couple of these with a friend last night. They had only been in my humidor (at 70%) for a couple days. Great-looking cigar. But that's about it.

For the first half, the draw was hard. Flavor was mild and nondescript. Ash was grey and held up, burn was self-correcting. About half-way through it spiced up and the draw improved. But then it started getting hot and nasty at around 7/10ths of the way through.

Since we both had the same experience, I can't think that it was a fluke. I'll leave the rest of this CI RP Mild Mega-Sampler at 65% for a while and see if that helps. But IMO a cig at this price point should taste good right out of the box.

An embarrassment!

These are very good cigars, the aging process used is superb, this cigar has chocolaty and leather taste throughout. If you take your time they burn even. So just sit back and relax with one of these and a nice glass of some aged tawny port.

Smooth, slightly spicy smoke that includes wood, leather, coffee, some sweetness and an occasional hint of soap. When you want an RP that's relaxing this it. Not as strong as the sun grown and more flavorful than most of the others. A very good, slow burn and firm silver ash add to the enjoyment.

Here's a follow-up to the review I wrote last. I let them age a little bit and it definitely made a difference. The appearance is consistent and cutting it was no problem and the cigar was intact. It's a nice box-pressed appearance. Flavor/taste: 1st third was mild and hints of leather. 2nd third was where more flavor came out and I'd say it's very leathery, small hints of pepper. I would say the last part of the 2nd third was excellent. Unfortunately this lasted only for about 3 or so puffs, but I got buttery tastes during that period. Last third was very leathery and got harsh. Not a nubber for me and I stopped about half and inch above the second band. Burn: Improved dramatically from my first experience, but I had one complete relight during the smoke. Generally even burn with 1" ash initially, kinda dark grey. Draw: kind of firm all the way through. I like them easier to draw on, like medium. Overall, much better experience than last time but not a favorite for me. I like generally buttery and peppery. This one is strong leathery, which I would imagine would appeal to some.

I smoked one of these last night after winning them on CBID. I had let them sit in my humi for about a week. Appearance: it's box pressed, dark and well constructed. Looked very solid. Taste: The first part was somewhat bitter, but the 2nd and 3rd parts dramatically improved giving off lots of leathery tastes. I would say it's a medium-full flavor. More towards full for sure. It wasn't very smooth in the beginning but that changed as it got to the middle and prodced lots of smoke. Burn: This is where I had some problems. In the middle, the burn became quite uneven and there was a piece that wouldn't burn with the rest of the cigar. It just hung there for 10-15 minutes, finally I had to light it to get it burning with the rest of the stick. Draw: Tougher early on but becomes quite easy in the 2nd and 3rd. Overall, I thought maybe the cigar was slightly dry when it arrived from CBID which would account for burn issues. It felt a little dry to the touch. Overall, I would say it was above average and had good potential assuming the burn issues were gone. But, for the one I just had, I'm giving it a 7 or so since the flavor in the beginning was a little off and the burn was uneven. The 2nd and 3rd parts made up for it and saved the day. I'll have to write another review once I age them a little more to see if the burn was a dryness issue. Back to you all in a few months on this one.

Full smoke with a smooth oak like taste, mix with a hint of coffee and the flavor holds to the end. The stick looks good and feels good in your hand. You can take your time with this one since the draw is easy and no re-lighting problems.

Flavor started out with a kick. Like a really bitter cup of coffee. Thankfully, after a few minutes, this mellowed out into a great cream and coffee flavor that lasted till the last puff. Had some draw and burn issues though, which makes me think this cigar costs 3 dollars more than it should. There's also a slightly ashy aftertaste. A good smoke, but not one I'll be going to much in the future.

I was let down by this one. Great box-preseed appearance, and beautiful texture. Taste was okay. A rich tobacco taste with more smoothness than I find to be in the 1992 series. Hints of leather, but during the time I smoked this, the taste really never varied. It was pretty good, but it just wasn't that great. Where I really had the problem was in the construction. About 3/5s into this, I had to start puffing like mad to keep this going. It started to burn out every 15-20 seconds or so, and after 15 minutes of this, I had to dump this one. I was surprised, as I normally find RPs to have great construction and a nice burn and flavor, but I couldn't help but feel that this was a waste of money for me.

My friend picked this one out for me at the coner store. He's good at that! My, what a great hour and a half of pure pleasure! This fine cigar not only looks great, but tastes great as well. The flavors are woody, leather and burnt oak (like the burnt oak barrels that fine bourbon is aged in) The burn was even with a white ash. This winner is best with a good neat bourbon !

Attractive dark reddish brown Honduran wrapper. Razor sharp burn. Draw was tight. Barely "opened up" right even after poking and massaging. "Chincey" Churchill at a 48 ring gauge. Flavor was a mundane one demensional pepper and spice. Did not hit my palate right. My first average tasting RP. Oh well, they can't all be great like the 90, 92, and sun grown torpedo. I probably aged this for at least 60 days. Gauge said good. I'm frugal (cheap) so I'm pretty sure I nicked these on C-bid for around $4.50 a throw.

Got these from C-bid on a great deal. Which made this smoke a great value to say the least. Mine have burned perfectly and heald a nice ash. Wonderful construction on this solid smoke. The flavors are not overpowering either and very tasty. This is a very good smoke.

good smoke burned slow and even, the taste was like smoked oak, good but not worth a money

great looking cigar with very good flavor, draw and burn. definately worth a try.

I tried this cigar about a year ago and I thought that it tasted like burnt toast. I received another one in a sampler about 9 months ago. After aging it 9 months, it was great. It did not change flavors like I hoped, but it was a very enjoyable flavor and extremely smooth. Burn was ok. It needed several touch ups, but it was really not a huge deterent. Definently recommended- after several months in the humidor.

The construction was excellent with an even burn all the way to the first band. The draw was very smooth and it made lots of smoke. The only draw back was the extremely mild flavor. For a medium bodied smoke, I expected more than this cigar delivered. The finish is woodsy with a little leather. Personally I like a little more spice, but this will do for a change of pace.

The aged for 12 years caught my eye on this puppy, but also made me skepical. The texture was of complete leather, very nice. The light went smooth, and the cigar burned fairly evenly with only minor touch ups. my concern here is the flavor. The flavor seemed to be lacking. it was not till after i had smoked it that i found out only the wrapper is aged for 12 years.

Another tasty smoke by Rocky Patel. Rich, dark brown toothy wrapper with thick veins. Solid construction with no soft spots. Nice prelight aroma. Easy light. Slightly firm draw. Sparse white smoke that became more abundant as it was smoked. Chalk white ash that held its composure. Started with mild pepper and spice, which then melded into earthy undertones which intensified throughout the whole stick. This was joined by notes of burnt espresso and cocoa by the middle third, with a note of dark chocolate that danced in and out. In the last third, there was a slightly sour note - not obtrussive - but definitely tangible. All in all, this is a medium-to-full bodied smoke that is rich, complex, and "in your face" with flavor. It is not a headspinner, so do not mistake its flavor profile for strength. It is very slow burning, and took almost 2 hours to smoke. Paired with an Arrogant Bastard Ale (needed something to stand up to the flavor intensity), but would also go well with strong coffee. Would buy more.

This medium bodied cigar is very easy on the palate, probably attributed to the aged wrapper. It's full enough for after dinner but smooth enough for an afternoon break. Construction is excellent and the draw is as good as any. Afternotes of coffee and cocoa. Very consistent smoke. The Vintage is definitely Patel's best line in my book.

I first purchased one of these in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, it was dark; it was aromatic; and built as well as any bikini model! It called to me, so to speak. I toasted the end, lit it in the store, and walked out with wisps of smoke in my wake. Sitting on a bench near the boardwalk, enjoying this amazingly aromatic cigar, men, women, guys and babes, walked by and commented on what smelled so good; several made it a point to walk by several times trying to determine where it was coming from, I smiled, said nothing, and enjoyed the next puff.

Great cigar. Love the feel. It's medium bodied and perfect for my taste. Smoked a couple to the nub and they don't get too harsh at the end. Prefer the 1990 to the 1992, but that's probably personal preference.

The contruction and appearance of this cigar is excellent, a gentle squeeze reveals the perfect amount of tobbaco. The cigar actually smells better than it tastes. It was very one dimensional taste, a little spice and a little leather. I won't buy this one again

The overall cigar was outstanding. The wrapper is dark and oily with lots of thick viens. The scent is spicy with hints of sandlewood(?). Upon lighting it, the mouth is hit with a pure, rich tobbaco flavor. I tasted old oak, spice and pepper. Leather is in there as well. A few points while smoking this cigar I tasted cinnamon. the finish was long but I did get some strong metallic tastes at the end.