Review: PRE-RELEASE Room 101 San Andres

Today's review is a pre-release sample that my partner Mario (@cigarexplorer on twitter) gave me last week. I'm not sure where he got it, but if I had to guess, it came from Governors Smoke shop (@GovernorsSmokes on twitter) -- one of the newest, and definitely fastest, growing brick & mortar cigar shop in Columbus. The Room 101 San Andres is a tiny little cigar that I would bet is meant to compete with sticks like the MUWAT Baitfish and the Tatauje Petite Cazadore.

A quote from Matt Booth (@room101cigars on twitter) about the San Andres: Rolled on the juicy hindquarters of models from Jay Zs big pimpin' video from the finest Botswana funk leaf.

You know, I thought I smelled Botswana Funk leaf on this one. ;)  On to the review...

(Due to the size of this cigar, this review is only in two parts instead of the traditional thirds.)

Specifics
Vitola: Perla
Length: 4
Ring Gauge: 40
Wrapper: Mexican San Andres
Binder: ?
Filler: ?
Price: $?
Smoking Location: My back deck
Beverage: water

Pre-Light 

This really is a little cigar. Like the Namakubi Papi Chulo, it's small, but also packed full. The wrapper on my Room 101 San Andres was very toothy and had a reddish hue to it. The construction was top notch and the cap was especially nice looking. There were some smaller veins, but nothing that really took away from the look of the cigar. The pre-lit aroma had a nutty scent to it and the cold draw tasted strongly of honey. I was expecting something else because of the Mexican wrapper, which normally has such a strong, dirty chocolate flavor, but I definitely didn't detect any of that particular profile.

First Half   

From the first draw on my Room 101 San Andres, I got a lot of flavor. It was not an in-your-face flavor, nor a punch to the palate, but more chill and mellow. The front of the profile tasted like graham cracker and gingerbread and tailed off into a nice raw, sweet finish. After a minute or two, the finish also picked up a bit of pepper, but not anything hot or spicy. I was enjoying this combo of flavors a lot, and actually texted to my friend right away how nicely this pre-release was going. The construction was perfect and the draw just where I like it with slight resistance. I would put the nicotine strength of the cigar in the mild to low medium range.

Second Half and Final Thoughts

The second half of this tiny Room 101 San Andres was pretty much the same as the first half with one small change on the front of the profile. Adding in with the graham cracker and gingerbread was a hint of cinnamon. Now if this sounds like a dessert cigar to you, I would say you are exactly correct; it would be perfect for after a light meal. The finish was the same as the first half with a lot of raw sweetness. Again the construction never failed me and there was no need for a re-light. The nicotine strength also stayed consistent in the mild to medium range.

Final thoughts on the Room 101 San Andres ? Again, just like the Namakubi Papi Chulo, this cigar took only about twenty minutes to smoke. Of that twenty minutes, I enjoyed every second. The flavors are mellow but strong, and had a nice balance. It's a very sweet cigar in this size, so if sweetness is not your thing, maybe the bigger sizes coming out in April (so says the pre-release band) will be more to your liking. I can't wait to see what this blend does in a bigger/longer smoke. Room 101 is stepping up their game.

Would I buy it again? Yes

Would I buy a box? If the price is right, I would take a box of these. Great short smoke that is easy on the body as far as nic strength goes.

Dan

Room 101 One Shot One Kill Pre-release

A few weeks ago I attended one of the first stops on the Room 101 Cigars Cigarmaggedon tour at The Village Tobacconist in Fairlawn Ohio. (Here's some video Matt Booth (owner of Room 101) shot of me and my friend Dan.) I had a great time, as always, hanging out with the guys and smoking some new sticks. While I was there I was handed a sample of a new cigar still being tweeked by Matt Booth and still in pre-release stage named One Shot One Kill. At least that's what the band says, so I am guessing that will be the name. This is a pre-release so who knows. I asked Matt for a quote about the cigar or any specifics and here is his response.

Quote Matt Booth: "I refuse your request sir."

If you know Matt this will not come as a surprise to you because, I can assure you, he meant nothing harsh by that comment and that he's just being his normal joking self. So with all of that said, this review will be pretty much uninformed and just what I thought of the stick.


Due to the size of this cigar, this review is only in two parts instead of the traditional thirds. 

Specifics
Vitola: small figurado
Length: 4.75ish
Ring Gauge: 50ish
Wrapper: ?
Binder: ?
Filler: ?
Price: $?
Smoking Location: My back deck
Beverage: Water

Pre-Light  

What a fun little shape. Those are the words that first came to mind when sitting down to write this review. I have smoked other cigars with this similar size and shape in the past, but they are few and far between. The wrapper of my One Shot One kill was light brown with a very reddish hue to it. I'd guess some sort of rasado wrapper, but I'm not going to spend this whole review speculating what this cigar is made of. The cigar was overall well constructed except for the cap, which looked to be applied in a pretty sloppy fashion. Hey it's a pre-release. Who cares right? The pre-lit aroma smelled of straight natural tobacco, but the cold draw was a bit more interesting. The strong and somewhat robust flavors on the cold draw were of Brazil nuts and dried fruit. Interesting start.

First Half  

I lit the foot of my One Shot One Kill with a soft flame lighter and the flavors started to bellow out in a very smooth and non-abrupt way. Again it's kind of hard to explain some smoking experiences in words, and this ease or mellowing into tasting the flavors is another one of those times. Anyway, the flavor profile consisted of warm allspice and orange peel on the front. On the finish, more allspice, but this time with more of a nutty kick mixed in. I can say right now that I loved it and you can stop reading the rest of the review if you like. The construction of the cigar was top notch and the amount of smoke I was easily able to pull from stick was pretty significant. Something also to mention is the strength of the ash on this little guy. I had to knock the ash of this stick before it fell naturally because it was windy outside and I didn't want to wear it. I think in a calm environment, this cigar's ash would hold past the band. The strength of the cigar was in the medium range.

Second Half and Final Thoughts  

The second half of my One Shot One Kill was similar to the first half with really two major changes. The first change was in the flavor profile, but more specifically in the finish of the profile. The front still had a lot of warm allspice and orange peel, but the finish took on a very "bready" taste. At this part of the cigar I was thinking "wow, this is great cigar for fall" because it's short on time to smoke (could be cold outside) and it has flavors that remind me of that time of year. Like I said above, I loved it. The other major change was the strength of the cigar shot right up the ladder and well into the full range. I could really feel the nicotine in my system and my heart rate went up for sure. It was not too full power, but if it was larger vitola, I would have been wishing I had a bigger dinner. Full strength and full flavor all the way to the nub.

My final thoughts on the Room 101 One Shot One Kill? Matt Booth really has something rolling this year. The Namakubi release was my sleeper hit from the trade show. The Room 101 Connecticut didn't blow me away, but it's a solid release not to be overlooked. And now this little guy...this was the powerhouse of the group. I really enjoyed the spiciness that was unique and the balance between flavor and strength was perfect. If you're looking for a strong cigar in a short format, this should be your go to stick.

Would I buy it again? If the blend stays the same from pre-release to full production I will for sure be picking up more of these. I am a fan of small cigars and this is another great one to add to my rotation.

Would I buy a box? Depends on the price, but I would say it is box worthy.

Dan

EVENT: Room 101 Cigars

On Saturday June 6th, House of Cigar in Powell Ohio, hosted "The Conspiracy Tour" from Room 101 Cigars. I was only there for 15 minutes, but I did get to talk to Matt Booth (creator of Room 101 Cigars) ask him about his new blend, and when we would see it on shelves. He told me to look for it after this Falls IPCPR show and that they were working on the blend as we spoke.Thanks to House of Cigar for putting on this event, and thanks to Matt for spending some time talking to me.