Last week I was at Finks cigars in Helotes, TX and they were raving about the Patoro Gran Anejo Reserva.
I had to think twice about this, because it was a Robusto (5×50) and was going to cost me $16.
I had just reviewed a cigar that cost me that much and I wasn’t over the moon about it, but they really were bragging on this stick, so I said, what the heck!
Patoro Cigars History
In 2001, after 13 years with Oettinger Davidoff Group as Avo and Griffin’s Product Manager & Brand Ambassador for Switzerland.
Patrik Jonas Martin decided to create his own cigar brand: Patoro!
After a diligent search for someone who could meet his quality requirements, he selects Augusto Reyes of the Dominican Republic, a sixth generation tobacco grower.
In 2014 a plastic surgeon by the name of Dr. Pablo Richard, The Grandson of Dr. Ernst Schneider, former owner and Chairman of the Oettinger Davidoff Group came on board not only as a member of the Board of Directors of the company but also member of its Management Team as Head of International Sales & Marketing.
A short time later, an important market is open to Patoro’s products: the United States of America. The brand is immediately welcomed by Aficionados and a select number of outlets quickly begins to grow.
Just to clarify, Patoro is a Swiss company with its production facilities at the De Los Reyes factory
Interesting Side Note
About 25 miles outside of Santiago in the Dominican Republic is a town called Navarrete. And in the middle of the town is about 20 acres of farmland that grows one of the rarest types of tobacco in the entire country: wrapper leaf.
Called the Navarrete Farm, it boasts the first plantation in the Dominican Republic to grow the Piloto Cubano Tobacco varietal.
This would be in the Cebeo Valley, which I talked about in E P Carrillo Private Tour.
This farm is owned by Leo Reyes, brother to Augusto Reyes, and much of the tobacco grown there is used in cigars produced at De Los Reyes.
Where this get’s interesting for me is:
This is a boutique factory, that focuses on a small line of cigars of their own, but guess who else they make cigars for?
You probably guessed Patoro and you would be correct, but guess who else….. Debonaire and Indian Motorcycle Cigars which is owned by Phil Zanghi, who I told you about in Sturgis Motorcycle Rally
and he is the blender for Cattle Baron Cigar.
You are probably not as excited as I am about this all coming together, but to me it shows what a small world the cigar industry is.
About The Patoro Gran Anejo
Start: 4:12 PM End: 5:01 Pm Burn Time: 0:49
Strength: Medium to Full
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican
Smell: Floral, Dark Chocolate, Citrus, Cinnamon, Nut
Cold Draw: Citrus, Sweet Chocolate, Earth, Nut
Construction: Brown, Satiny, Blemish Free
Flavor: Very Flavorful, Sweet Chocolate, Floral, Earth, Nut, Citrus, Some Bitterness On Tongue, Long Finish.
Burn: Nice, even
Draw: Smooth
Complexity: Very Complex
Notes: This was a fun cigar for me, I loved the complexity and the abundant flavor throughout.
More About This Cigar
They only use the Seco and Ligero leaves in the center of the plant and aged from 3 to 12 years!
Their tobacco is grown without pesticides in the best Dominican soil!
One single Torcedor (roller) is responsible for each size in the line and they only produce 4 boxes per day!
The Torcedores are only the most experienced, the less experienced of them having no less than fifteen years. This allows them to obtain unparalleled expertise and exceptional regularity of quality.
They are all proud to sign the warranty card that is included in each box of Patoro Cigars!
That About Wraps It Up
What more can I say about the Patoro Gran Anejo Reserva Cigar, other than I wish I could afford to smoke this gem all the time.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see this stick win some awards here in the states, they’ve only been here for four years and yet they have rave reviews.
I did pick up a Patoro Series P and you can expect a review of that in the near future!
Please feel free to ask any questions or make comments in the section below.
Till next time: Cool Smokin!
Chuck
my FIL gave ma a Patoro a couple of weeks ago, which I smoked this week on my way back from Houston to, of all places, Helotes.
Great cigar.
I have to drive by Finks to go anywhere but the storage locker and CVS.
If you live around here hit me up. I’ll buy the first stick.
Hi Mike: Thanks for checkin out the post. I really enjoyed the Patoro and have a few more in my humidor to review. Sorry we were not able to hook up while I was in Texas, but we will be back late next month and should be able to smoke that stick then.