These prodigious Toro’s are manufactured by Don Pepin Garcia in his El Rey de Los Habanos factory in Miami, Florida. They are made exclusively for Cigar King in Arizona, in honor the famous Cuban baseball team the Habana Leones. Don Pepin watched this team growing up in Cuba and, since the Leones were nicknamed the “Rojos” by their fans, the red label is as appropriate as it is striking.

Pepin blends this one strong and full-bodied with slow aged all-Nicaraguan tobaccos. The filler is 70% Ligero tobacco wrapped in a Nicaraguan grown binder. It is finished with a reddish-brown Corojo wrapper.

The cigar is attractive, with a golden brown wrapper and the nose of the wrapper leaf is nutty and spicy. However, upon putting my nose up to the filler tobacco at the foot, I am met with a sturdy whiff of ammonia. This is interesting given that the cigars are not real young. They have a box date of April 2005. However, I have stored them in their cellophane wrappers and I think I have just been convinced to remove the cello for the remainder of their life spans. Cellophane slows the exchange of oxygen and, thus, slows the aging process. In this case, with a cigar so loaded with ligero tobacco, it might be best to improve the oxygen flow and allow for the more expeditious release of ammonia.

In any case, I proceed with the trim and light of the cigar and settle back for an influx of spiciness and strength. The burn is a bit ragged, as one might expect with a tobacco blend heavy on ligero, which contains more resins and moisture and, thus, doesn’t burn as well. The incomplete burn is also exhibited in the ash, which is a dark gray.

The flavor and body are dense, rich and full, with plenty of kick. I paired a spicy Wheat beer from Sierra Nevada, which was a good match for the spiciness of the cigar.

I experienced a fairly significant burn problem with the first cigar I reviewed from this batch. It developed a tunnel and a corresponding “spike” of the ash. This cigar, though not burning perfectly, did not exhibit a tunnel.

This is a rugged cigar with a flavor profile to match. Fairly one-dimensional but flavorful and I was not prone to losing interest. The smoke “speaks loudly” of its pedigree of strength. By the final third, this is as full-bodied and full-flavored a cigar as I could wish for.

This is not a cigar for lightweights or the feint of heart. It is a robust example of a full-bodied, full-flavored monster. I am usually a little more respectful of a cigar like this. Having not eaten for the past 6-hours, I became a bit queasy by around the first half mark. I will be mindful of this in the future.

Whenever I feel like a full-bodied smoke or a “pick-me-up,” I seek out this cigar. I recommend this cigar for those with a penchant for adventure and full-bodied cigars.

~Doc