La Flor Dominicana Tasting Part 1 - Pregame - Rocky Patel Decade

Last night there was a cigar tasting at Cup O' Joes on Route 9 in Queensbury. The cigar featured was a cigar by La Flor Dominicana. We arrived pretty early and therefore needed some kind of warm up before everyone else got there.

I found myself standing in front of the Rocky Patel section of the humidor again. I chose the Rocky Patel Decade. Many people have heard of the Rocky Patel Vintage lines. The Vintage line ultimately made the Patel brand explode. Rocky Patel used to be an entertainment lawyer in Los Angeles. He was introduced to cigars by a friend and immediately started a cigar company called Indian Tobac Cigar Co. Sales were going well but he wanted to focus on quality instead of quantity. He created the Rockey Patel line in the late 1990s. He cut production down from 500 sticks a day to 250, combined some Honduran grown broad leaf tobacco and Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper and the Vintage lines were born. The Decade comes five years after the Vintage to commemorate the success of Rocky Patel.

This cigar is nothing short of amazing. I have tried a few different sizes and I have been pleased with all of them. The light and cut were nice. You can tell these are somewhat loosely packed because the draw was incredibly easy. Some people don't like a cigar that draws too easy but I don't mind it at all. I don't like having to battle with a cigar to get some smoke out of it. I end up feeling exhausted and disappointed. The only thing I feel with these cigars is happy. The stick burned very well and lasted about an hour. The taste was smooth, creamy and a little sweet. The sweetness is not like a wrapper dipped in sugar type of sweetness but more of a subtle taste.

The thing I like the most about these cigars is that they are effortless. You light them once and you can smoke them at your own pace. You don't have to fight with them they just do what cigars should do every time. Alot of reviews I have read about the Decade line is that they are a strong smoke that is not for beginners. I couldn't disagree with that more. You may feel a bit high when you're done smoking it but anyone can enjoy these.

Ultimately of all the cigars I have had, if I had to smoke one cigar for the rest of my life it would be the Rocky Patel Decade.