Pre-light Experience

Aaron: The wrapper on the JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante is light brown and has a couple of decently raised veins and a network of fine veins. The seams are pretty smooth and the caps are very well applied. The band is the traditional design for this line, carrying a dark brown, pale yellow and gold color combination. The aroma from the wrapper and foot are both very light. The wrapper brings a musty dry hay while the foot is slightly sweet wood. The pre-light draw is sweet and musty cedar.
Seth: The JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante is a firm lancero with medium sized veins throughout. Silky in texture with a light Colorado coloring, it is a well rolled cigar. I am picking up some floral, herbal, cedar and spice qualities on the wrapper and foot. Faint manure quality as well. Very balanced and pleasant aroma.
John: The JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante comes in cellophane, with a UPC attached, and an integrated tear point so it stays intact when the cellophane is opened. The wrapper is smooth in appearance and tan in color. For aromas, I was picking up aged wood and mild mustiness. From the foot, there was light, sweet tobacco and dry hay.
Jiunn: The JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante has a natural brown to the overall Colorado shade. Veins are well pressed, seams tight, bunch and roll even and head well wrapped. Aromas from the wrapper tell of star jasmine flowers, cedar and barnyard. Aromas from the foot tell of red pepper and roasted nuts. Cold draw reveals stale bread and hay.

Team Cigar Review: JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante

First Third

Aaron: The cigar begins with toasted wood and light mustiness. At a quarter inch in, the wood becomes more defined as cedar and some black pepper has joined the profile. At an inch in, some dry earth joins the profile. The retrohale is toasted cedar with mild levels of black pepper and dry earth. At an inch and a half in, the flavor delivery is pretty impressive as it is quite full of richness and body. At an inch and three quarters, a faint creaminess joins in. The third wraps up with toasted cedar up front, dry earth slightly behind along with light amounts of mustiness, cream and black pepper in the background. The strength in this third was slightly below medium.
Seth: The first third starts out with some lovely cedar qualities that are paired with earth and soft pepper notes. I am picking up some cream and floral qualities as well, and it is a balanced blend. I would classify the cigar as medium in strength and body.
John: My first few puffs brought flavors of syrupy sweetness, wood and delayed baking spices. Medium strength mustiness comes through after a few puffs, with some mild bread under. Some sour citrus develops, but is quite subdued and serves as more of an accent note. By the 25 minute mark, chocolate adds to the complexity.
Jiunn: There’s a lot of flavors packed into this slim 38 ring gauge. I’m getting effervescence, rich toasted nuttiness, well accented red pepper spice, cedar, long and lingering toasted bread. Retrohaling highlights especially the spice, giving another dimensional layer. Strength and body is medium.

Team Cigar Review: JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante

Second Third

Aaron: As the second third begins, the mustiness picks up a bit while the dry earth becomes even with the toasted cedar up front. At an inch in, the creaminess has departed. The retrohale is now toasted cedar with a light baking spice. As the third comes to a close, the toasted cedar and dry earth are even up front with the mustiness and black pepper a bit behind. The strength in this third bumped up to medium.
Seth: The second third is a continuation of the first third and I am picking up cedar, cream and floral qualities. The pepper notes have faded, but there are some spice notes still present. Like before, medium in strength and body.
John: The second third is a great combination of medium strength cocoa, baking spices, bread and mustiness. There is dry cedar almost immediately in the post draw. Sour dryness takes up the center of the profile as it settles in. Some light-plus acrid earth finishes the draw moving into the last third.
Jiunn: The second third is on the cusp between being good and being average. The flavor complexities certainly decreased, being more focused on the red pepper spice and a raw bitter oak note. Strength increases to medium-full, while body remains medium.

Team Cigar Review: JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante

Final Third

Aaron: As the final third begins, the dry earth takes a slight lead in the profile. The retrohale is an even mix of toasted cedar and dry earth with some mustiness in the background. The cigar wraps up with the dry earth slightly ahead of the toasted cedar, with mustiness in the middle and some black pepper in the background. The strength remained at medium.
Seth: The final third was right in line with the first and second third. I was getting great cedar flavor and they were paired with cream, floral and herbal qualities. There were some faint earth notes on the finish, and it continued to show that spice profile as well. Like before, medium in strength and body.
John: Dry, musty cedar moves the profile into the last third. That dry cedar carries into the post draw, and the cigar becomes wood forward as it progresses. Pleasant, but not particularly complex.
Jiunn: For the final third, effervescence makes a return. But it’s still the same overall lackluster red pepper and bitter oak offering. Strength and body remains medium-full and medium, respectively.

Team Cigar Review: JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante

Burn

Aaron: The burn was straight the entire way, but the cigar did go out once, requiring a re-light. The ash held on in inch and a quarter increments.
Seth: Great burn throughout.
John: The burn was quite straight for the review, with the ash getting up to two inches before I gently tapped it off.
Jiunn: Burn was perfect. Even burn, solid ashes, cool burning temperature and ample smoke production.

Team Cigar Review: JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante

Draw

Aaron: The draw was fairly snug at times, but didn’t seem to effect the performance.
Seth: Perfect draw from start to finish.
John: The draw had at most a mild amount of resistance, roughly one notch into the resistant spectrum. That puts the draw right in the ideal zone.
Jiunn: The draw was a bit snug. Not a major deal but noteworthy.

Overall

Aaron: The cigar did a fantastic job of flavor delivery as it was very rich and full bodied. The first two thirds delivered a good combination of flavor while the final third became a bit too dry earth heavy for me. Construction was pretty good and allowed me to focus on the flavor. I wasn’t a big fan of this cigar in the Rothschild vitola, but this JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante brought the blend to another level. I’d have no problem coming back to this cigar and the price point is quite attractive. I know the vitola isn’t the most popular, but if you liked the previous releases of this, or even if you didn’t, I’d highly recommend that you track this one down.
Seth: It is incredible what a different vitola can do for a cigar. Well, it is incredible what a ring gauge can do for a cigar. This is a blend that excels with a smaller ring gauge and stronger wrapper presence. The JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante was balanced throughout, but it had depth and complexity. Great burn and draw as well. What a huge difference between a 48-ring gauge and a 38-ring gauge! Never smoke one vitola of a line and be done with the line. There is some advice for the newbies.
John: The JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante delivered some great flavors, with picture perfect draw and construction. Although I think the Toro size might be the best offering in the line, this true Lancero is still a good performer. I would happily smoke another one of these again. Total smoking time was quicker than I would normally expect a Lancero, at 1 hour and 31 minutes.
Jiunn: An $8 Lancero using all that Honduran tobacco caused much excitement for me pre-light. But the flavors for most of the JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante fell short. Given the notes of effervescence, red pepper and bitter oak, it was too sharp. Aladino as a whole isn’t really doing it for me (yet).

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

6.42

Cost/Point

$1.25

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

7.17

Cost/Point

$1.12

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

6.82

Cost/Point

$1.17

Scoring System

Jiunn Liu

SCORE

5.95

Cost/Point

$1.34

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: JRE Aladino Habano Vintage Selection Elegante