Pre-light Experience

The wrapper on the Patina Maduro Rustic is a uniform and dull milk chocolate brown and has a significant amount of tooth to it. There are a few fine veins present and the seams are easily visible as they are thick and raised. The head is finished off with a well applied double cap. Overall, the cigar is quite firm. The band is the traditional design for the brand and the color combination is aqua green with a white with greenish tint in the middle and copper bordering. The aroma from the wrapper is stone fruit sweetness and earth while the foot brings more stone fruit sweetness along with some lightly damp wood. The pre-light draw is a mix of cedar and mustiness and there is a mellow spiciness on my lips.

Pre-light Experience

The Patina Maduro Rustic is toothy in texture and firm throughout. The wrapper has a light maduro coloring and it is between Natural and Maduro, gravitating towards Maduro. There are few veins present throughout and those are medium in size. The foot gives off an aroma of rich earth, sweet tobacco, stone fruit and spices, while the wrapper gives off notes of rich earth, spice and cocoa.

Pre-light Experience

The Patina Maduro Rustic has a UPC sticker that’s designed to remain intact when the cellophane is opened. The cigar wrapper is dark, and toothy throughout. Aromas from the cigar include chocolate, sweet bread and faint baking spices. From the foot, there is sweet tobacco.

Pre-light Experience

The Patina Maduro Rustic, true to the name, has a rustic vibe especially when looking at the wrapper and bronze accented band. The wrapper is espresso brown, hearty, and has nice fine traces of tooth. Bunch and roll is even, seams tight but visible and the head is well wrapped. Aromas from the wrapper give strong red pepper and cedar. Aromas from the foot tell the same but with added nuts. Cold draw provides baking spices and cedar.

First Third

The cigar begins with dark wood and mild black pepper. At three quarters of an inch in, the black pepper is very light but lingers on the finish. The retrohale is wood and light mustiness. At an inch and a quarter, some mustiness joins in between the dark wood and black pepper. The strength in this third was right at medium.

First Third

The first third opens up with some cream and black pepper notes. There are some sourdough qualities present as well and it has touches of earth and nuts. I am getting some almond and walnut qualities. It has a dry finish and I would consider the cigar to be smoking at a medium level for strength and body.

First Third

From my first few puffs, I get flavors of sweet baking spices, cedar, bread and trailing sweetness that finishes each draw. Creamy cocoa quickly joins the retrohale. As the first settles in, that cocoa drives the flavor through the third.

First Third

The initial half inch is fierce with red pepper spice. Past that point, nice creamy bread and roasted nuts joins in. Retrohaling is a powerhouse of red pepper spice but also a nice soft layer of bread. The finish has a mixture of cedar and red pepper which lingers on until seemingly no end. Strength is medium plus and body is medium.

Second Third

As the second third begins, some dry earthiness joins the profile. At a half inch in, the dark wood and dry earth are even up front while the black pepper increases a bit and is even with the mustiness. The black pepper continues with its long finish. The retrohale is now a mix of dry earth and light black pepper. As the third comes to a close, the dark wood, dry earth and black pepper are all even with the mustiness in the background. The strength in this third bumped up to slightly above medium.

Second Third

The second third shows some transitioning from before and it delivers a profile that is creamy with black pepper notes. There are touches of dry earth and citrus nut qualities on the finish, but overall quite faint. Like before, the cigar is medium in strength and body.

Second Third

The second third begins with creamy bread, and cedar that finishes each retrohale. Baking spices join only minutes later. The cedar moves into the center of the profile and remains. By the halfway point, the cedar flavor component is defining the second third.

Second Third

The second third is the same representation as the first third. Red pepper spice and cedar forward with softness in creamy semi-sweet bread. The retrohale continues to be a juggernaut of red pepper spice and bread. Strength and body is unchanged at medium plus and medium, respectively.

Final Third

As the final third begins, the dark wood and dry earth are very heavy, but there’s also a light cocoa powder which is now present. The retrohale remains dry earth and black pepper. At an inch in, the dark wood and dry earth are up front with the black pepper and mustiness right behind. The strength in this third remained at slightly above medium.

Final Third

The final third shows some of the same qualities from the second third and I am getting some dry earth and cream notes. There are a few touches of pepper and the finish has some dry wood and mineral qualities. It has a smooth finish and continues to smoke at a medium level for strength and body.

Final Third

An earthy retrohale takes the Maduro Rustic into the last third. Sweetness joins the retrohale to offset that earth component. As the last third settles in, the earth falls in intensity, supplanted by cocoa.

Final Third

The last third creates some char build-up and shows some promising minerality. The other notes of red pepper spice, cedar and creamy bread is still going strong. Strength and body finishes medium-full and medium, respectively.

Burn

The burn line was perfect throughout, though I did feel the cigar burned quite fast. The ash held on in inch and a half increments.

Burn

Burn was absolutely amazing.

Burn

The burn was fairly straight through the entire review. Ash held on up to 1-1/2 inch increments.

Burn

Burn was great aside from a couple quick touch-ups to get the burn back on track.

Draw

The draw was slightly tighter than I prefer, but didn’t cause any issues with the smoking experience.

Overall

The cigar began with dark wood and mild black pepper. Some mustiness joined towards the end of the third. The second third saw some dry earth join in. The final third saw the dark wood and dry earth become very heavy and dominate the profile. Construction was quite good and strength was slightly above medium most of the way. The Patina Maduro Rustic had a nice start in the first third, but once the dry earth joined in, it knocked the enjoyment level down a notch and maintained that level the rest of the way. If you’re a fan of wood and earth dominance, then this will be a cigar you enjoy. To me, it’s just a bit too much and not something I’d see myself coming back to all that often.

Draw

Draw was fantastic throughout. Beautiful.

Overall

What started out lovely, slowly faded away into the second and final third. The Patina Maduro Rustic is by no means a bad cigar, it’s a solid cigar, but it missed a couple components that would have elevated this cigar to a higher level. The subtle flavors were lovely, but with more complexity it would have made this a great medium body and strength maduro. With the fantastic construction and draw, this would have been a hit for 2020. On top of that, this is the best thing Patina has released in a long time. Leaving Mombacho was brilliant.

Draw

The draw had some resistance to it, roughly 2-1/2 notches.

Overall

The Patina Maduro Rustic delivered an approachable medium strength and medium bodied smoking experience. The first third was the most complex for me, with the other two thirds being pleasant but lacking the same depth of flavor. Construction was excellent and draw had some minor resistance to it. I would smoke the Maduro Rustic again, however I’d be interested in trying it in the Oxidation vitola to compare profiles. Total smoking time was 1 hour and 33 minutes.

Draw

Perfect draw performance with the ideal air flow.

Overall

I’m a bit taken back by how much I enjoyed the Patina Maduro Rustic. My experience with Patina has been for the most part lackluster. The caveat to this statement is, what I know of Patina is from the Casa Favilli production times (not NACSA). Granted the Maduro was never made at Casa Favilli, if this is an indication of all his lines tasting better as a result of the production move, I say winner, winner Patina dinner. To speak a bit more about the cigar experience, this was a straight forward flavor profile. Powerhouse red pepper spicy cigar with also nice undertones of creamy bread, cedar and a long finish. Will not hesitate to return to this.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

5.95

Cost/Point

$1.84

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

6.10

Cost/Point

$1.80

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

5.80

Cost/Point

$1.89

Scoring System

Jiunn Liu

SCORE

6.72

Cost/Point

$1.63

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: Patina Maduro Rustic