Pre-light Experience

Aaron: The wrapper on the Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition is light brown and carries a few decently raised veins. The seams are smooth and the caps well applied. There are two bands, both in a gold and red color combination. The primary is the tradition 1875 band while the secondary denotes the designation for the limited edition. The aroma from the wrapper is cedar, hay and light earth while the foot brings sweet pastry and some cedar. The pre-light draw brings cedar and wheat bread, along with some floral notes. There is also a mid-level spiciness on my lips.
Seth: The Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition is an average looking cigar. I will be honest that the coloring of the bands looks terrible against the wrapper. I think the wrapper struggles to pop as well. It has a muddled Colorado coloring and just looks dirty. There are some oils present with medium sized veins throughout. The cigar is slightly firm with aromas of cherries, tobacco, wood and earth.
John: The Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition came in cellophane and had what appears to be a retailer UPC with the cigar info which tears when opened. I weighed the cigar at 18.1 grams and measured the humidity at 68.2% with the HumidiMeter Pro. Aromas from the wrapper included sweet tobacco and mild wood. Out of the foot, I can smell faint hay and wood.

Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition

First Third

Aaron: The cigar begins with toasted, aged cedar, earth and a light mustiness. At a half inch in, the mustiness is now even with the earth in the middle of the profile. The retrohale is musty, toasted cedar and earth. At an inch and a half in, the earth and mustiness close the gap a bit to the toasted, aged cedar ahead. At an inch and three quarters, some black pepper becomes present in the back half of the profile. As the third comes to a close, the toasted, aged cedar is up front, with mustiness and earth not far behind and some black pepper just behind the middle of the profile. The strength was slightly below medium.
Seth: The first third begins with some musty wood and barnyard notes. Some mineral spices are present with dry earth and herbal qualities. Bits of tobacco. Medium in strength and body. Smokes like a Romeo with a little bit more going on with complexity.
John: The first third begins with creamy wood, baking spices in the center and wood to finish. Sweet tobacco moves into the center of the retrohale as the first third settles in. The spices join the finish as the first third continues, and become a more defined cinnamon as it moves towards the halfway point. The post draw is primarily defined by tannic wood with cinnamon acting as a supporting flavor.

Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition

Second Third

Aaron: As the second third begins, the black pepper is now right in the middle of the profile. At three quarters of an inch in, the black pepper mellows a bit. The retrohale is now musty, toasted cedar, earth and light black pepper. At an inch and a half in, the cedar is becoming a bit dry. At two inches in, the black pepper has continued to mellow. As the third comes to a close, toasted, aged cedar remains up front, with earth and mustiness a bit behind and the black pepper in the back half of the profile. The strength remained at slightly below medium.
Seth: The second third is right in line with the first. Musty wood and barnyard notes. Mineral spices are present with some dry earth and herbal notes. Less tobacco, and more mineral qualities in this third. Still medium in strength and body.
John: Medium strength spices lead off with wood to follow and a mildly dry and spicy wood to carry into the post draw. Some breadiness breaks into the retrohale, sitting underneath some wood. By the bottom half of the second third, the tannic wood on the post draw has moved up to medium-full strength.

Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition

Final Third

Aaron: As the final third begins, the black pepper is now in the background. At a half inch in, the toast level increases a bit and the earth has creeped a bit more towards the front. The retrohale remains musty, toasted cedar, earth and light black pepper. At an inch and a quarter, the earth is now even with the toasted, aged cedar up front. As the cigar wraps up, the toasted, aged cedar and earth are even up front, with the mustiness a bit behind and the black pepper in the background, The strength bumped up to medium.
Seth: The final third is in line with the second. Musty wood and barnyard flavors. Mineral spices are present to the finish with aged tobacco. Bits of mushroom qualities as well. Medium in strength and body.
John: Creamy wood greets me in the last third with medium-full tannic wood to linger between each puff. A mild toasted earth joins the finish as it continues. No other evolution to remark on through the remainder of the last third.

Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition

Burn

Aaron: The burn was straight through the first two thirds and then became a bit wavy in the final third. The ash held on in two inch increments.
Seth: The burn was good throughout.
John: The burn was straight through the entire review process.

Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition

Draw

Aaron: The draw was perfect, with just the right amount of resistance that I prefer.
Seth: The draw was nice from beginning to end.
John: The draw was a minor amount into the resistant spectrum, roughly 1-1/2 to 2 notches. This puts it in the very good category for a draw score.

Overall

Aaron: The cigar began with toasted, aged cedar, earth and a light mustiness. Some black pepper joined towards the end of the third. The second third saw the black pepper mellow and the cedar became a bit dry. The final third saw the black pepper move to the background and the earth become even with the cedar up front. The Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition had an average flavor profile throughout, just focused around the toasted aged cedar, earth, mustiness and black pepper. The aged nature of this cigar was very present as it was fairly mellow and a bit flat. Not a cigar I’d see coming back to, but I could see it pairing well with a non-peated Scotch.
Seth: The Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition really smoked like a classic Romeo. It had those classic Romeo y Julieta flavors with a little bit more mustiness and earth. It is not over the top in terms of strength and body, still medium, but there is a little bit more complexity to the blend. Still not wowing, and not the greatest of prices, but I love the size.
John: The Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition was pleasant to smoke, with some flavor intensity moving up to medium-full at times. The flavor combinations that were presented came across as simple to me, and I struggled to identify what would set this cigar above another cigar on the market. The burn was flawless, while the draw was a minor amount into the resistant spectrum. The price point on these is pretty average for the 2024 market, and even so, this isn’t a cigar that delivered enough engagement for me to want to return to it. Total smoking time was 2 hours and 39 minutes.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

5.65

Cost/Point

$2.65

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

5.35

Cost/Point

$2.80

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

5.60

Cost/Point

$2.68

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: Romeo y Julieta 1875 Vintage Lote Limited Edition