Romeo y Julieta Duke 2009 Limited Edition

Overall Score

1 review for Romeo y Julieta Duke 2009 Limited Edition

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    Cigar Inspector

    Romeo y Julieta Duke 2009 Limited Edition

    Origin : CubaRomeo y Julieta
    Format : Grand Robusto
    Size : 140 x 21.43 mm (5.5 x 54)
    Ring : 54
    Hand-Made
    Price : ~13€ each

    Romeo y Julieta Duke is the biggest of 2009 edicion limitadas. It is a 5.5 x 54 grand robusto, slightly shorter than Montecristo Sublimes that I recently reviewed. This is not the first limited edition from the brand, far from that – Romeo y Julieta have released 7 LEs (more than any other brand), including this one. I cannot say anything about the older releases, but the most recent Escudo seems to be a decent smoke. I smoked two cigars for this review and they were pretty consistent in terms of flavor and construction.

    Appearance : [rating:4.5/5]
    The looks are there. Duke sports an extremely attractive shiny brown wrapper with several water spots and moderate veining. The sour intense smell has become a standard for any high quality Cuban. The cigar is well-packed without any soft spots. I easily removed the bands, cut the cigar and discovered a very easy, round pre-draw with notes of cedar.

    Construction : [rating:3.5/5]
    Although in terms of draw there is nothing to complain about, I was not totally satisfied by the burn on this stick – I needed to correct it several times to avoid funneling. Perhaps the wrapper was too moist and I should have dry-boxed it for a day.

    Flavor : [rating:3.5/5]
    It took some time to properly light the Duke but in the end I was rewarded with respectful portions of fresh, spicy smoke. The cedary flavors are not very powerful and provoke a pleasant tingling in the back of the throat. Little evolution until the end of the second third where I detect the addition of leather flavors. Until the very end (I let it rest when the burn arrived to the main band) there is also a faint taste of ammonia which indicates that this cigar might need a few additional years of aging.

    Value : [rating:3/5]
    Ranging from $10 to $20 depending on the country and/or the retailer, it’s hard to judge the value of this stick. Is it a box purchase? Not for me, for several reasons – I will outline them below.

    Overall Rating : [rating:3.5/5]
    I have written several times that I have never been impressed with a single smoke from Romeo y Julieta. Well, sorry to repeat, but it’s again the case here – whereas the Duke unquestionably has great looks and an acceptable construction, it doesn’t deliver in terms of flavor, especially if you paid over $15 for the smoke. Furthermore, a 54 ring gauge is almost ridiculous. On the other hand, this cigar has some ageing potential unlike the 2008 Cuaba. Although I enjoyed the Duke less than the Magnum 48, it might be a good idea to try at least one of these fat babies.

    Helpful?
    0 0
    • Mr. Little

      Bummer to hear the poor experiences of other smokers. I picked up a box of 10 last year in Dubai duty free after the attendant steered me towards them. Never been a big R&J fan, but I’m glad I listened this time. Wow. Awesome sticks, and they keep getting better after a year in my humidor. I was in Dubai last month, but they were all gone. 🙁

    • PTY

      Got a box about 8 months ago, had the first one the day I got the box. First one was pretty much as you describe, had the second one a week ago, after 8 months in the humi. It is MUCH better than the first one. No burn issues, flavors are strong, It’s better but I have no doubt it will be great with a yr or so in the humi.

    • JV

      I´ve just bought this cigar in Saudi Arabia for 24 USD (90 SAR), maybe I paid too much but for sure I will enjoy it with a good cognac.

    • jake

      Well, the average cost of this stogie in Spain, Switzerland is between $12 and 14 USD, which is a fairly cheap, compared to Padron Anniversary, Opus X by Fuente and other “must have” cigars, which go for over $25 a pop. Now, R&J Duke is a wonderful cigar with lots of flavor, aroma and really enjoyable to smoke. I am not going to completely review this gar. In the nutshell it is far superior to many overrated Dominican and Nicaraguan top rated smokes. As far as the price you pay in your country, blame it your merchants….not cigar.

    • Ricardo

      I was smoking a duke and reviewing it.
      I”m glad i’m not alone about i feel about it.
      I paid $33,00 in Brazil for one cigar, that’s 2x i pay for a partagas D4, it really does not worthy it! We have a lot of options for half price!

    • Keith1911

      I don’t know if I could spend $20 on a cigar than needs to sit for a couple years before I enjoy it.

    • Dsanders

      Nice review…bit harsh on R&J…I rather like the Short Churchills….

      Your review is exactly the reason I have yet to light this one up yet. Sitting in humidor still as I am afraid of similar instances like Cuaba LE. Too young…too soon.

      Instead…I went for a Cohiba Magicos and La Riqueza 1 over the weekend.

      Thanks for the reviews…as always.

    • Rich

      Thanks for the review. I was anticipating it to be a little more positive but just another example of “you can’t judge a book by its cover”.

    • Stephen P

      That’s a lot of money for a stick that’s basically just average. Thanks for taking the time to review it though.

    • DeaDMaN

      Ranging from $10 to $20…
      Well, a sad thing is, that in my country (Estonia) this fat boy costs around $26. And after reading this review I have completely lost the interest to try this LE. So thank you Mr. Inspector, You saved my money.

    • tobacmon

      I thought when seeing this great looking cigar it would be one worth the $$$–Looks can be deceiving–some of the ugliest smokes are some of the beat cigars. Thanks for the review!

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Cigar Region Cuba
Filler Cuban
Wrapper Cuba
Binder Cuba
Length 5 1/2
Ring Gauge 54
Vitola Grand Robusto
Construction Hand Made