Room 101 San Andres 213 Review |

I was mildly impressed with some of Room 101′s latest creations such as the “One Shot One Kill” and Namakubi release and on top of which I’ve been enjoying cigars with a Mexican San Andres wrapper such as the Ortega Serie D so I was looking forward to smoking the Room 101 San Andres. This cigar was released in 5 different sizes:

Papi Chulu: 4 x 42

#213: 5 1/2 x 44

#305: 5 x 50

#615: 7 x 48

#808: 6 x 60

From the press release:

As a follow-up to the highly rated OSOK limited edition, Room101 & Camacho announce the newest member of the 101 core line, Room101 San Andres. This latest installment is wrapped in a natural San Andres wrapper, which is grown by the Turrent family in Mexico. Medium in strength, this new blend is a departure from the taste profile normally associated with the existing Room101 lines. Moving away from the use of Dominican fillers, Matt Booth and Camacho focused on using some of the best raw material that the El Corojo farms had to offer. Ultimately, their choices narrowed and decided on using Corojo and Criollo for the guts of the blend.

Room 101 San Andres 213

Wrapper: Mexican San Andres

Binder/Filler: Honduran Corojo/ Honduran Corojo, Criollo, Dominican Corojo, Criollo

Size: 5 1/2 x 44

Vitola: Corona

MSRP: $6.00

Smoke Time: 1hr 20min

Drink: Water

Location: Twins Smoke Shop

Construction/Appearance:

The medium dark wrapper has a nice shine to it. I do like the appearance as the cap is well constructed and the veins are seamless. The wrapper is toothy with only a slight soft spot in 2 places as the cigar seems to be slightly underfilled looking at the foot. The band is nice with gold and brown tones throughout and fits the Corona vitola well. The band came off easily while smoking the cigars for the review. I think the Room 101 San Andres #213 passes the construction and appearance tests as an everyday cigar.

Burn/Draw:

I made an average cute across the foot and the cold draw is firm but smooth. The burn was uneven in the beginning with some jaggedness but it corrected itself in the 2nd third. I was impressed by the draw and was not airy or loose. While the smoke was velvety and average in terms of volume in the first half, the Room 101 San Andres #213 surprised me with the large amount of smoke it displayed in the second half. The ash itself lasted around 3/4 of an inch and looked like it might be falling any moment. It wasn’t tremendously flaky and surprisingly didn’t break up upon impact in the ashtray.

Flavor/Aroma:

The wrapper and foot aromas were similar to smells from a farm along with some rich tobacco. It definitely caught my attention. The initial draws was very spicy with coffee bean notes up front. In the first third, there is a mix of earthiness and rich tobacco but the spice is still dominating. After smoking other cigars with a San Andres wrapper, I certainly wasn’t expecting these flavors. This isn’t to say it’s good or bad, but just different. The aroma reminded me of hot coco powder which is pleasant.

In the second third, the spice dies down a bit. I can still pick up some earthy and black coffee notes as the more dominant flavors but there is a sweetness in the background that might be similar to graham crackers. It comes and goes but stands out when the sweetness makes itself known. The spice in the final third isn’t overpowering though it lingers for a long time on the finish. At this point, the main notes are earth and coco powder.

Final Thoughts:

I felt the second third was the best part of the cigar simply because the spice isn’t as dominating as it was in the first third. While not overly complex, #213 displayed some good flavors
There is a good amount of strength in the cigar, perhaps a tad bit more than medium bodied. For the size, I thought it has enough body and the decent amount of complexity could keep me occupied.
In terms of Room 101 latest releases, I thought this cigar has some good promise for aging. For me, I enjoyed the San Andres release a bit more than the Namakubi.
At the current pricepoint, you can’t go wrong trying this cigar. It should meet many of your expectations in a $6 cigar which is great for an everyday smoke. I’m sure there are a few things that can be improved in the flavor profile but that’s why you spend $10-$15 for those cigars.

Rating: 88

Related Links:

This cigar is available for purchase from Kurt at Twins Smoke Shop (603-421-0242). They also have the Ortega Serie D and Four Kicks corona gorda size as well!