Cigar Review: Señor Rio Diamante

Senor Rio DiamanteVitola: Petite Corona
Size: 5″ x 40 ring gauge
Price $9.99 at Total Wine Brea
Obtained From: Señor Rio as a review sample.

Background

A couple weeks ago I looked at the Añejo cigar from Señor Rio and today I’ll be looking at their other new cigar, the Diamante.  This cigar was blended by Debbie as something both women and men to enjoy.  This cigar is also produced by AJ Fernandez and is comprised of Nicaraguan fillers, a Nicaraguan binder along with an Ecuadorian habano claro wrapper.  They come packed in 20 count boxes and the MSRP is $8.00.  This cigar was the third one I smoked.

Prelight

The first thing I notice on this cigar are the bands,  specifically the second band.  It has a design that makes it looks like there is a large jewel on it and it does sparkle in the sunlight.  The wrapper is a medium peanut brown in color with some darker mottling to it.  There were some fine and medium veins and a good amount of oils to it.  The box press was soft and it was a little squishy when I gave it a squeeze although there were no soft spots.  As I put my nose to the wrapper I could detect the aroma of hay with barnyard coming from the foot.  After clipping it and taking a cold draw on it I got some light hay and sweetness with a good draw.

Flavor

The cigar starts off with a good amount of spice on the tongue and retrohale.  After a few puffs on it I started to get some cream, cinnamon, sugar, graham, and some green herbs.  The cigar starts off medium full strength.  As I got into the second third the spice started to tone down but not go completely away.  The flavors changed slightly to cedar, cream, leather and graham with a sweet finish.  The cigar’s strength stayed steady at medium full.  The final third saw the finish with pretty much the same flavors with the spice returning, although not as strong as the first third.

Construction

The draw on this cigar was perfect and it produced a huge volume of smoke.  The burn was slightly ragged but never needed any correction.

Value

At the MSRP it would be something I’d pick up to have once in a while but $10 is just a little high to me.

Conclusions

Overall this was a very tasty cigar.  I smoked one of these with cup of coffee in the morning and I really enjoyed it.  It is a fairly quick smoke, a little less than 30 minutes, and would work great for when you don’t have a lot of time but want something that has a lot of flavor.  I just wish they were less expense.

By-The-Numbers

Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: .5/1
Total: 8.5/10

Keith Hollar

Keith has been a cigar enthusiast since 2003 and it's rumored that he remembers details about every single cigar he's ever smoked. He wrote for Tiki Bar Online for four years before co-founding Leaf Enthusiast. Twitter: @Keith1911

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12 Responses

  1. dale427 says:

    Thanks for the review. I’ll pass.

  2. Miguel Rocha says:

    It sounds like a good beginner cigar! Thanks for the review!

  3. Mark VanSledright says:

    I dig the size and the flavor profile but the price tag seems a little steep for a small rg cigar with a short smoke time. Great review.

  4. BlackBetsy1919 says:

    That is extremely a quick smoke for a 5′ cigar. Thanks for the review, but this does not sound like it’s up my alley

  5. czerbe says:

    Keith as always a very prompt post this morning! Thank you for that.

    • Keith1911 says:

      I’m guessing that she is meaning that it isn’t too strong.

      • czerbe says:

        I assumed that but I have seen women smoke really strong cigars, and men smoke mild to mediums and nothing higher. I’m not sure I agree with her classification of it.

  6. atllogix says:

    Thanks for the review. Sounds like I wouldn’t turn it down but also wouldn’t actively seek it out.

  7. Tim says:

    Sounds like a little sweet quick lunch break smoke or even for a beginner. I myself like the 60- 90 minutes smokes so this might just be one that I would pass along. Thanks for the review Keith.

  8. Texican says:

    Other than the price it sounds enjoyable.

  9. Christopher Brose says:

    I like the idea of it being a quick smoke and sounds like a good morning cigar. Just need to find some on sale or something to be worth it.

  10. Craig says:

    Sounds like a good cigar but for the price I would look other places.