Patina Red Pill 5 x 54 BP

When laid out next to each other, the three Patina Red Pill cigars I am smoking for this review are so similar visually that I am not sure I could tell them apart if I had to. The wrappers are a dull, dark brown color with just a hint of oil, and while some veins are visible, all of them are flat. The box press provides a great look, and the red foil is a start contrast to the black background of the band. Aromas from each cigar are led by an interesting combination of milk chocolate and cinnamon, followed by peanuts, black pepper, barnyard, cornbread and terroir. Chocolate nougat and black pepper are the main scents emanating from the feet, followed by coffee beans, leather tack, white rice, dry leaves, and sawdust. There is also a bit of an ammonia scent emanating from the foot of all three cigars, but it is strongest on the third cigar and lightest on the second one. After straight cuts, powdery cocoa nibs and black pepper lead baker’s spices, pita bread, nutmeg, creamy cedar and dense brownie sweetness.

A combination of gritty earth, pepper and bitter espresso start the cigars off, but that combination is quickly replaced by main flavors of charred meat and oak. Secondary flavors of cocoa nibs, barnyard, dark chocolate, dry hay, stone crackers and chalk flit in and out, and while the first and third cigars have a small amount of horseradish flavor on the finish, the second cigar features a more standard earthy note. Interestingly, there is virtually no spice on my tongue or pepper on the retrohale, but the first cigar has plenty of milk chocolate sweetness, while the second and third cigars have more of a dense, fudge note. Flavor ends the first third at full, while the strength and body both hit a solid medium without too much trouble. There are zero issues for all three cigars, as the burn, draw and copious smoke production all work in harmony together.

During the second third, there are some changes as a vegetal flavor that strongly reminds me of raw asparagus combined with gritty earth takes over the profiles of all three cigars, although the earth flavor is stronger in the second cigar and the raw asparagus note is strongest in the third cigar. Additional flavors include creamy peanuts, bagel bread, oak, sawdust, cinnamon, cocoa nibs and leather, along with a touch of black pepper and fudge sweetness on the retrohale of all three cigars. The horseradish note is still present on the finish of the first cigar—albeit not nearly as distinct as it was in the first third—while the second and third cigars have a coffee bean note. Flavor remains at full for all three cigars, and while the body has increased to medium-plus, the strength stays put at a solid medium. Two of the cigars need burn corrections—my first cigar needs one, and the third cigar needs two—but those are the only issues when it comes to construction.

In the final third, the main flavors shift to a combination of powdery cocoa nibs and oak, followed by additional notes of cinnamon, creamy peanuts, earth, dry hay, sourdough bread, leather and charred meat. The raw asparagus note that was so prevalent in the second third is also present, but as the final third buns down, it fades until it is nothing more than a shadow of what it once was. Sadly, the horseradish note has dissipated from the finish of all three cigars, replaced by a coffee bean note. There is no change in the amount of pepper on the retrohale—i.e., there is very, very little—and while the fudge sweetness remains on the second cigar, the first and third cigars feature a new milk chocolate sweetness. Flavor ends at full, the strength ends at medium-plus, and the body ends at medium-full. My second cigar needs a quick touch-up close to the end, but all other aspects of the construction are problem-free.

Final Notes

• According to Maali, this cigar is also an homage to the Sultans of Smoke Max Press cigar that Maali and his friend Drew Brandt created for his podcast several years ago.
• When I read what the name of this cigar was, my first thought was the movie “The Matrix”, when the main character, Neo, is presented with the option to take one of two pills. The blue one would return him to his world of blissful ignorance, while the red pill would allow him to see the truth that the world he knows is a computer-generated simulation.
• Each of the cigars needed at least one correction to stay on track, but they were all minor in nature, and I never felt like things were getting out of control.
• Having said the above, the ash was extremely flaky and fell at random times. By the time I was finished each cigar, I had a small but not insignificant pile of ash collected to the side of my computer.
• According to the company’s website, the definition of Patina is: “an oxidation process that, over time, produces a green film over bronze or copper (i.e. a statue or building).”
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.

• These cigars are listed as being 5 x 54 vitolas. The measurements above are the ones we took.
• The final smoking time averaged out to two hours and one minute for all three cigars.

Brooks Whittington

I have worn many hats in my life up to this point: I started out as a photojournalist for the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, then transitioned to photographing weddings—both internationally and in the U.S.—for more than a decade. After realizing that there was a need for a cigar website containing better photographs and more in-depth information about each release, I founded my first cigar blog, SmokingStogie, in 2008. SmokingStogie quickly became one of the more influential cigar blogs on the internet, known for reviewing preproduction, prerelease, rare, extremely hard-to-find and expensive cigars, and it was one of the predecessors to halfwheel, which I co-founded.