Patoro Cuvée Royale XXV | halfwheel

In April, Patoro announced it would be celebrating its 25th anniversary by releasing a new cigar named Cuvée Royale XXV. The cigar was created to commemorate the founding of the brand in 2001 by Patrik Jonas Martin, who had worked for Oettinger Davidoff AG for more than a decade. Interestingly, in 2014, Dr. Pablo Richard, grandson of Dr. Ernst Schneider—the former owner of Davidoff—became a partner.

The limited edition was released in a single 6 3/10 x 53 vitola made entirely of Dominican tobaccos. While Patoro is a Swiss company, its cigars are produced at De Los Reyes in the Dominican Republic.

In the U.S., the Patoro Cuvée Royale XXV has an MSRP of $35 per cigar. Production is limited to 600 boxes of 20 cigars; half of that production shipped to American retailers in June, while the remaining 300 boxes are scheduled to ship to European stores this month.

“The Cuvée Royale XXV is meticulously crafted from the finest Dominican tobaccos, offering a rich and complex flavor profile that is sure to please aficionados around the world,” said Richard in an email to halfwheel. “This cigar is a celebration of our journey and the loyal customers who have supported us over the years.”

• Cigar Reviewed: Patoro Cuvée Royale XXV
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: De Los Reyes
• Wrapper: Dominican Republic
• Binder: Dominican Republic
• Filler: Dominican Republic
• Length: 6 3/10 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 53
• Shape: Round
• MSRP: $35 (Box of 20, $700)
• Release Date: June 2026
• Number of Cigars Released: 600 Boxes of 20 Cigars (12,000 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

Covered in a medium-brown wrapper with a decidedly reddish tint, the Patoro Cuvée Royale XXV have plenty of mottling along with some smaller bumps in places. Despite the lack of oil, the majority of the wrappers are smooth and have almost no tooth, though each does feature multiple long, protruding veins. All three cigars are much lighter than their size would suggest when held in my hand, but they are also extremely firm when squeezed with no soft spots. Sweet earth and creamy woodiness lead the aromas emanating from the wrappers, along with generic nuttiness, leather, straw and pungent barnyard. Due to the extremely small foot opening, there is not much of a difference in the scents compared to the wrappers, but I do detect a bit more woodiness on the first cigar and a sweet note that reminds me of raisins from the last cigar. After straight cuts, the cold draws are a bit different: all of the cigars have various amounts of oak, leather tack, earth, and baker’s spices, but the first cigar also features a light but generic fruity sweetness, the second cigar is creamier in nature and has more of a raisin sweetness, while the last cigar has an interesting—and not totally unpleasant—varnish flavor.

Due to the small foot opening, the first seven puffs are extremely tight with virtually no flavor, which is not exactly unusual for these types of vitolas. Thankfully, the draw quickly opens up, allowing the main flavors of aged oak and coffee beans to emerge. Secondary flavors of earth, leather, raw dough, almonds and herbs show up at various points, and although I can taste some mineral salinity on my lips from the first puffs on the first and last cigars, the second cigar is missing that note entirely, at least so far. Each of the three cigars has a generic citrus note on the finish—it is more intense on the last cigar than the other two—and they all have similar amounts of white pepper combined with honey sweetness on the retrohale. Flavor ends the first third at full, the body is mild at best, and the strength hits a point between mild and medium. One of the cigars needs two quick burn corrections to stay on track, but there is plenty of dense, off-white smoke, and the draw resistance is excellent.

During the second third, the second cigar sticks with the main flavors of creamy oak and coffee beans, but the first and last cigars switch to a brand new combination of sourdough bread and creamy hay. Additional flavors of nutmeg, dry earth, pita bread, raw peanuts and a touch of floral flit in and out, while the finish has morphed into a more distinct citrus note that reminds me of lemongrass. There is still some strong salinity on my lips for the first and last cigars, and while it is stronger on the last cigar, it has still not shown up on the second cigar. The retrohales are all over the map: while the amount of white pepper is fairly consistent, the first cigar now features a caramel sauce sweetness, the second cigar has the same honey sweetness from the first third—albeit a bit less of it—and the last cigar has a brown sugar sweetness. Flavor remains at full for the first and last cigars—medium-full on the second cigar—while the body has increased to land at mild plus and the strength has bumped up to a solid medium. Construction-wise, the burn lines on two of the cigars are problematic enough to require correction, but those are the only issues.

When it comes to the main flavors, the final third is a carbon copy of the second third: the first and last cigars continue to exhibit creamy hay and sourdough bread, while the second cigar does not budge from its coffee beans and creamy oak. Secondary flavors include less distinct notes of gritty earth, sawdust, nutmeg, pencil lead, cocoa nibs and leather tack. The mineral salinity is still noticeable on my lips for the first and final cigars—albeit not nearly as obvious as it was in the previous two-thirds, and it never shows up at any point for the second cigar—while the lemongrass note on the finish is unchanged. The most significant changes in the final third can be found on the retrohales—at least for the first and last cigars—as a new combination of white pepper and sweet peanut butter rises to the top, although the second cigar once again sticks with its combination of honey and white pepper. Flavor ends at full for cigars one and three—medium-full for number two—while the body hits a point under medium and the strength remains firmly at a solid medium. The only construction issue is a minor burn correction for the final cigar.

Final Notes

• Cuvée Royale is also the name of the flagship traditional sparkling wine produced by the French Champagne house Joseph Perrier.
• The star that Patoro uses for its logo always reminds me of the Texas flag when I see it on the company’s cigar bands, which is probably not all that surprising since I have lived in Texas since 1994.

• All three cigars had too much glue on their bands, as you can see in the photograph above. Thankfully, that glue did not cause any damage when I removed the bands.
• At first glance, the cap and the foot appear to be made in roughly the same shape, but a closer inspection reveals some differences: the foot is open and wider than the cap, which is closed and has more of a nipple shape to it.
• For the first cigar, I did not cut down far enough on the cap, and as a result, the draw was just a touch tighter than I would have liked, albeit still easily smokable. Cutting slightly more off of the other two cigars solved the issue nicely.
• This is one of those blends that is best when smoked slowly, as the flavors become noticeably harsher if you puff too fast.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.

• These cigars are listed as being 6 3/10 x 53 vitolas. Above are the measurements we took when we measured them.
• The final smoking time averaged out to one hour and 42 minutes 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.