Ramon Allones Reserve Corona Gorda
Size: 6.12 x 50
Wrapper: Ecuador Sumatra
Tobacco: Honduras, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic
Price: $5.50

I picked up a box of 20 Ramon Allones Reserve cigars on CBid for $43, including shipping. It was a gamble; I had never tried one before, but I was hopeful since they are made by Villazon and come in the same dark Sumatra wrapper that made the Flor de Allones so good.

I broke open the box after 4 months of aging, and handed these cigars out at a poker game to celebrate my son's birth. Someone asked me if they were any good and I responded, "I don't know. They're a lot like my son, I don't know much about him yet either." Hopefully, the cigars are an omen, because they turned out well.

They have the same trademark taste profile common to most Villazon brands: just a hair shy of full-bodied; burn well; loose draw; lots of earth and gentle spice, as opposed to "pepper" spice. Smoke well with a single malt scotch.

I sort of feel that if you remove the bands, it would be hard to distinguish between HdM, Excalibur, Punch, Bolivar, Ramon Allones, and Flor de Allones in a blind tasting. If I were to rank the Villazon brands right now, it would be in this order:

1. Flor de Allones (tie)
1. Punch Gran Puro (tie)
3. Ramon Allones Reserve
4. Bolivar
5. Hoyo de Monterrey
6. Punch
7. Excalibur
8. JR Ultimate
9. Belinda
10. El Rey Del Mundos