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Unlit Impressions

As vibrantly banded and fiesta-focused as any other cigar in the Rojas "Tacos" lineup, this appropriately renamed Cinco de Gringo sitting in my blindingly Caucasian hand simmers in the sun. It is a rather ruddish, rich-looking maduro wrapper that has been rifled with attractive, smooth veins, and mixed teak wood mottling. Naturally, I take an immediate liking to the oily smoke and its signature Rojas Cigars appeal. These cats really do roll well-constructed smokes, and I am still a sucker for a crisp triple cap above that bright aqua blue and gold sombrero-hatted esqueleto.

Clove and coriander spike the nostrils with brighter spice, as black pepper, desert soil, and leather linger longer. Toffee truffled chocolate tries its hand at being noticed... but to no avail. One pull off the cut foot pushes more mixed Oaxacan mole spice at the throat and nose, as cinnamon starts to make the black pepper taste even hotter. Sweet and spicy, yet not a bit funky, the brightness of the aromatics turns dusty and darker with each cold draw. Meddling about in the center of the mix, I taste the maduro Connecticut Broadleaf. A　dark, fermented funk flavor that I have familiarized myself with many times over, and still struggle with appreciating on occasion.

During inspection, I also discovered that a portion of the partially closed foot had sluffed off, likely due to a jostle while in transit back from New Orleans. The wrapper developed a medium-size crack upon cut too, which upon closer inspection tells me that this is indeed a delicate habano maduro wrapper. 

Initial Smoke

On light, a small crack forms near the foot. Fuddleduds. This had best not devolve into a complete waste of resources and time. 

Dry and earthy to the point of being chalky, the foot burns past the wrapper split and buries me in a piñata full of spice and grilled meat. Roasted almost to char status, the sharpness of this year's remix is not what I was expecting. Where is all the sweet agave and cedar from last year?

1st Half

Ahh yes, there it is. The savory yet sweet taste of horchata and its soothing, malted milkiness. Cypress and cedar add a short-throw shift toward a resinous primary cigar flavor profile, and as coriander and clove kicks in, out comes a small sliver of salted skirt steak covered in a red mole marinade. Mmmm.... Street Tacos...

Floral almost to the point of potpourri, the heat of the cigar slowly grows more relaxed with every retrohale, and for much of the first half does not change in profile. I like this immensely, as the taste of authentic Latin flair fills my nose and mouth. So many spices and dark sensations. I think next time around I should be eating something with this cigar.

Rojas' boncheros and torcedores nail it again with the first hour's draw, ash, and burn building without waver. Mixed with the flavors and aromas listed prior, things hit a heavy medium immediately once the second third strikes, where they maintain their hold until the very end.

2nd Half

Meatier and funkier, the Connecticut tobacco inside has its way with the second third any which way. Mixed wood tannins, a taste of mesquite BBQ sauce, more mole, and a much more menacing retrohale tell me that the very last of this cigar is going to hit picante mode at any moment. 

Flirting with being full-flavored, the final third folds each end of its doughy torta shell takes a deep breath, and tells you that it is ready for its big mocha moment. How do you know? Mexican hot cocoa homekillet. Maduro darkness has finally made it onto the scene. Time for a final take and let's hope for something sweeter.

Parting Puffs

I should have referred to the last section of this smoke as "parting poofs," because that is what happened the moment I debanded this blend. Mocha, and any sign of milkiness or sugar for that matter went up in a "poof" of smoke, never to return. Replacing these delicious final anecdotes was a diligent direction toward dark, charred BBQ hardwood, and a sharpness that irritated the throat and nose. Sigh...

Ash / Burn / Smoke / Draw

"Touch-ups? We don't need no stinking touch-ups!"

Shoutout to those of you who recognize this augmented comedic quote. Additional kudos to Rojas for rolling smokes that consistently burn on an A+ scale. Cool and perfectly coned after each ash discard, the right amount of resistance on this cigar somewhat speedily shows a flakey, occasionally dirty-looking ash. No worries, the winds were wild during my review, so I left feeling pretty impressed by the performance of this year's blend. 

Final Thoughts 

While I cannot say that my fears were well-founded, I must admit that there was a certain level of disappointment over this year's Cinco de Mayo Street Tacos from Rojas Cigars. Last year I found myself awash in waves of sweet cedar and milky cream, accented by strips of fruity red and star anise inspired black licorice. This year I got a hint of this, but it was far sharper and spicier, almost to the point of being harsh at times deeper toward the final third.

The fact that this was a one-and-done quick take does require some forgiveness though, as I typically prefer to smoke at least two or three of the same blend prior to conducting a review. How the cigar overcame its ash issues and hit a whole other end of the cigar-smoking spectrum certainly made me think twice about my overall assessment as well. The same was true for the mildness of the Connecticut Broadleaf "barnyard" built into the blend, and how my lighter never needed to be brought back out after ignition. 

However, this was not enough to overcome the sharpness of the smoke that struck my senses. While many of the best moments from last year's version are still encapsulated within each leaf, and the blend is very similar to the 2024 model in how it looks, the 2025 release does not feel nearly as refined.

Ergo, part of me is fine with the fact that we stocked just a set amount of Cinco de Mayo 2025 version of Street Tacos. We have just enough sticks in stock to keep fans of peppery, leathery, earthy, wood-fire grilled BBQ cigar flavor profiles appeased, and that is what we feel that Noel Rojas was after this time around. 

And thus, we are left with one final conundrum: Should we score a few more for aging for a vertical release next year, and see if the blend mellows out a bit? Or should we invest elsewhere and get something else from Rojas in the interim? You tell us, and we will see what we can do because some extra age is likely what this agreste 2025 release needs, but we also understand if ya'll want to see something different.

Stogie Specs