Both the Hoyo de Monterrey Rojo and Hoyo de Monterrey Oscuro cigars are made in Honduras, and contain Dominican, Honduran and Nicaraguan filler tobaccos. The cigars were announced in June 2024, and each blend is available in three sizes priced between $5.99 and $8.49 per cigar. The Rojo version is made with a Honduran wrapper and Nicaraguan binder, while the Oscuro version features a Brazilian Mata Fina Oscuro wrapper and an Ecuadorian Sumatra binder. This is a review of the Toro sizes (6 x 52) of both cigars that are each priced at $7.49 per cigar. For more information and/or to view a short video about these cigars, please check out the press release.
Review of Hoyo de Monterrey Rojo Toro Cigar
The sample cigar began with a very pleasant medium-bodied tobacco flavor with just the right dose of mild spice. The smoke was not very complex, but was smooth and enjoyable. There was not much of a change until about 20 minutes into the smoking session, when the spice began to gradually fade and some intermittent notes of citrus emerged that lasted for the duration of the cigar.
The Hoyo de Monterrey Rojo Toro was very well constructed, and took me 60 minutes to smoke down to two inches remaining. During that time, the cigar had a very good draw, even burn and held a long ash. No touch-ups nor relights were required.
The first 20 minutes of the cigar were the most enjoyable, worthy of a very good 4-point rating on a 5-point scale. However, the flavor began declining after that point, eventually reaching a mediocre 3.5 points at the end. Overall, a decent rating of 3.75 points would be appropriate.
Review of Hoyo de Monterrey Oscuro Toro Cigar
This sample cigar began with a fuller peppery-spice flavor that was medium-plus to medium-full bodied, and not as smooth as the Rojo version. However, the cigar began to mellow out a bit after the first five minutes, but was still stronger than the Rojo though not at all overpowering. The taste began to improve at this point and was certainly more complex than the Rojo. After another five minutes, subtle hints of sweetness emerged. After a total of 20 minutes into the smoking session, notes of citrus also began to develop, but were not as noticeable as with the Rojo. After an additional 10 minutes, the taste began to deteriorate just a bit, delivering less sweetness and spice. However, the flavor was still somewhat enjoyable until dropping another notch near the very end.
It took me 70 minutes to smoke the Hoyo de Monterrey Oscuro Toro down to two inches remaining. Throughout the duration of the smoking session, the cigar had a very good draw, even burn and held a long ash. No touch-ups were needed, but the cigar did go out one time at the 45-minute mark, which then required a relight.
Although my level of enjoyment of the Oscuro version of the cigar changed several times while sampling it for this review, the Hoyo de Monterrey Oscuro Toro was still worthy of a decent rating of 3.75+ points on a 5-point scale, resulting in a slightly better overall rating than the Rojo version.
Conclusion
The Hoyo de Monterrey Rojo would be an appropriate cigar for all levels of cigar smokers, while the Oscuro version is geared more to experienced smokers. In my opinion, both versions of these cigars have the potential to improve after spending some additional time in a humidor. Although most cigars do improve with age, this is more typically the case with modestly priced cigars.
Disclosure: Review samples were provided by the manufacturer.
