Review Hoyo de Monterrey Shade Cigar

Hoyo de Monterrey Shade cigars are Honduran puros made in Honduras entirely with Honduran tobaccos. These cigars became available in June 2025 in three sizes, including a Toro (6 x 52) priced at $7.49 per stick, which is the subject of this review. The Shade version joins the brand's new lineup along with Hoyo de Monterrey Rojo and Oscuro Cigars that were previously released during 2024. For more information about Hoyo de Monterrey Shade cigars, please check out the press release.

The sample Hoyo de Monterrey Shade Toro cigar started off as a very smooth and mild smoke having a nearly perfect draw. The flavor was unassuming but not bland, tasting something like a combination of dried grass and white bread. Hoyo de Monterrey Shade would be a great choice as a first cigar for beginner cigar smokers, and also for cigarette smokers who would like to make the transition to cigars.

The sample Hoyo de Monterrey Shade's flavor remained pretty consistent from start to finish. The cigar was very well made and did not require any relights nor touch-ups. It maintained an even burn throughout and held a long ash. I ashed the cigar three times at 15-minute intervals during the 60 minutes that it took me to smoke the sample down to 1½ inches remaining.

The cigar's excellent construction and great draw along with its mild body and flavor make it a very good choice for new cigar smokers, who will not be overpowered by the cigar's strength nor be disrupted by uneven burns or relights during their smoking session. As for more seasoned cigar smokers who may occasionally enjoy a mild cigar, other alternatives (such as Macanudo) would deliver just a bit more oomph, complexity and flavor than Hoyo de Monterrey Shade. However, since subsequent samples exhibited some notes of sweetness not present in the original, I have bumped up my initial rating of 3.5 points to a more favorable 3.75 on a 5-point scale.

Disclosure: Review samples were provided by the manufacturer.