Room101 Big Payback Extra Fuerte 70s cigars are made in Honduras with an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, Nicaraguan Estelí binder, and a blend of Honduran, Nicaraguan, and Dominican filler tobaccos. The cigars were released during April 2026 in one 7 x 70 size that's priced at $9.79 per stick. For for information about these cigars, please see the press release.
As with the previous two Big Payback cigars in the 7 x 70 size, this new Extra Fuerte version is not only supersized, but it's also blended to be fuller than the 2023 Redux and 2024 Maduro versions. Although I am not a big fan of the extra large size, I did find the Redux and Maduro versions to be very good cigars and rated them both with 4 points on a 5-point scale.
The sample Room101 Big Payback Extra Fuerte 70s cigar requires a large and sturdy cigar cutter (or cigar scissors) to ensure a clean cut. A multiple torch cigar lighter is also highly recommended. I used a triple torch to fire up the Big Payback, which took a couple of applications to get the cigar fully and evenly lit.
The initial taste was a very pleasant sweet and spicy flavor which remained dominant during the first 20 minutes when a leather taste started to become more noticeable. About five minutes later after the first ashing, the body began moving up from the medium-to-full range into the lower end of the full bodied range. The smoke was not overpowering, but definitely a bit stronger (extra fuerte). It was at this point about 30 minutes into the smoking session that the initial superior flavors (4.25 points on a 5-scale) moved down a notch to a still very good and enjoyable 4 points. The taste was a well-balanced combination of leather and sweet spice, which lasted for the remainder of the smoke.
The Big Payback Extra Fuerte 70s cigar had a good draw that delivered a nice volume of smoke. The cigar held a medium-length and thick ash. I ashed the cigar four times at about 25 to 30-minute intervals during the smoking session. The burn was uneven at times despite all my puffing and rotating, and needed four touch-ups at the 15, 25, 50 and 75 minute marks. After 105 minutes of total smoke time, the cigar went out and required a relight. I continued smoking for another 25 minutes when the cigar went out for the last time with about two inches remaining, resulting in a total smoking time of two hours and 10 minutes.
The humongous size of the Room101 Big Payback Extra Fuerte 70s cigar is its most distinguishing feature, but in this case, it's not all about the size. The flavors during the first 30 minutes were superior and did not fall off the cliff beyond that point, but still remained very enjoyable until the very end. Of the three versions of Room101 Big Payback 70s cigars, I consider this Extra Fuerte to be the best, and rate it with a very good to superior 4-plus points on a 5-point scale. Since we all smoke cigars at a slightly different pace, I suggest reserving at least 2½ hours if you want to smoke it all the way down.
Disclosure: Review samples were provided by the manufacturer.
