If you thought the name “Red Pill” comes from a famous sci-fi movie, you would be wrong. However, if you listened to my first interview with Mo Maali, owner of Patina Cigars, then you know he comrs from the financial world. In fact, Maali was part of a team with the FDIC who was closing banks around 2008 and 2009. Then it should come as no surpruse that the name is actually derived from what Mo learned during that time. While ignorance may be be bliss, knowledge is power, and Patina’s Red Pill seems like it is setup to deliver a powerful experience.

Released in late October of 2025., the Red Pill comes in a 5″ x 54 box press robusto or 6″ x 54 box press toro. The Red Pill is manufactured at Nicaragua American Cigars S.A. (NACSA) in Esteli. The Red Pill features a Mexican San Andrés Oscuro wrapper, over a Connecticut Broadleaf binder, and fillers from the US and Nicaragua.

OVERVIEW

VITOLA: Toro Box Press
SIZE: 6″ x 54

ORIGIN: Nicaragua
FACTORY: Nicaragua American Cigars S.A. (NACSA)

WRAPPER: Mexican San Andrés Oscuro
BINDER: Connecticut Broadleaf (USA)
FILLER: USA & Nicaragua

STRENGTH: Medium – Full

SOURCE:
Small Batch Cigar

ENVIRONMENT

WHERE:
Studio/Lounge

WHEN:
February 24 @4pm

DRINKS:
Battled Water

WEATHER:
Indoors

HOW MANY CIGARS SMOKED:
3

PRODUCTION

RELEASE TYPE Regular Production

ORIGINALLY RELEASE DATE October ’25

TOTAL PRODUCTION
Typical Box Size: Boxes of 20
Production Totals: Unknown

VITOLA BREAKDOWN
o Toro Box Press (6″ x 54)
o Robusto Box Press (5″ x 54)

BAND DESIGN

The band is a striking red on black. The high gloss adds to the overall presentation of the cigar. The band features the brand and cigar name name, “Patina Red Pill” in raised almost foil like lettering. A red pill sits underneath it. It is a classic and elegant look, that I wish the box shared.

PRE-LIGHT OBSERVATIONS

CONSTRUCTION

The Mexican San Andrés Oscuro wrapper is dark brown and very little mottling. I also notice that each Red Pill has very few veins running through them. Each one is smooth to the touch. The cap appears to be expertly applied. The Red Pill just looks elegant.

AROMA

The beautiful Mexican San Andrés Oscuro wrapper gives off strong notes of Cedar and earth. The foot has a bit more to offer: musty earth, a barnyard funk, and a nice fruity note.

COLD DRAW

The cold draw reveals notes of powdered chocolate, dry fruit, earth, wood, and grass. The draw is near perfect on each cigar smoked for this review.

SMOKING EXPERIENCE

LIGHT & DRAW
Cut: S.T. Dupont x Fender Cutter/Stand
Fire: S.T. Dupont x Fender Ligne 2 Lacquered Lighter

The Red Pill immediately awakens my senses. The initial light has big notes of chocolate, wood, a musty earthiness, red pepper, baking spices, and nuts. Black pepper rules the retrohale. Wood, chocolate, and salted nuts linger on my palate. Hints of red pepper claw at the back of my throat. o.

SMOKE

The smoke is creamy, thick, and chewy. It leaves a pleasant coating on my palate. At rest, the smoke wafts from the foot of the cigar, almost dancing as it rises.

FIRST THIRD
>> Chocolate, Roasted Nuts, Earth Black Pepper

As the initial light fades, the Red Pill becomes more nuanced. Notes of sweet cream, chocolate, roasted nuts, salt, earth, and wood melt together with each draw. Black pepper on the retrohale. There is a meatiness to this first third…a savory umami note that lingers on my palate and provides a nice juxtaposition to the chocolate notes. Baking spices permeate the experience thus far. The burn is razor sharp and even on 2 of the 3 smoked for this review. The ash is compact, gray in color with streaks of black running through it. A hint of fruit comes and goes. Earth, baking spices, umami, pepper. There’s a brightness that peeks through the richness…not quite fruit or citrus, but I can’t put my finger on it. Chocolate and wood jockey for dominance while notes of salted nuts, cream, and baking spices are content to play in the background. The first third is medium-full bodied. The umami begins to ramp up at the end of the first third. Perhaps a sign of what’s to come?

SECOND THIRD
>> Coffee, Pepper, Vegetal, White Pepper

The middle third begins with notes of coffee, salted butter, cashews, and dark chocolate. Baking spices lurk in the background, but are much more subtle. Charred wood and umami lead the charge. Pepper and some baking spices on the retrohale. The smoke continues to be creamy and plentiful. The burn is still razor sharp on all 3 cigars and the ash is compact, except where it broke off when deposited in the tray. A minerality starts to come through. A vegetal note and cayenne pepper linger on my palate. The middle third is firmly medium bodied. It allows for the subtle notes of mineral, vegetal, and nuts to come through, while still delivering big notes of dark chocolate, coffee, wood, and earth. Roasted nuts, charred wood, and coffee dominate. The retrohale is white pepper and baking spices. High quality dark chocolate now lingers on my palate. The umami has all but faded into an earthiness. A grass note replaces the vegetal note. Sweetness lurks beneath all of it.

FINAL THIRD
>> Dark Chocolate, Baking Spice, Earth, Black Pepper

The final third begins with a ramping up to a full bodied profile. Notes of espresso, charred wood, roasted nuts, and red pepper all come through. Semi-sweet chocolate and a herbaceousness come through, too. There’s an almost black tea like quality to the Red Pill. Black pepper returns to the retrohale. Earth and nuts linger on my palate. A bit of the grassy note from the middle third lingers. The burn become slightly uneven on two of the Red Pill smoked during the final third, but neither required a touch up. There are a few loose flakes, but it is still fairly compact. The smoke is a little more dry, but not unpleasant, and still plentiful. Wood, chocolate, earth, baking spices all come through. They are flanked by notes of salted butter, red pepper, nuts, and a hint of umami. Subtle notes of mineral and grass can be detected, too. Bitterness gives way to sweetness, then vice versa as the Red Pill continues its full bodied march. Spice and pepper ramp up as powdered chocolate overtakes the espresso and wood notes. Umami lurks in the background with just a hint of minerality.

RATING & FINAL THOUGHTS

FLAVOR PROGRESSION

The Red Pill builds from notes of chocolate wood, umami, cream, baking spices, and pepper to a crescendo of coffee, charred wood, meaty umami, espresso and earth. The flavors are well balanced, allowing subtle notes of herbaceousness, minerality, and sweetness to ebb and flow throughout tje experience. The Red Pill is never boring and it beckons you to pay attention during each, well defined transition.

BURN EXPERIENCE

The Red Pill never required a relight or touch up. It maintained an even burn throughout most if the experience, only becoming slightly uneven during the final third. For its part, the ash did lose some cohesion in the final third of each cigar smoked for this review, but it was never egregious or annoying.

RATING BREAKDOWN
0.75 / 0.80 … Craft & Aesthetic
0.50 / 0.50 … Pre-Light Characteristics
0.50 / 0.50 … Lighting Process
7.10 / 7.70 … Smoking Experience
0.48 / 0.50 … Personal Enjoyment

COMPLIMENTS & CRITIQUES

SEE HOW DEEP THE RABBIT HOLE GOES.

This might be my favorite release from Mo Maali and Patina since the Oro de Nicaragua in 2024. To be clear he’s had 2 since then: the Patina LE and the collaborative release, Verdigris, with Tyler Jefferies of Viso Horny. The Red Pill starts strong and never really lets up, delivering powerful notes of chocolate, earth, wood, pepper, and baking spices. What struck me was how much nuance and subtlety was found in each third. Notes of nuts, cream, sweetness, herbaceousness, and minerality were woven throughout. The Red Pill will wake up even the most grizzled if aficionados while remaining approachable for the uninitiated.

SIMPLY STOGIES RATING: 9.33 / 10.0

Cigar Review: Red Pill Toro from Patina Cigars