In July of 2024, RoMa Craft released CRAFT Maquette La Maestranza, a limited edition cigar that was a petite gordo (4-1/4″ x 56). Honestly, that size held little interest for me, but after reading some reviews on it, I was pretty bummed that I missed out. The good news is that RoMa Craft added a new cigar to their regular production called Maestranza. The Maestranza comes in 3 vitolas (Catalonia, Murcia, and Valencia), all pressed, and shares the same tobaccos as the CRAFT Maquette La Maestranza. Skip Martin and Michael Rosales opted to sell the Maestranza in cabinets of 40. However, at $9, $11, and $10 MSRP, a cab of 40 doesn’t seem too expensive.Â
The cigar was named for the people who helped RoMa Craft achieve all they have. In an Instagram post, Skip Martin says this, “In an early episode of Chef’s Table (Season 1, Episode 3) Francis Mallmann uses the word ‘maestranza’ defining it as ‘the people who are around you helping’. It had resonated with me ever since.
I’m very excited to get this one out there and hope whatever success it achieves stands to honor all of the people who are, and have been, around me helping me to execute and realize the vision that was/is RoMa Craft Tobac and Nica Sueño.”
OVERVIEW
VITOLA:Â Â Valencia
SIZE:Â Â 6″ x 52
ORIGIN:Â Â Nicaragua
FACTORY:  Fábrica de Tabacos Nica Sueño S.A.
WRAPPER:  Mexican San Andrés
BINDER:Â Â Brazilian
FILLER:Â Â Dominican, Honduran, and Nicaraguan
STRENGTH:Â Â Medium – Full
SOURCE:Â Â Â
Small Batch Cigar
ENVIRONMENT
WHERE:Â Â
Studio/Lounge
WHEN:Â Â
November 3 @1pm
DRINKS:Â Â
Bottled Water
WEATHER:Â Â
Indoors
HOW MANY CIGARS SMOKED:Â Â
3
PRODUCTION
RELEASE TYPE Â Regular Production
ORIGINALLY RELEASE DATE Â October ’24
TOTAL PRODUCTION
Typical Box Size:Â Â Â Boxes of 40
Production Totals:Â Unknown
VITOLA BREAKDOWN
o  Valencia (6″ x 52)
o Murcia (5 ” x 60)
o Catalonia (4″ x 50)
BAND DESIGN
The band follows RoMa Craft’s design of a smaller, colorful band over a larger white band. The Maestranza is a bright yellow band with the RoMa Craft logo found on the back and Maestranza written in white. While the bright yellow is eye-catching, it is rather simple in its design. The larger white band has the initials of ever employee at Fábrica de Tabacos Nica Sueño S.A., where the cigar is rolled.Â
PRE-LIGHT OBSERVATIONS
CONSTRUCTION
The Mexican San Andrés wrapper is dark and inviting. It’s more rustic looking, with a few blemishes and dark spots found throughout the wrapper. The wrapper is toothy and a bit rough to the touch, but it has a nice oily sheen to it. The wrapper also has some bumps and veins to it. The pressed shape does help hide some of this, but it is still more rustic than not.
AROMA
The dark, San Andrés wrapper gives off big notes of barnyard, freshly cut hay, sweet tobacco, and a rich raisin note. The foot gives up notes barnyard, fruit, an earthy funk that is separate from the barnyard note, and sweet tobacco.
COLD DRAW
The cold draw reveals notes of dry cocoa powder, raisin, and baking spices.
SMOKING EXPERIENCE
LIGHT & DRAW
Cut: Le Petit by Les Fines Lames
Fire: Vektor SONICPUMP
The Maestranza starts off with big notes of chocolate, pepper, and spices. There is a pronounced citrus note that makes itself known. Black pepper on the retrohale. The Maestranza starts out as a flavor bomb that overwhelms your senses and seemingly announces itself. It primes your palate for what’s to come. A chocolate sweetness lingers on my palate. Cayenne pepper and cedar dance on my tongue.Â
SMOKE
The Maestranza has a great smoke output that is creamy and unctuous. It coats my palate and has a satisfying mouthfeel with each draw.Â
FIRST THIRD
>> Chocolate, Citrus, Cedar, Black Pepper
As the initial light fades away, the Maestranza leaves me with notes of chocolate, cedar, citrus, salted nuts, and black pepper on the retrohale. There is a saltiness that really accentuates the other flavors. The citrus note is sweet and is balanced by the bitterness of the wood note. Chocolate is the first thing I taste with each draw. Black pepper lingers on my palate. There are hints of baking spices with each retrohale. The ash is dark grey with black streaks, and compact. It looks like a stack of square nickels. The smoke is still creamy and satisfying. The burn is razor sharp. These are big, bold flavors that the Maestranza has in the first third, but I’m struck by how complex and balanced they are. The nuance of the citrus note, the spiciness of the cedar. The cedar/wood note is now the dominant note, as the chocolate begins to fade from sweet to semi-sweet. The first third is turning out to be medium+ bodied. Cayenne pepper gently claws at the back of my throat. Chocolate and citrus linger on my palate.
SECOND THIRD
>> Salted Nuts, Charred Wood, Cocoa Powder, Baking Spices
A big note of salted nuts heralds in the beginning of the middle third. Salted nuts is accompanied by notes of chocolate, sweet cream, a hint of wood, and an earthy note that holds it all together. Baking spices and white pepper on the retrohale really set off the other flavors. The smoke is still creamy and plentiful. The burn line has become a bit wonky since depositing the ash in the ashtray. The depth of flavor continues from the first third: chocolate covered nuts, coffee, baking spices, wood, and just a hint of cayenne. All of the flavors are still balanced, complex, and nuanced. Layers of flavor hit my palate with each draw. Leather and earth still flow underneath the other flavors, holding them up and giving them depth. Charred wood lends its voice to the chorus of flavors. Cocoa powder, graham cracker, and coffee are also there. The citrus returns but is more lemon-esque. The ash is less compact than before, but I would not call it flakey. The burn line is still a bit wonky.Â
FINAL THIRD
>> Avocado Oil, Leather, Chocolate, Black Pepper
Avocado oil, black pepper, campfire, coffee, a bit of chocolate, and a hint of cayenne pepper kick off the final third. The buttery note of avocado oil is a nice change. Baking spices and black pepper return to the retrohale. There are some pretty big flakes in the ashtray, but they only appear after I gently deposit the ash. The burn line is straight, but still a bit wonky. The citrus note that was so prevalent in the first two thirds is all but gone. The earthy, leather notes are more prominent but still act as backup singers. The Maestranza is definitely in the full bodied range now, but still smooth and full of nuance. It is not a pepper or spice bomb, though there are pepper and spice notes that add complexity. The Maestranza ends with a butter, pepper, chocolate, wood, and spices.Â
RATING & FINAL THOUGHTS
FLAVOR PROGRESSION
The RoMa Craft Maestranza was balanced throughout the smoking experience. The sweet chocolate notes blend seamlessly with notes of pepper, baking spices, and black pepper that give way to earthy and salty flavors with a wood forward profile. The final third shifts to a buttery undertone that holds up to earth, chocolate, pepper, and baking spices. Nuance and complex flavors are found throughout, making the flavor progression of the Maestranza one of the best I’ve had this year.
BURN EXPERIENCE
There was a wonky burn line every now and then? One cigar smoked for this review started to have a runner at the very beginning, but that quickly corrected itself. The burn on the Maestranza was almost perfect every time. Each cigar in this review did have some very light flaking after the ash was deposited, but is that really outside the norm?
RATING BREAKDOWN
0.73Â / 0.80 … Craft & Aesthetic
0.50Â / 0.50 …Â Pre-Light Characteristics
0.50Â / 0.50 …Â Lighting Process
7.03Â / 7.70 …Â Smoking Experience
0.49Â / 0.50 …Â Personal Enjoyment
COMPLIMENTS & CRITIQUES
- A wonderful experience of well-balanced, complex, and nuanced flavors.
- A very well constructed cigar
- I have no critiques other than the Maestranza looks "rustic."
NO GREAT THING WAS EVER DONE BY A SINGLE PERSON.
While most people (who are not narcissists) would agree with this statement, the Maestranza was made to honor that sentiment. It stands as a wonderful homage to those who tirelessly work to make something greater than themselves. The Maestranza is the perfect vessel to embody that sentiment. Full of complex and nuanced flavor notes that aren’t drowned out by the pepper and spices typically found in medium plus and full bodied cigars. The Maestranza allows subtle flavors of avocado oil, citrus, and chocolate to help carry the smoking experience forward. RoMa Craft has put out some great cigars over the years, but some of them have been a bit on the strong side for me. The Maestranza pulls back a little and puts all of the flavors in balance. In the day of the $20+ cigars, the $9/$10/$11 MSRP makes the Maestranza that much more remarkable. It certainly punches well above its price point.
