The Setting:
Morning on a Saturday. It’s a balmy 80 degrees on the Porch, with a slight breeze. All in all a good day to enjoy a cigar, and today I chose the Rocky Patel Fusion. Birds are chirping, trees are gently swaying, and a fresh rain has fallen. It’s a day that just says “chill.”

I must admit up front that I’m only a fan of a couple RP cigars, namely the vintage ’92 and ’90 series. It’s fitting, because the Fusion is mix of both blends. The wrapper is the Honduran Connecticut from the ’90, and the binder is the Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper of the ’92. Let’s see how she smokes, shall we?

The Main event:
The draw on this stick is VERY loose, and it’s very smooth to the eye. I used a simple guillotine cut to open it up, and the cap immediately fell off. Disturbing to say the least. RP has been all over the market lately with new editions, almost to the point that it feels like he just repackages extra tobacco and calls it something new. This cigar, to me, had the look and feel of a cuban sandwich, that is, a combination of medium and short fillers, but I trust this isn’t the case. Pre-light draw tasted of wood and spice. I fired up with a triple torch lighter and was off to the races.

The first third of the Fusion was laced throughout with notes of black tea and fruit. I narrowed it down to a dark berry flavor, almost like a blackberry. I don’t often get fruit tones from cigars, but this was very pronounced. The burn was only even for about an inch, after which it went uneven and continued to do so throughout. The ash was flaky and broken. Once again, like a medium filler cigar.

The middle third warmed up a little, but still carried that fruit flavor with a new addition of woody undertones. Much like the aroma of a house after baking blackberry pies. At this point however, the crooked burn more than annoyed me, but the flavor was overall pretty nice.

The final third introduced an onslaught of dark roast coffee that I didn’t expect. The strength of the smoke also greatly intensified until, at the end, it became too much for me. I let it go with about two inches left.

Overall, the RP Fusion struck me as a cigar without an identity. It isn’t necessarily a smoke I would seek out, but for those of you who like a strong cigar with powerful flavors you need to give it a shot. I give it a 7/10. I’d certainly like to thank StogieReview.com for allowing me to share this review, and CigarsDirect.com for supplying the smokes.

Best!