RoMa Craft Tobac introduced two new cigars this year called the Neanderthal SGP and HN.  The HN is a figurado that is a regular production cigar and the SGP is a shop exclusive only for Serious Cigar in Houston, TX and Riverside Cigars in Jeffersonville, IN, both great cigar shops.  Here is the blend for the Neanderthal:

• Size:  4 1/4 x 52
• Wrapper: Mexican San Andreas Maduro
• Binder: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro
• Filler: Pennsylvania Double Ligero Green River Valley Sucker One, Dominican Republic Olor, Nicaraguan tobaccos from Condega, Jalapa, Pueblo Nuevo and Esteli
• MSRP:  $9.00/single, $121.50/box (prices from Serious Cigars)

Recently, Skip Martin of RoMa Craft Tobac was on a podcast from our friends over at StogieGeeks.com/Cigar-Coop.com where he explained the Neanderthal blend, specifically the Green River Valley Sucker One, along with their cigar news on the new SGP:

Martin had said as he was learning the blending process, he had originally looked at putting more ligero in a blend to achieve this.  He discovered this doesn’t really work out.  In a discussion with a tobacco guy in Nicaragua, Martin learned different tobacco types have different nicotine contents.  This person introduced him to the Pennsylvania Double Ligero leaf  (also known as Green River Valley Sucker One).  It is a regrowth leaf from the Pennsylvania Broadleaf.”.  While normal Esteli Ligero level has a nicotine content of of 5% to 6%, this Pennsylvania Double Ligero has a nicotine level between 9% and 13%.  This allowed Martin to increase the strength in the Neanderthal.   Much of why Martin added 8 fillers was to balance out the flavors and aromas from this Pennsylvania leaf.

I can tell you after smoking several of these that the nicotine and body of this cigar is very strong, but still very smooth and rich.  After lighting up the cigar, you are met with a blast of cayenne and black pepper spice with strong oak wood notes and a hint of sweetness.  After about the first 1/2 to an inch into the cigar, you starting getting a sweet cocoa note along with the oak and spice which I attribute to the the San Andres maduro tobacco.  The sweetness does take an edge off the kicked up cayenne and black pepper and gives it a nice balance.  The cayenne became somewhat subdued along with the black pepper around the midway point and the cigar developed a stronger sweet cocoa note with undertones of earthiness.  The cigar finished pretty much with the same flavor profile except the black pepper seemed to ramp back up a little.  Overall, I really enjoyed this cigar and loved that I grabbed a box.  I think the aging potential of this cigar is limitless and I’m anxious to see how this cigar develops after sitting a year or more.  I plan on buying another box for just that purpose.  The strength is a little more than I like now, but it’s a great cigar for a change of pace.  I can see it pairing well with just about anything from whisky, bourbon, bold wines like a cabernet or zinfandel, coffee or heavier beer like a stout or porter.  If you like strong cigars, but don’t want to give up flavor, balance and depth for the strength, you have to check these out.  RoMa Craft Tobac has yet another winner on their hands.

Here is a review of the Neanderthal HN from our friend Tony Casas at CasasFumando.com.

Also, here is another great review of the SGP from our friend Seth Geise at SethsHumidor.com.