Back in 1996, Christian Eiroa created the all Honduran blend of the Saint Luis Rey, back when the brand was owned by Max Rohr Imports Inc and Christian was working for his father, Julio. While this cigar celebrates the 30th anniversary of the non-Cuban iteration of Saint Luis Rey, the original Cuban version first began sometime around 1940, when it was developed as an exclusive to the U.K. market. The Eiroa’s have been using the Pinareño tobacco in their releases over the last few years and it appears that this cigar would be no exception, using Columbian Pinareño for both the wrapper and in the filler. This tobacco is hard to cultivate as it is extremely susceptible to blue mold.
Under the Lid
- Origin: Honduras
- Factory: C.L.E.
- Wrapper: Colombian Pinareño
- Binder: Honduran Corojo
- Filler: Honduran Corojo & Colombian Pinareño
- Size: Toro (6 x 54)
- MSRP: $13 / Box of 25 – $325
- Release: April 2026
- Production: Limited Production
The Saint Luis Rey Eiroa 30th Anniversary is also available is the following sizes:
- Rothchilde (5 x 50): $12
- Torpedo (6 x 52): $12.50
- Titan (6 x 60): $13.50
Pre Light
The Saint Luis Rey Eiroa 30th Anniversary is a round parejo featuring a gold and red band with a classic old-time Cuban look to it. It is wrapped in the signature Eiroa tissue paper three-quarters of the way up. Upon removing the tissue paper, I see a somewhat oily wrapper with small bumps and minor veins with a nice milk chocolate color. The cold draw is a little flat. I don’t really pull much off of it yo be quite honest. It is cool and slightly sweet however other than that, the cold draw was a bit unflavored. This is not necessarily a bad thing as people don’t buy cigars just to cold draw them so let me get the cigar lit and go from there.
First Third
The first few puffs come in and they are very dry on the palate. There is some earthy bitterness to it, but no pepper and little to no spice. In fact, I get this very woody mushroom-like flavor from the SLR Eiroa 30th Anniversary that I did not expect, but makes sense based on what I know about this cigar. I liken it to a grilled portobello mushroom without the juice, just a dry mushroom. There’s an underlying note of freshly shelled walnut below that and it works quite nice together. But so far the first impression is the flavor is very mild, which I didn’t expect if I’m being totally honest. There continues to be a lack of pepper and spice notes, at least for me, as I continue to smoke well past just the foot of this cigar and I am left wondering – what happened?
On the other hand, the construction quality has been very good I have not experienced any issues with burn, the draw or anything else. The cigar hasn’t needed any touch ups, has been burning evenly, and is giving off plenty of smoke. The profile of this cigar is mild plus to medium for me.
Second Third
Transitioning from the first third to the second third, there is now some more pepper notes that appear at the front of the pallet and the tip of the tongue. However, the favor profile is still surrounded by more of an earthy feel. There is an introduction of some bakers chocolate but the nuttiness hangs around even more. I keep getting a hint of dry plain hummus as well so all of these notes are going well together. I can get behind it and it’s honestly quite a different change of pace from a lot of the stuff I’ve been smoking lately so it’s kind of fun. Throughout the cigar, the burn has been pretty even while giving off plenty of smoke production and breathing quite well. I would say that it’s burning at a pretty normal pace, not too fast not too slow. The cigar is not getting too hot so construction wise it’s great and the flavor is not being affected.
Final Third
In the last third, the flavor does ramp up and gets a little bit more meaty, with some char, some roasted garlic and balsamic. At this point, there is an inrush of much more pepper. In addition, I get some chard oak and some nutmeg. To be honest with you I think the last third is my favorite spot, not that the other two spots were that bad, but I think it has the most character. I am happy with the transitions in this cigar and if anything, my only wish was that what I experienced in the final third with more prevalent in the first two thirds, which would hav probably bumped this up a few extra points.
Smokin Wrap
All in all, this was a pretty good cigar, but average at best. As I said before, if the rest of the cigar was as complex as the final third was it probably would have scored a bit higher. There were no construction issues, which is honestly half the battle. After finishing the Saint Luis Rey Eiroa 30th Anniversary, I felt while it was a good cigar, I have seen better from Christian Eiroa but this cigar was without a doubt an Eiroa cigar. It had the right feel to it the entire time that any experienced smoker would most likely pick up on if they smoked it unbanded.
Smokin Facts
- Average smoking time: 1 hour 55 minutes
- Cigars Were Purchased by Smokin Tabacco
- Altadis U.S.A. Does Not Advertise with Smokin Tabacco
- CLE Cigar Company Does Not Advertise with Smokin Tabacco
