The Aladino 85th Aniversario Reserva was originally planned as an 80th Anniversary. Even with the added delay it still comes two years after Julio Eiroa’s 85th Birthday.
Like many Aladino cigars this is a Honduran puro, but what sets it apart is the use of Pinareño seeds. It produces smaller yields of tobacco and is more susceptible to disease. Because of this the tobacco that was introduced to Honduras by Tino Agurdin in 1960 is rarely used. It’s not the first time that the tobacco was used however by the Eiroa family as the tobacco made it’s debut in a brand owned by Julio’s son Christian in the Asylum Sensorium.
The cigar which is part of the regular portfolio but will only be available to retailers to order a maximum of 4 boxes per month in the two sizes available: Robusto (5 x 50 / $17.50) and Toro (6 x 52 / $20.00)
Cigar Review: Aladino 85th Aniversario Reserva
Size: 5 x 50 (Robusto)
Wrapper: Honduran Pinareño
Binder: Honduran Pinareño
Fillers: Honduran Pinareño
Factory: Fabrica de Puros Aladino
Release Date: May 2025
Production: Regular (Limited)
Box Size: 20
The Cigar: The cigar uses elements of yellow which is Julio’s favorite collow and gold. There is the big A and Aladino in an off white background on the primary band which a secondary denoting 85th Aniversario Reserva. The light wrapper has some significant veins showing and minimal oils. In the hand the cigar is firm to the touch and has an average weight.
The Taste: The cold draw reveals an extremely grass like flavor profile that also sees a huge floral component. Meanwhile the foot of the cigar adds some cedar to the mix that stands out a bit more than the floral components on the aroma. Despite my local tobacconist telling me it starts off grassy it still caught me off guard at how strong that taste component was.
Once the cigar is toast and lit it continues with a heavy grass and floral component that pulls back considerably after the first inch. Once it does there are notes of cedar, vanilla and earth. As the first third comes to a close and the ash drops on my there we notes of pecans beginning to form that become less noticeable after the insulation dropped. The retrohale is creamy and floral through out the first third.
Moving into the second third my wife points out that the room aroma is floral. The second third starts with notes of pecans that pulls back around the half way point as the cigar sees a grassy and floral component emerge once again where this is also a subtle cinnamon present as well but you have to really look for it. As the second third comes to a close some spice begins to emerge especially on the retrohale where it is joined by some sourdough.
The final third sees the sourdough of the retrohale make its way to the palate where it serves as a secondary note to the grass/floral components. Additionally there are notes of cedar and brown sugar both of which are intensified by the retrohale which has a subtle rye spice to it. The cigar is different and for those curious there was about a half inch left when I finally put it down.
Conclusion: I’ve smoked 3 of Aladino 85th Aniversario Reserva over a period of two days. When I first lit one up I was generally thinking, “what the hell is this?” but it grew on me. I’ve been smoking cigars since 1998 and pretty much 3-5 day since then. If you figure in employee discounts when I worked in the industry, free cigars and all that I’ve probably spent north of $225,000 in cigars. Which is crazy if you look back at it. Anyway, I am getting sidetracked. After 27 years sometimes you want something different and Pinareño seed tobacco is definitely just that. I can see this cigar being extremely polarizing within the community. With that said I hesitantly want to say I like Aladino 85th Aniversario Reserve, but I am going to score it with an asterisk for now because I want to see if the novelty of something new changes my opinion in say 6 months. So just before it is time to start our Top 10 of 2025 look for this to be reviewed one more time.
Score: 92
Price: $17.50 (Before any local or state taxes)
