There has been a lot of questions as to what the difference is between the Rocky Patel Edge Sumatra and the new Rocky Patel Renaissance. Rocky Patel discontinued the Edge Sumatra and now claims that Renaissance is basically the same cigar. The other day I got a chance to smoke both about 4 hours apart, both in the Toro size.
I started with the Edge Sumatra that I got from my friend Rich. The Edge Sumatra was rated in the Cigar Aficionado’s Top 25 Best Cigars of the Year 2007 and scored a 91. The MSRP on this cigar was $5.25. The Edge was excellent. It has that typical Sumatra sweetness and it was extremely well balanced and it was very smooth and did not have alot of spice.
About 4 hours later I had the Renaissance. This cigar was released at 2008′s IPCPR and retails for $7.75. It too had the typical Sumatra sweetness but was rather rough around the edges. It is fuller in bodied and is a lot more spicy.
In all they did have some similarities the but the Edge is hands down a better cigar. It was smoother, more balanced and the flavors were more pronounced. The Renaissance was slightly overpowered by all the spice, but don’t get me wrong I like the Renaissance. I do believe if my Renaissance had as much age (about a year or so) as the Edge did, I think they would be a lot closer than what it really was. If you stumble on some RP Edge Sumatra’s for MSRP GRAB THEM! For $5-$6 they are well worth it. Your second step is to send some to me.
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The site’s looking good man. Add some pictures next time, it’s always nice to see what the cigar looks like.
Great comparison, I think you are right on mark…
In all honesty: I love my Rocky P’s. For me it is the Rocky Patel Sun Grown Junior. The taste and the draw is great and they are not that expensive. Really good to enjoy myself.
In all honesty: I love my Rocky P’s. For me it is the Rocky Patel Sun Grown Junior. The taste and the draw is great and they are not that expensive. Really good to enjoy myself.
Not to disparage your comparison, but could age have something to do with it? The Sumatra Edge haven’t been produced in a few years, and it is completely possible that you were smoking an aged Edge vs a fresh Renaissance.
Just some food for thought before writing off the Renaissance.
Personally, I have had neither – though I am a big fan of the Edge corojo line.