Avo South American Ritmo

Hey readers, Carl here with another cigar for you as we kick off the holiday shopping season. At my humidor, we are focusing a lot on expanding brands and celebrating the names that have made our humidor one of the top cigar destinations in the entire Western New York Area. Brand names like Drew Estate, CAO, Macanudo and Padron have been a huge part of our business this year, and this month we are celebrating those brands with very aggressive deals and swag bundles across the board. We are also working on expanding many brands that we are interested in smoking more as we turn the calendar to 2023. One of those brands is Avo, a storied line of cigars with lots of gems hidden inside of their portfolio.

The personal story I have with Avo cigars is one of my favorite cigar memories. When I was younger and cutting my teeth in the cigar industry, I had a night shift at my local smoke shop. This meant seeing a lot of regulars, cleaning up, sampling different cigars and watching sports with the patrons, for the most part. Since my shift started in the evening, I did not get the opportunity to speak with many of the different cigar representatives that would come in to promote their brands. Every great now and then I would get lucky (usually seeing Max from Rocky Patel and nobody else) but one night I caught a new friend, Andrew from Davidoff, who hung around as I started my night shift.

Andrew had spent the day at my shop and left behind quite a few samples, including a Toro-sized version of the Avo South American Ritmo. I smoked it that night, and as a man who is not too often wowed by a cigar, I was instantly into it. The cigar had so much kick right off the bat and smoothed out into a rich, earthy and minty (I know, strange) treat from a brand that I had not dabbled too much in. I loved the Ritmo so much that I bought another one from the shop to smoke during the end of my shift, and a week later, when the world shut down due to COVID-19 in March 2020, I grabbed a box to smoke one every day during the extended lockdown.

The Avo Ritmo single-handedly brought me through the pandemic with peace. Now, I'm here to try it again after falling astray and seeing if the magic is still there. Let's smoke it!

For this review, I snagged a Robusto Ritmo. I received plenty of Robusto Ritmo here in the shop this month, mainly due to the fact that it's the best size for the weather conditions in my region of the country. I think the Ritmo, and the entire Avo line, is a great consideration for a quick outdoor smoke because of their perfect size and availability in box press, meaning they smoke a little quicker and provide a much more open draw to help you get through them just a touch quicker if you are trying to withstand the cold and snow.

The first few draws of the Ritmo are explosive: instantly, pepper and earth reach the back of your throat and let you know that this cigar is going to sit on the medium to full end of the spectrum in terms of body. There are some heavy hits in the first 25 pulls of this cigar, and while you won't glean too much flavor outside of the aforementioned notes, it is an introduction that will certainly have full-body cigar smokers excited for what is to come. I must note that there is a stark difference in body between the Robusto and the Toro-sized version of this cigar, and with so much blend tobacco in the smaller Robusto version of the Ritmo, it's no surprise that the smaller cigar boasts a bit more body and punch than what I remember from the Toro.

The first third of the Ritmo dances with pepper, earth, and dark espresso. I was so impressed with the profile of this cigar through the first third as it transitioned from a very strong beginning to a medium-plus profile in only a few pulls. That complexity through the first few pulls was not usual of a lot of the cigars I smoke, and is usually only offered in more expensive selections from our humidor. It makes sense, as this cigar retails for around $10 dollars in many humidors, including my own. The remainder of the first third kept these normally strong notes and introduced a small amount of cabinet spice, which I'd attribute to the Habano wrapper. I get this note a lot from Habanos, which is why I tend to favor them so much. 

It should be noted I did not have the testicular fortitude to retro-hale the first third of this one. Your mileage may vary.

Into the second-third of this cigar is where it begins to truly shine. The body mellows out quite a bit, and there is some woodiness and cocoa to the cigar. I can attribute the cocoa notes in the Ritmo to the Brazilian tobacco found inside of this one; cocoa is a note that I find to be the trademark of Brazilian blends, and I have had plenty of fun tasting this same note in different cigars such as the CAO BX3. Wood is not as represented throughout this one, but a hint of it can be found underneath. The cigar notably begins to pick up some intensity again as you get closer to the finish of this one. It is one of the most complex cigars I've smoked, and it is certainly an experience in itself. A lot of cigars just do their one thing really well, and those cigars are awesome, too, but this one changes quite a bit through every portion of the smoke. It's really interesting and something to pay attention to.

The last third of this cigar is a full-body kick with loads of flavor; sort of a combination of what the first and second-third brought with it. The finish of this cigar has a distinct chili flake flavor to it, which is actually impressive considering how it started with some sweet and earthy flavors. It is certainly spicy and hot throughout the end of the smoke, and it's a fantastic way to finish such a complex and evolving cigar. I would not call this a cigar for the novice smoker, and it could probably only be truly appreciated by someone who has smoked a lot of cigars. I'd venture a guess and say that this cigar would be most enjoyed by someone who pays attention to their smokes, can identify some flavor notes here and there, and can also identify the evolution of a cigar as you smoke it. It's interesting, which is the biggest hook for me, and it's unlike a lot of cigars I sell in my humidor.

The Avo Ritmo is an excellent smoke for the cigar connoisseur who enjoys a constantly evolving experience. It is strong, so you won't like it if you like milder cigars. If you like them full body, though, this is one you'll want to reach for and savor slowly. Give it a whirl!

Carl