Gran Habano Corojo No. 7 Corona Especial

When I think about cigars that I have seen in retail humidors for longer than I can remember, one brand that inevitably comes to mind is Gran Habano. While the Rico family traces its tobacco roots to 1920, it wasn’t until 2003 that the family would introduce the Gran Habano line of cigars, debuting with the Connecticut No. 1, the Habano No. 3, and the Corojo No. 5.

While I don’t have the sales numbers to back this claim up, I think of the Corojo No. 5 as the headliner of that trio. Whether it’s the red-dominant presentation or that the profile aligned most with my preferences, it’s certainly the one that stands out. So when I saw that a pair of Gran Habano Corojo limited editions were coming out under the name Corojo No. 7, I was intrigued, while the green packaging felt like a real departure for the line.

The Corojo No. 7, which was announced in June 2023, is an all-Nicaraguan blend, using a hybrid corojo-seed wrapper from Jalapa, while the binder and filler are also corojo leaves. It is billed as a stronger blend than the Corojo No. 5, which had been described as the strongest cigar in the company’s portfolio. It debuted in a 6 x 54 toro size that was packaged in 10-count leather cases when it was released in July 2024.

In February 2025, the company announced it was expanding the line with the Gran Habano Corojo No. 7 Corona Especial, a limited edition 7 x 46 corona extra. It would be nearly a year before the cigars would be released, heading to stores in February 2026. The cigars come in 10-count petaca-style cardboard boxes, a packaging trend that the company has been utilizing more recently. Pricing is set at $15.60 per cigar and $156 per box, with only 200 boxes produced.

“With the Corojo No. 7 Corona Especial, we wanted to offer aficionados a size that truly showcases the depth and complexity of this award-winning blend,” said the company in a press release.

• Cigar Reviewed: Gran Habano Corojo No. 7 Corona Especial
• Country of Origin: Honduras
• Factory: G.R. Tabacalera Unidas S.A.
• Wrapper: Nicaragua (Corojo Hybrid)
• Binder: Nicaragua (Corojo)
• Filler: Nicaragua (Corojo)
• Length: 7 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 46
• Shape: Round
• MSRP: $15.60 (Box of 10, $156)
• Release Date: February 2026
• Number of Cigars Released: 200 Boxes of 10 Cigars (2,000 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

I really like the long, fairly slim vitola of the Gran Habano Corojo #7 Corona Especial; it’s not as thin as a lancero, but still thinner than a toro, giving it presence in the hand without feeling like a log. The wrappers are on the darker side, and each has a good number of bumps and veins, but they also each have a slightly oily feel to them, though the third cigar feels drier than the others. The first and second cigars sit right in the sweet spot between being firm and having some give. I don’t know exactly what it is about the third cigar, but it feels a bit different than the other two, with a slightly more inconsistent density, as I notice some soft spots but also some rather firm ones. The foot of the first cigar has a cool aroma that reminds me of a chilled white wine but with some pepper. The second cigar is much more subdued, with what I want to call a mixed-berry jelly and a touch of damp, rich earth. The third is different as well, with a bit of green bell pepper that quickly turns to dry cardboard with black pepper on the finish. The cold draw of the first cigar is near ideal; smooth and easy but with just a touch of resistance. Like the aroma, the cold draws are fairly different across the three cigars. The first’s flavor is cold and reminds me of a white wine. The second cigar is a bit firmer on its cold draw, while the flavor is mellower, but I get a lot of tingle on my lips where they touch the wrapper. As for the flavor, there’s a bit of chocolate brownie, but it is quite subtle. The third cigar has the most open draw, tip-toeing around being called loose, but not earning that description. The flavor is dry with a little fence board and pepper, but a pretty mellow sensation on the whole.

While the pre-light aroma and flavor might have been, the first post-light flavor and aroma aren’t shy. There’s an earthy base but a fairly crisp black pepper on my tongue and lips, while the retrohales are a bit lighter in body and don’t have the same earthy aspect, but deliver a pretty solid tingle. There’s a little bit of creaminess emerging, a nice balancing flavor that adds some familiarity and complexity. A little more than an inch in, the flavor gets a little sweeter, reminding me of a mix of mint and a fairly plain bubblegum, though I get hints of strawberry as well. This change isn’t consistent in its intensity and the detail of the flavor, but there is definitely a shift. There are not a lot of changes after that one, other than I get a bit more detail out of the earthy base, almost as if I was sifting it with my hands to look for something specific. Flavor is medium, body is medium and strength is mild. Construction is good, though I’m worried about the first cigar as it feels like combustion is struggling beyond me needing to figure out the pace of puffs that the cigar requires.

The second third starts with a shift to some more creaminess, introducing it as a pairing with the earth and pepper, then shifting the earth towards a really well-baked chocolate brownie. There’s a little more oomph from the pepper, not a drastic shift by any means, but with some attention, it registers. At the midpoint, the retrohales are really, really good — peppery, slightly creamy, slightly earthy, and really complex and balanced. The creaminess shifts a little more in the back half of this section, reminding me of marshmallows at a few points. Flavor is right around the medium mark, body is medium but leans medium-minus, and strength is mild. The burn line isn’t even and the ash is quite flaky in the second cigar, while combustion is pretty bad in the first cigar. The third cigar burns pretty well, but it isn’t immune from a relight.

There’s a little change in the profile that makes me want to call the profile meatier as the Gran Habano Corojo #7 Corona Especial starts its final third, yet as the flavor lingers on my palate, I retract that thought a bit. Whatever it is that gives me that initial impression dissipates rather quickly, thinning out the body of the smoke in the process. The flavor, however, stays pretty consistent, mixing a bit of creaminess with a decently hearty earth flavor and a decent amount of pepper, though I rarely find that component to be overbearing. The final puffs bring back a mint flavor, that, when paired with some occasional chocolate, reminds me of an Andes mint. This section sits around medium-full in flavor intensity, while the body is closer to medium, and the strength is somewhat surprisingly closer to mild than medium. Combustion in the first cigar continues to struggle as it seems like the tobacco is holding onto some moisture, while the other two are better, though more on that below. The draw, burn line, and smoke production are all pretty good.

Final Notes

• After smoking the first cigar for this review, it was pretty apparent that there was a moisture issue affecting the combustion. The cigars certainly didn’t feel wet or squishy, but the experience of taking a puff or two and then having the cigar suddenly go out indicated that the tobacco might be a bit damp.
• It was notable enough that I moved the cigars to a dry, empty cigar box for a day or so, something I don’t like having to do and don’t generally do for reviews, but facing the prospect of another round of the combustion issues in the first cigar merited the choice.
• As noted earlier, Gran Habano is making the move to petaca-style packaging, so if you haven’t seen it yet, you likely will sooner than later. While I like the traditional wood box, this seems to offer a better canvas for graphic design, and doesn’t seem to be subject to the same supply issues.
• Brian Burt covered Gran Habano at the 2026 PCA Convention & Trade Show, and he got photos of the new petaca packaging for the company’s 10 core lines.
• For being marketed as a stronger blend than the Corojo No. 5, I didn’t get any nicotine strength from this cigar.
• It’s a good reminder that just because a cigar is described a certain way, it doesn’t mean it will actually deliver a certain way. Also, cigars that are considered to be full in flavor don’t always mean they are full in strength as well.
• When it comes to the name of the cigar, we had a couple of internal discussions that we don’t usually have. First, the packaging says No. 7, though it looks like it uses a zero instead of the letter o. Second, the company frequently refers to it as the Corojo #7, and that crept into a number of our articles.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.

• The company lists these as a 7 x 46 corona extra. The numbers above are the measurements we found for the three cigars used for this review.
• Final smoking time was right around two hours on average, with all three cigars finishing within a few minutes of that mark.
• Site sponsor Atlantic Cigar Co. carries the Gran Habano Corojo #7 Corona Especial.

Corona
Corona Extra
Corona Larga
Double Corona
G.R. Tabacaleras Unidas S.A.
Gran Habano
Gran Habano Corojo No. 7
Gran Habano Corojo No. 7 Corona Especial