Arturo Fuente Rare Pink VS Sophisticated Hooker (7.25" x 53)

The Arturo Fuente Rare Pink VS Sophisticated Hooker is a medium-full perfecto measuring 7.25 x 53 from Arturo Fuente's Rare Pink Vintage 1960's Series. It carries an Ecuadorian wrapper over a Dominican binder and a filler of Dominican and Nicaraguan tobacco, and it is made at Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia in the Dominican Republic. The Sophisticated Hooker was announced in 2021 and joined the line with the 2022 shipment; Cigar Aficionado named it the number ten cigar of the year for 2022. The “VS” in the name stands for Vintage Series.

Wrapper and Blend

The wrapper is an Ecuadorian leaf sourced from Oliva Tobacco Co., a milk-chocolate brown, lightly oily leaf that gives the blend a sweeter, spicier character than the Cameroon wrapper on the Hemingway series it is modeled on. Under it sits a Dominican binder and a filler blend of Dominican tobacco together with Nicaraguan leaf grown on the Fuente family's own farms in Estelí. The cigar is rolled at Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia in Santiago, Dominican Republic. Some retailers list the binder as Nicaraguan; Fuente's own release information and Cigar Aficionado both list it as Dominican, which is what we follow here.

Format and Size

At 7.25 inches by a 53 ring gauge (0.83 inches across), the Sophisticated Hooker is the longest cigar in the Rare Pink line and the biggest smoke in it by a wide margin: a double-corona-length perfecto with a long tapered foot and a rounded head. It carries the longest smoking time in the series at 100 to 120 minutes, nearly double the 5.5 x 53 Happy Ending, which is the closest size in ring gauge. The 6 x 46 Signature is the slimmer alternative for a long smoke.

Strength and Flavor Profile

Length gives the Sophisticated Hooker the most development of any Rare Pink. It opens mild-to-medium with cedar and a graham-cracker sweetness, builds into roasted nuts, caramel and coffee through the long middle, and finishes with black pepper over cream. Cigar Aficionado rated it 93 points and named it the number ten cigar of 2022, placing it at medium-full; Cigar Coop scored it 90. It smokes as medium for most of its length and only reaches medium-full in the final third.

Flavor notes: Cedar, graham cracker, roasted nuts, black pepper, caramel, coffee, cream.

Line History and Production

Rare Pink is the Fuente family's breast cancer awareness project. Liana Fuente, daughter of Carlos “Carlito” Fuente Jr., led the effort, and the full name of the line, Rare Pink Vintage 1960's Series, refers to the decade that shaped her father's early life. The first four sizes (Short Story, Signature, Work of Art and Happy Ending) began shipping in December 2020; the Queen of Hearts and the 7.25 x 53 Sophisticated Hooker followed in 2022. Every size is a perfecto, the cigars wear a pink version of Fuente's Gran Reserva band, and the boxes are a bright, unmistakable pink. Arturo Fuente makes a donation from every box sold to breast cancer research, and it ships the cigars to retailers once a year, timed to October and Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Rare Pink is not a numbered limited edition, but like Añejo and OpusX it is allocated: only a set amount goes out each year, and it sells through quickly.

Who the Rare Pink Sophisticated Hooker Is For

This size suits smokers who want the longest, most developed Rare Pink session, and collectors after the highest-rated size in the line. Coffee pairings: Espresso, Café Cubano, Dark roast French, Cortado, Cold brew. Spirit pairings: Bourbon, Cognac, Aged rum, Highland Scotch, Armagnac. Rare Pink smokes well on arrival, but the Ecuadorian wrapper rewards a few months of rest at 65 to 69 percent humidity, and because the line ships once a year it is worth buying the box you intend to age when it is in stock.

• Factory: Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia, Santiago, Dominican Republic
• Packaging: pink boxes of 20; also sold as singles and packs of 5
• Release: annual October allocation (Rare Pink Vintage 1960's Series, first shipped December 2020)
• Cause: a donation from every box sold goes to breast cancer research

Frequently Asked Questions

What size is the Arturo Fuente Rare Pink VS Sophisticated Hooker?

It measures 7.25 inches long by a 53 ring gauge. It is a perfecto, so the head and foot both taper; Fuente lists the Short Story as 42/49 and the Work of Art as 46/60 to show the taper, and the other sizes by their maximum ring.

Where is it made?

At Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia in Santiago, Dominican Republic, the same factory that produces the Hemingway, Añejo and OpusX lines.

How does it come packaged?

In pink boxes of 20. We also sell it as single cigars and in packs of 5, and most Rare Pink sizes are also sold as a five-cigar Holiday Gift Pack in a pink presentation box.

Is Rare Pink a limited edition?

Not a numbered one. Fuente produces it every year, but ships a set allocation to retailers once a year around October, and most stores sell out well before the next release. When it is out of stock, the next batch is generally the following October.

Related Cigars

• Arturo Fuente Rare Pink VS Short Story (4 x 42/49)
• Arturo Fuente Rare Pink VS Signature (6 x 46)
• Arturo Fuente Rare Pink collection
• All Arturo Fuente cigars