This Nicaraguan puro JJ edition is a collaboration of Garcia and his son. In order to make them exactly the way they wanted, production is tightly supervised at their Miami facility. The vintage Corojo and Criollo tobaccos yield a full body flavored cigar with a distinct mix of sweet and spicy tastes.
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua (Corojo & Criollo)
Kristoff produces an extensive line of highly rated cigars. What sets their Connecticut aside from other top quality mild tasting cigars is that the four different Dominican leaves making up the filler actually gives this smoke a full flavored mild taste! Hard to explain I guess. Yes, it’s mild but it’s smoothness is unmatched.
Origin – Dominican Republic
Filler – Dominican
Binder – Nicaraguan
Wrapper Type – Ecuador Connecticut
Nica Rustica Broadleaf is another great brand from Drew Estate that came to market in 2013. Worth noting is that this cigar was blended by Master Blender Willie Herrera himself! The bonus for all of us is the affordable price.
This Original Nica Rustica entry is a medium to full strength cigar blended to showcase native Nicaraguan tobaccos from Esteli and Jalapa. Aficionados will enjoy this rustic smoke that is robust and deeply satisfying. Genuine Connecticut Broadleaf encases Nica Rustica and imparts a subtle natural tobacco sweetness and spice. The Robusto is a top pick for around $4.00!
Check out all Nica Rusticas available on The Cigar Thief HERE
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro
Binder: Mexican San Andres Negro
Filler: Nicaragua (Esteli and Jalapa)
Blender: Jonathan Drew and Willy Herrera
Kentucky Fire Cured Swamp Thang is perfect for fans of both Fire Cured and Candela tobaccos. Pairing this deliciously sweet green candela wrapper with the smoky & tasty Kentucky Fire Cured tobaccos creates a uniquely balanced, complex and savory cigar.Yes! You have two wrappers on this cigar!
Wrapper: Dominican Candela plus Kentucky Fire-Cured
Binder: Undisclosed
Filler: Undisclosed
Factory: Joya de Nicaragua (Nicaragua)
Factory Smokes Shade is one of four of Drew Estate’s entries into the ever growing handmade Budget-Value category for all of us to enjoy for under $2 a stick! Jonathan Drew’s creation of Drew Estate started a revolution of amazing cigars. From Acid to Liga Privada , Undercrown and beyond. No matter which Premium or Super Premium brand he produced we knew one thing, we got what we paid for.
This Shade entry offers those of us that enjoy smooth tasting mild to medium bodied cigars an everyday choice. Blind Man’s Puff gave this cigar a 90 rating! And on top of this, Factory smokes were created by Master Blenders Willie Herrera and Jonathon Drew himself! What more do you need to know?
Check out the other three blends on Factory Smoke available on The Cigar Thief HERE
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade
Binder: Indonesia
Filler: Indonesia
Factory: La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate
Blenders: Willy Herrera, Jonathan Drew
Ok, I’m sticking my neck out here. I think this is one of the absolute best cigars you can buy for the price. Oddly enough, this edition has been flying under the radar for over 15 years. Since it’s been available, I’ve emphatically recommended it more times than I can remember. Davidoff acquired the Cusano brand many years ago and performed magic with the brand. All you need to know is that every component in these cigars has been seriously aged up to 18 years. The result of this true luxury blend is a spectacularly tasty, rich and flavorful mellow to medium flavored jewel with a great draw and a perfect burn. Try a five pack when we have them and see for yourself.
Origin – Dominican Republic
Filler – Dominican
Binder – Dominican
Wrapper Type – Connecticut Broadleaf
Wrapper: Honduran Corojo (5th Priming)
Binder: Honduran Corojo
Filler: Honduran Corojo | Pennsylvania Broadleaf
Factory: Diadema Cigars de Honduras, S.A. (Honduras)
Romeo y Julieta Aniversario is a very, very special cigar to say the least.
You’re definitely a serious shopper if you’re looking at this amazing cigar. In 2003, Altadis reached out to Master Blender Jose Seijas who is a veritable icon of the industry for over 40 years. With attention to detail, his skillful multi country blend of long fillers is encased in a dark Ecuadorian Sumatra seed wrapper. Without a doubt this produces an amazingly complex, smooth tasting medium bodied cigar. While this masterpiece took a while to get passed around, it’s eventual 92 rating is a testament of Seijas’ ability to give smokers a truly great experience.
Just so you know, along with the high score, Cigar Aficionado placed this great cigar in the top 25 of the year. If you want to see what has been pleasing discerning smokers for over twenty years, this Romeo has to be in your humidor today. Hands down!
Origin – Dominican Republic
Filler – Dominican-Nicaraguan-Peruvian
Binder – USA Connecticut Broadleaf
Wrapper – Ecuadorian Sumatra
See all the Romeo y Julieta cigars available at The Cigar Thief HERE
Montecristo Monte by AJ Fernandez is another fantastic collaboration between Master Blender A J Fernandez and this iconic brand. This is the fourth cigar blended and rolled by Fernández for Altadis U.S.A.
With attention to detail, this creation contains vintage Dominican piloto cubano and criollo 98 fillers along with a prime Nicaraguan corojo 98 binder. And encasing all this is a 17-year-old Ecuadorian Habano wrapper. How’s that for complexity and craftsmanship! Without doubt the blend yields a balanced, smooth medium-full bodied flavor. To say the least, this dark, box pressed cigar is perfectly made with an exceptional draw.
When renowned industry reviewer Katman rated it at 95, his description of this flavor bomb is spot on. ” This may just be the maltiest blend I’ve smoked. In addition, flavors of chocolate, caramel, creaminess, red pepper, dried fruit, roasted nuts, cedar, and toasted buttered French bread make this cigar a winner.”
If you consider yourself a fan of Montecristo and AJ Fernandez, this one must be in your humidor for sure!
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan Corojo 98
Filler: Nicaraguan Criollo 98, Dominican Republic Piloto Cubano
Factory: Tabacalera Fernandez S.A.
Blender: AJ Fernandez
See all the Montecristo cigars available on The Cigar Thief HERE
Without doubt, Montecristo Espada is one of this iconic company’s best cigars ever!
The Spanish lesson for today is: Espada means sword. When the Espada appeared garnering a 92 rating and becoming one of the top 25 cigars of the year we all knew it was worth the price. What must be remembered is Espada is made in Nicaragua at Plasencia Cigars and is a collaboration between Plasencia and the Altadis blending team, Grupo de Maestros.
With attention to detail, the very rare wrapper from 2010 encases vintage Nicaraguan filler and binder tobacco from three prized growing regions. In fact, the filler and binder leaves are even older! The result is a medium bodied purebred with an interesting combination of sweetness and spice thats creamy and balanced. Cigar Aficionado describes this amazing smoke perfectly. “An exceptional smoke offering the spice of a gingersnap with touches of cinnamon that build to a sweet, spicy finish.”
It’s no surprise Espada has been pleasing cigar smokers for almost a decade and is still going strong.
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano (Jalapa) Vintage 2010
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano (Jalapa) Vintage 2009
Filler: Nicaraguan Habano (Jalapa) Seco Vintage 2008, Nicaraguan Habano (Jalapa) Viso Ometepe Vintage 2008, Nicaraguan Habano (Condega) Ligero Vintage 2008
This is probably one of the best full bodied cigars you’ve never heard of. This 90 rated stick has been flying under the radar for over six years. What sets this Nicaraguan puro aside from many others is the characteristic of its blend, Soon after lighting up it hits you with a robust burst of flavor that begins to settle down with a bit of sweetness as you move along then ramps back up again. This is a very very flavorful cigar with a great aroma.
Origin – Nicaraguan
Filler – Nicaraguan
Binder – Nicaraguan
Wrapper Type – Nicaraguan
When Altadis, the cigar giant thats brings us Monte Cristo, Romeo and Upmann….to name a few decided to create a value priced entry they didn’t take any shortcuts. These handmade sticks use Dominican tobaccos across the board with a bit of Honduran binder giving it a mild to medium bodied taste that’s smooth and mellow. The Connecticut Shade dark Maduro wrapper is a rarity in the budget friendly category. It gives this particular cigar a more robust taste without increasing its overall strength Enjoy!
Origin – Dominican Republic
Filler – Dominican-Honduran
Binder – Connecticut Broadleaf
Wrapper Type – Connecticut Broadleaf
