The Annual "Cigar Aficionado Top 10"...10,9,8...

[BigAsh]

10.
2019
H. Upmann 175th Anniversary Churchill
Rank: 10
Rating: 93
Price: $18.00
Made By: Tabacalera A.J. Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A.
Factory Location: Nicaragua
Dimensions: 7" by 50 ring gauge
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Legacy lines like H. Upmann can sometimes pose a challenge. How do you maintain the tradition of such an iconic brand while keeping it fresh and engaging? To solve this conundrum, Altadis U.S.A., which owns the U.S. distribution rights for the many non-Cuban versions of H. Upmann, turned to cigarmaker A.J. Fernandez to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the H. Upmann brand, a historic smoke created in Cuba by German banker Hermann Upmann.

Letting Fernandez formulate a blend to celebrate the momentous anniversary turned out to be a good move, as this Churchill is quite spectacular. The tobacco in the cigar is all Nicaraguan, culled from Fernandez’s farms, including a wrapper that Altadis claims is medio tiempo, a high-priming cluster of tobacco leaves that grows atop the plant. But these leaves don’t always sprout, making the tobacco prized for its rarity and strength.

The H. Upmann 175th Anniversary Churchill is a limited-edition cigar, available in 10-count boxes or a commemorative humidor. In the box, each Churchill sits in its own dignified slot, and all are beautifully adorned with a gold band that looks as though it were struck by the U.S. mint.

The flavors are as opulent as the presentation, each puff rich with chocolate, dried cherry and salty leather notes that continue to pay dividends on the finish.

9.
2019
Tatuaje Nuevitas Jibaro No. 1
Rank: 9
Rating: 93
Price: $9.00
Made By: My Father Cigars S.A.
Factory Location: Nicaragua
Dimensions: 5" by 54 ring gauge
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
If the Nuevitas Jibaro No. 1 doesn’t look familiar to you, it should at least look interesting. Familiar because Nuevitas is a brand that Pete Johnson discontinued more than a decade ago and resurrected in 2018. Interesting because of the quarter inch or so of exposed binder at the foot.

It’s also unusual in its presentation. The boxes are taped at the joints and hold 50 cigars each. Big, 50-count boxes are a rarity in the premium cigar world.

Now that the brand is back on the market, there are a few differences. Nuevitas is produced in Nicaragua at My Father Cigars, the factory owned by the Garcia family. The blend also consists of tobacco grown by the Garcias in Nicaragua. And the cigars, which used to come packaged nude, now wear bands.

The Jibaro No. 1 smokes quite unlike any of the other cigars on the Top 25. Upon first puffs, that exposed binder gives the cigar an up-front blast of spice that sets the tone for the rest of the smoke. Once the Nicaraguan Corojo ’99 wrapper starts to burn, the entire cigar really rounds out.

The intense spice then recedes a bit to the background, making way for a bold but balanced smoking experience of leather, chocolate, almonds and wood.


8.
2019
Fuente Fuente OpusX Reserva d'Chateau
Rank: 8
Rating: 93
Price: $16.60
Made By: Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia.
Factory Location: Dom. Rep.
Dimensions: 7" by 48 ring gauge
Filler: Dom. Rep.
Binder: Dom. Rep.
Wrapper: Dom. Rep.
It’s hard to believe that the Fuente Fuente OpusX has been on the market nearly 25 years. When the brand was first released in late 1995, it gained instant cult status among cigar smokers for a number of reasons: the name was unusual, the packaging mysterious, the production extremely limited, and—most importantly—it was made with a Dominican wrapper.

In the ’90s, the common consensus was that good wrapper leaf could not be grown in Dominican soil, but Carlos “Carlito” Fuente Jr. wasn’t willing to accept conventional wisdom and insisted that Dominican wrapper was possible with the confluence of the right climate, soil and seed. He found it. The seeds are Cuban, the microclimate is found in the region of Bonao and the soil is on the majestic plantation known as Chateau de la Fuente.

The finest example of OpusX we smoked this year was the Reserva d’Chateau, a Churchill that’s fairly thin by today’s standards. Even if you have a penchant for thicker cigars, it’s best to lean thinner when smoking an OpusX. That way, you taste more of the wrapper, which is really what OpusX is all about.

This isn’t a mild cigar, and every puff offers a range of earth, leather, spice, a touch of nutmeg and that unique, inimitable taste found only in tobacco from Chateau de la Fuente.

[BigAsh]

#7
Illusione Epernay 10th Anniversary D'Aosta
Rank: 7
Rating: 94
Price: $12.00
Made By: Fabrica de Tabacos Raices Cubanas S. de R.L.
Factory Location: Honduras
Dimensions: 6" by 50 ring gauge
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
The Illusione Epernay series turned 10 years old in 2019, and to highlight this milestone, brand owner Dion Giolito released an extraordinary cigar: the 10th Anniversary D’Aosta, a typical toro size blended with atypical tobacco. Epernays aren’t strong smokes, nor were they ever intended to be. Giolito wanted to stress refinement and subtlety over strength, so Epernays are made without ligero, the most powerful tobacco on the plant.

Rather, Epernays are made with lower-priming tobaccos to give each puff the elegant, effervescent qualities of a fine Champagne, hence the name (Epernay is named after the town in France’s famed Champagne region). The blend for the 10th Anniversary D’Aosta is the same formulation of tobaccos as the rest of the line, save for a different binder to better showcase the filler. Unlike other Illusiones, which are made in Nicaragua, Epernays are produced in Honduras. At one time, the Illusione core line was made in Honduras as well, but Giolito moved production to Estelí.

Since Epernay’s inception, however, Giolito believed that the Honduran Raices Cubanas factory understood the intricacies and logistics of the brand, so he kept Epernay where it was. The D’Aosta, with its luxurious layers of gingerbread, orange peel and caramel, marks the fourth time an Epernay has made it to the Top 25 list.

#6
Oliva Serie V Lancero
Rank: 6
Rating: 94
Price: $8.08
Made By: Tabacalera Oliva S.A.
Factory Location: Nicaragua
Dimensions: 7" by 38 ring gauge
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Long, thin cigars don’t often appear in Cigar Aficionado’s Top 10, but this year, the Oliva Serie V Lancero impressed us with its focused flavors and unrelenting intensity. Made in Nicaragua, the Lancero is essentially everything we love about the Serie V line, only concentrated into a slender format, resulting in a very dense, amplified smoke that hits the center of the tongue with a solid earthy note and then blossoms beautifully across the palate, leaving precise impressions of pistachios, nutmeg and chocolate-covered almonds.

While thin cigars like lanceros are prized by connoisseurs, they’re not necessarily top sellers in cigar shops, as the market presently favors thick ring gauges. In factories, small mistakes on the rolling table can mean a lancero that doesn’t draw. But Oliva continues to produce this slender format despite market trends. It’s found its audience and this is partly due to the remarkable consistency. The blend here is entirely Nicaraguan with the wrapper naturally playing a larger role in the overall effect of the cigar.

Oliva has undergone some major changes in the last few years. The company transitioned from a family-owned operation into a corporate entity and a new factory in Nicaragua meant increased production capacity. Changes like that don’t usually bode well for cigar companies, but Oliva has been a delightful exception.

#5
Rocky Patel A.L.R. Second Edition Toro
Rank: 5
Rating: 94
Price: $14.00
Made By: Tabacalera Villa Cuba S.A.
Factory Location: Nicaragua
Dimensions: 6 1/2" by 52 ring gauge
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Mexico
Buzzwords like “aged,” “limited” and “rare” are thrown around quite a bit, especially in the cigar world, but Rocky Patel gives these words new meaning in his new A.L.R. brand. The cigars are limited, as they’re produced in small quantities; rare because Patel doesn’t release as many of these cigars into the market as he does other brands; and finally, aged, the most crucial and defining claim of these smokes.

According to Patel, each A.L.R. Second Edition cigar is aged for two years after it’s rolled before going to market. While the component tobaccos are already aged, Patel claims that these cigars get a two-year resting period for maturation and added levels of complexity. This probably contributes to the cost. Few Rocky Patel cigars are this expensive.

Astute smokers will recall the First Edition, which came out in 2018. The Second Edition here is a completely new blend consisting of a Mexican San Andrés wrapper and Nicaraguan tobaccos grown on Patel’s farms in Estelí and Condega. Patel started growing tobacco a few years ago and now his tobaccos are starting to appear in his cigars, giving the portfolio an entirely new facet.

This box-pressed Toro has all the sweet, satisfying qualities of malted chocolate and vanilla bean, balanced by an uplifting hint of fresh, shredded coconut. Only 2,000 boxes of this size were created, but Patel will be releasing these smokes in batches as they come of age in his Nicaraguan factory.

[Porch Dweller]

I'm not a big lancero fan but the Oliva V is a damned tasty one.

[BigAsh]

#4

Cohiba Robusto
Rank: 4
Rating: 95
Price: £34.30
Made By: Habanos S.A.
Factory Location: Cuba
Dimensions: 4 7/8" by 50 ring gauge
Filler: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuba
Box Date: December 2018
No brand in the premium cigar world has more recognition or fanfare than Cuba’s Cohiba. Even people who don’t smoke cigars know the name, and while too much hype often leads to unrealistic expectations, the Cohiba Robusto more than lives up to its lofty reputation.

When Cohiba was born in 1966, it had only one size, a long, thin Lancero created for Fidel Castro’s personal consumption. In 1982, when the brand went on sale in Spain, it was expanded to three sizes. It wasn’t until 1989 that the Robusto was added, coinciding with the cigar brand’s global sales debut. At the time, the Robusto was the thickest size in Cohiba’s portfolio.

Now 30 years later, the Cohiba Robusto is still in high demand and can still command high prices at retail. According to Habanos, only the highest-grade tobacco from the five finest farms in Cuba’s Vuelta Abajo zone are selected for Cohibas, but the Cuban monopoly won’t name the plantations. The only thing we can verify with certainty is that Cohiba Robustos are sophisticated and delicious smokes, powerful cigars with notes of oak, vanilla and almonds. There’s a reason why people have been buying them with passion for so long.

#3

Warped Serie Gran Reserva 1988 Robusto
Rank: 3
Rating: 95
Price: $9.00
Made By: Aganorsa Leaf
Factory Location: Nicaragua
Dimensions: 5 1/4" by 50 ring gauge
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
There’s something about the spartan packaging of the Warped Serie Gran Reserva 1988 that makes one instantly curious. It’s a simple, unvarnished slide-lid box—nothing too unusual there. But the lone crown burned into the lid and the clean label on the side of the cabinet really make you want to know what’s inside. Adding to the mystique is the number 976212 printed on each band.

Brand owner Kyle Gellis knows that design in the cigar world is extremely important. An intriguing aesthetic builds anticipation, and that’s a precursor to the overall smoking experience. Over the past few years, Warped has accrued a dedicated following, and smokers have truly responded to his business model, combining small-batch production and quaint packaging that evokes the look of old lithography with a sophisticated, modern twist that can span from the understated to the ornate.

The number 1988 refers to the birth year of Gellis, who will turn 32 in 2020. The Serie Gran Reserva only comes in one size, a robusto, but one size may be all he needs. It’s difficult to imagine that this cigar could be improved upon in another format.

The blend is a mélange of Nicaraguan tobaccos grown by tobacco giant Aganorsa that come together brilliantly with a balanced profile of malted chocolate, coffee bean and an earthy undertone, all of which reflect the packaging: noticeable but never obtrusive and with tasteful restraint.

#2

Padrón Serie 1926 No. 6
Rank: 2
Rating: 95
Price: $14.40
Made By: Tabacos Cubanica S.A.
Factory Location: Nicaragua
Dimensions: 4 3/4" by 50 ring gauge
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Cigar Aficionado has been putting out a Top 25 list since 2004, and Padrón has never failed to place in the top 10 no matter the year. The family-owned company, which makes its cigars in Nicaragua, has produced a Cigar of the Year a record three times. To say that Padrón is consistent would be an understatement. Excellence seems to be the factory standard and the Padrón Serie 1926 No. 6 is a perfect encapsulation of everything the company signifies—richness, body, balance, and, most important, consistency.

Unlike most handmade cigars, Padróns do not undergo a subsequent aging process after they’re made. The cigars are rolled, pressed, banded up and boxed. According to Jorge Padrón, his cigars don’t need to spend any time in an aging room because the tobaccos are adequately aged before production. It’s an unorthodox method but one that produces stellar results. The Serie 1926 is named after the birth year of the company’s founder, José Orlando Padrón, who passed away in 2017.

The Serie 1926 No. 6 smokes beautifully, offering rich layers of cocoa and earth atop a core of chocolate-covered espresso beans. A subtle note of dried cherry adds some elegance to the smoke, making the Padrón Serie 1926 No. 6 a true cigar smoker’s cigar.

[icehog3]

A Cooban made the list? I hate those things.

[BigAsh]

Originally Posted by icehog3

A Cooban made the list? I hate those things.

Glass tubo too....

[icehog3]

Originally Posted by BigAsh

Glass tubo too....

Oh, those ones are good.

[Weelok]

Great list but haven’t smoked a new RP in some time so no idea on that.

[BigAsh]

.....and the NUMBER ONE CIGAR FOR 2019.....


2019
Aging Room Quattro Nicaragua Maestro
Rank: 1
Rating: 96
Price: $10.95
Made By: Tabacalera A.J. Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A.
Factory Location: Nicaragua
Dimensions: 6" by 52 ring gauge
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
The story of Aging Room revolves around a central character who had no idea he was headed for the cigar business: Rafael Nodal. It’s a timeline of transitions, partnerships and collaborations that ultimately lead to the creation of the Aging Room Quattro Nicaragua Maestro, Cigar Aficionado’s 2019 Cigar of the Year.

But first we rewind back almost 40 years ago to 1980, when Nodal came to the U.S. from Cuba as a refugee on the infamous Mariel boatlift. With no background in cigars, Nodal sought a career in music that brought him to New York City, then to Miami where he embarked on a more practical career in healthcare. There, he met his future business partners Hank Bischoff and Dr. Alina Cordoves (now his wife).

Nodal’s foray into the cigar world was slow. In 1998, he and his partners began selling cigars online, and in 2002 they took over the Habana Cuba Cigar Co., a struggling company with a mediocre portfolio of forgettable cigars. For a while, the business situation was looking quite grim.

Not one to be easily discouraged, Nodal explored the concept of producing cigars in small batches. In 2011 he came out with a new brand called Aging Room Small Batch M356. He also changed the name of his company from Habana Cuba Cigar Co. to Boutique Blends. The first Aging Rooms were made by José “Jochy” Blanco in the Dominican Republic. (Blanco is also a partner in the brand.) The cigars scored well in Cigar Aficionado, and the Presto size was named to the 2011 Top 25. Nodal got his first taste of critical success—and he kept going.

Today, you’d be forgiven if the name Aging Room creates a bit of confusion. There are a lot of different Aging Rooms made in different factories. The crowning achievement, however, is the Aging Room Quattro Nicaragua Maestro made by A.J. Fernandez in Nicaragua.

The cigar is essentially Nodal’s vision, crafted by Fernandez with his distinct tobacco and signature factory style. Every last leaf in this blend is Nicaraguan and every puff is an overture of flavors that’s at times heavy and rich with notes of dark chocolate and wood, and other times, subtle and understated with hints of fine caramel and toasted almonds. In musical terms, the word for this box-pressed torpedo would be dynamic.

Nodal is still an artist at heart and cigars continue to be his creative outlet. If the birth of Aging Room was his breakthrough, consider the Aging Room Quattro Nicaragua Maestro his masterpiece.

[icehog3]

Never had one.

[Havanaaddict]

Originally Posted by icehog3

Never had one.

Your lucky

[Havanaaddict]

I wonder if the thousands of dollars spent on advertising in CA has any effect on your ratings

[BigAsh]

Originally Posted by Havanaaddict

I wonder if the thousands of dollars spent on advertising in CA has any effect on your ratings

Wait'll the embargo gets lifted and Habanos S.A. starts spending....maybe more than 3 in the top 25?!?

[AdamJoshua]

Is that a Phil CoRo?

[BigAsh]

Originally Posted by AdamJoshua

Is that a Phil CoRo?

[BigAsh]

Numbers 11-25....Interesting list....

#11 Espinosa Habano No. 4

#12 La Flor Dominicana Double Ligero Lancero

#13 Plasencia Alma del Fuego Concepción

#14 Juan Lopez Selección No. 2

#15 La Aroma de Cuba Mi Amor Churchill

#16 Punch Diablo Scamp

#17 Hoyo de Monterrey Le Hoyo de Río Seco

#18 Aladino Toro

#19 Enclave Broadleaf Churchill

#20 La Antiguedad Toro Gordo

#21 Joya Silver Corona

#22 Room101 Farce It Is a Lonsdale

#23 E.P. Carrillo Core Plus Maduro Churchill Especial No. 7

#24 Alec Bradley Project 40 06.52

#25 Herrera Esteli Miami Toro Especial

[icehog3]

I have tried all of one of the 22 NCs on the list.