The other day, I caught myself starting one thought after another with the words, “Some cigars…” Once I noticed it, the list started writing itself. I jotted down the thoughts and added a few cigars that came to mind immediately.
You’ll notice that I didn’t name names under the negative headings. I had the same policy when I ran GuitarGear.org. I never wrote a bad review. More accurately, I never wasted my time writing one. If I hate something, why would I give it that much of my energy? I’ve provided a few general examples instead. You can fill in the blanks yourself.
Some cigars tell the truth from the first cold draw. The feel of the roll, the resistance of the draw and the tobacco itself give me a pretty good idea of what I’m dealing with. There’s no sales pitch required. The cigar knows what it is.
- Curivari Selección Privada
- Cuban Montecristo No. 2
- Liga Privada No. 9
- Padrón 1964 Anniversary
- Martinez Don Antonio Escogido Maduro
- Paul Stulac Blue Lightning Sky
- La Aurora Preferidos 1903 Diamond Tubo (Figurado version)
Some cigars are better at selling a story than delivering a cigar. Everything is limited, rare or exclusive, while the tobacco underneath the band could belong to almost anything. If changing the band wouldn’t change the experience, the story was doing most of the work.
- Overhyped “limited” Nicaraguan store exclusives
- Boutique blends built around novelty wrappers rather than flavor
- Any cigar whose entire identity is “it’s rare”
- Instagram-bait releases with no fermentation discipline
Some cigars know where they’re going. They establish themselves, develop naturally and arrive somewhere different from where they began. The changes make sense within the blend instead of feeling like a collection of unrelated flavors.
- Tatuaje 7th Habano
- Trinidad Espíritu No. 2
- La Aroma de Cuba Noblesse
- Undercrown Maduro
Some cigars never figure out what they want to be. A little sweetness appears, some spice follows, the earth gets muddy and none of it comes together. They’re schizophrenic cigars with no identity of their own.
- Under-fermented budget Connecticuts
- Over-humidified house blends
- “Kitchen sink” boutique blends with no point of view
- Cigars built around flavoring or artificial sweetness
Some cigars give me a real sense of place. That doesn’t mean every cigar from Estelí, Jalapa or the Dominican Republic tastes alike. Seed, soil, climate, fermentation and the hand of the blender all matter. Still, there are cigars in which the character of the tobacco comes through clearly enough that I’m reminded it could not have come from just anywhere.
- Oliva Serie V
- AJ Fernandez New World Puro Especial
- La Flor Dominicana Air Bender
- La Aurora Preferidos 1903 Ruby Toro
- Curivari Selección Privada Maduro
Some cigars are beautifully made and bore the hell out of me. The draw is flawless. The burn line barely moves. The ash belongs in a photograph. None of that matters when the cigar gives me nothing worth remembering.
- Over-processed Connecticuts with no backbone
- Factory-perfect but flavor-flat Dominican generics
- Any cigar whose best quality is “consistent”
Some cigars don’t have anything left to prove. They aren’t chasing attention or trying to convince me that I’m smoking something special. The tobacco handles that on its own.
- Montecristo 2000 Nicaragua Limited Edition
- AJ Fernandez New World Decenio
- La Aurora Family Creed Fuerte Sol Gran Toro
- Zino Platinum Sword (Rocket Tubo)
Some cigars give me exactly what I want from a blender: discipline and a point of view. There’s plenty happening, but the blend never loses control of itself. I can tell somebody made decisions instead of simply stuffing good tobacco into a cigar and hoping for the best.
- Paul Stulac White Blinding Light
- Black Works Studio Green Hornet
- LCA La Sirena Super Sea Monkeys 2025
- Definition The Chairman
- Regius Sun Grown
Some cigars are so derivative that I know the entire routine before I light them. I’ve smoked the same profile under a dozen different bands. Nothing is necessarily wrong with them. There just isn’t anything about them that belongs to them.
- Generic Nicaraguan Habano “medium-full” blends
- Copy-and-paste San Andrés Maduros with no identity
- Big-box store exclusives made to hit a price point
- Any cigar whose tasting notes read like a template
Some cigars surprise me. They come from a brand I’d written off, use a wrapper I normally avoid or turn out to be far more substantial than I expected. I like being proven wrong when the cigar is the one doing it.
- Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Connecticut
- Rocky Patel Vintage 1999
- Room101 The Big Payback Maduro
- LCA Dead Stock
- DTT Umbagog Bronzeback
Some cigars smoke like a broken-in pair of shoes. They’re so comfortable that I barely notice how easily everything is moving. Nothing gets in the way of simply enjoying the cigar.
- Don Emmanuel Anunnaki Ki
- Undercrown Maduro
- Olmec Claro
- Alec Bradley Magic Toast
- Montecristo White Label
- AJ Fernandez San Lotano Requiem
Some cigars feel like conversations. I can smoke them casually and enjoy them, but when I pay closer attention, they always have more to say. They don’t grab me by the collar. They keep giving me reasons to listen.
- Curivari BV Pralines
- Rocky Patel Vintage 1990
- Martinez NYC Blend Queens
- CAO Brazilia
- Diesel Vintage
- La Gloria Cubana Serie R Maduro
Some cigars remind me why I’m selective. I smoke enough cigars to know that competent isn’t the same thing as memorable. These are the ones that make the search worthwhile.
- Curivari Reserva Limitada Café Noir
- My Father Blue
- La Gloria Cubana 8th Street
- Trinidad Espíritu No. 2
- IGM Kalaveras Yellow
- Cuban Montecristo No. 4
- Micallef Purple
Obviously, none of these lists is exhaustive. I’m also certain that plenty of people will disagree with some of my choices. I wasn’t going to include any cigars at first, but the examples give you a better idea of what I mean by each description.
Here’s a little challenge: Finish the sentence yourself. What does “Some cigars…” bring to mind, and which cigars would you put on the list?
Leave a Reply