Wrapper: Habano / Ecuador
Binder: Broadleaf / United States: Pennsylvania
Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic
Size: Toro (6 x 54)
Strength: Medium → Medium-Plus (final inch)
Body: Medium → Full (halfway)
Price: $30.97 (5-pack) / $154.84 (Box of 25) at Cigar Page
Factory: Flor de Copán, Honduras
Blender: Undisclosed
Release: March 2020 (Regular Production)
Smoking Time: 1:45
Experience Rating: 99
I’ve reviewed this a couple of times since 2024, first when I tried one at my local lounge, then in 2025 after I had already smoked a few boxes and bundles.
The H. Upmann 1844 Añejo is hands-down one of my favorite cigars, and I always have a bunch in my humidor. Funny thing is, I smoke them sparingly. Part of that is because I have so many different cigars that I simply forget about them. Back in 2024 and 2025, this was one of my go-tos, and I went through boxes of them.
It wasn’t as if I moved past the cigar. I’d still have one occasionally. But with all the new cigars I bring in for review, plus all the other go-tos I’ve accumulated, I haven’t paid as much attention to it.
But they caught my eye this morning while I was rummaging through my collection. And it occurred to me that this would be a great follow-on to Cigars Need Time to Marry. With over a year of age on this one, I could see how it compared with my original assessments.
Strength begins at medium and remains steady early before rising gradually through the home stretch and last couple of inches. It makes its sharpest climb during the last inch, then holds through the nub. Body rises quickly from medium, reaches full at halfway, and remains there for the rest of the smoke. Activity surges during the first-half progression, stays at its peak through the last couple of inches, then eases during the last inch and nub.
An earmark of this stick is that it’s packed to the gills. It feels substantial in my hand. The stats say it’s a 54 ring gauge, but it looks thicker, almost like a gordo. The skin is rustic, with some visible veins and a nice amount of tooth. The wrapper glistens with a sheen of oils, and little bits of crystallization dot the surface.
Remember when I said I thought I’d become desensitized to barnyard? The aroma coming off this wrapper completely disproves that. Accompanying it is a rich tobacco sweetness. At the foot, I get dried prunes, caramel, and sweet tobacco.
The cold draw is absolutely perfect, with plenty of airflow and just a little resistance. It presents dry grass, dried fruit, and a touch of brown sugar.
I punch the cap, toast the foot, and take my first puff. Black coffee and sweet cedar greet me immediately, followed by white pepper and green peppercorn. I’ve always been amazed by how structured this cigar is from the get-go. Strength and body are both a solid medium, and even though there isn’t much going on yet, everything is so well-organized.
I think I’m going to be in for a ride.
As the cigar settles in, cream enters and confirms the core of black coffee, sweet cedar, and cream. A featherlight touch of spice peeks into the profile and becomes a little more pronounced in the retrohale. Speaking of which, the retro reveals a fruity sweetness and pastry, like I’m smoking a fruit Danish.
Damn! I’m barely a half-inch in, and the cigar has already planted a stake in the ground.
As I move through the first half, that giddy feeling I get when I’m smoking a great cigar starts welling up as a residual sweetness lingers on the finish and coats my mouth. Baking spices enter the fray with nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, cardamom, and clove. Roasted peanut and cashew appear.
I’ve always felt that this was a sleeper cigar. Though I’ve always enjoyed it, with a year of age, it has absolutely transformed. I’m still less than an inch in, but the complexity is amazing.
Spice starts doing a dance on the roof of my mouth. It’s balanced by the lingering sweetness. The two don’t oppose each other but seem to play together, like two kids playing in a sandbox. I get a hit of green peppercorn that’s immediately followed by matcha green tea. It’s lovely.
Marzipan. Wow!
Then the flavors start swirling, driving up the energy in the profile. This cigar didn’t wait to gather itself. It formed its core immediately, then started building and cycling flavors around it. Vanilla and caramel come to play.
I’ve mentioned in the past what a great cook my mom was. When I was a kid and she made one of my dad’s favorite dishes, he’d come home from work, smell the delicious aromas coming from the kitchen, and exclaim, “What did I do to deserve this?” Then he’d give my mom a big hug and kiss.
As I smoke this, I’m asking myself the same question. I’m experiencing an OFTD moment, as in Oh Fuck That’s Delicious.
As I finish the first third, I’m swooning from the complex deliciousness of this cigar. It’s great with a month of rest, but it’s a completely different experience with this much time.
Wow! Brown sugar just stepped forward.
The body is thick and rich now, flirting with becoming full. I remember that by this point with younger sticks, strength usually starts picking up as the nicotine increases. With this one, strength is barely over medium. In my experience, a cigar with a full body and moderate strength is invariably expressive because it isn’t weighed down.
This cigar is unmistakably expressive.
More flavors arrive: nutmeg, hazelnut, toasted almond, and shiitake mushroom umami.
As I hit the halfway point, the lingering sweetness is like eating nonpareils on a creamy pastel candy. Those are the sugary bits. They have a distinctive, chalk-like consistency as they dissolve in your mouth.
Shit! I know this is a great cigar because I’m waxing poetically.
The flavor cycling continues full bore. I’m enjoying the cigar so much that I’m tempted to abandon the review, but I’m going to push forward despite its almost overwhelming Siren song. The core briefly steps forward as if to let me know it’s still there. This edges up the strength slightly, but the profile remains a cacophony of activity.
Then comes a transition. Shiitake mushroom umami steps forward, followed by complex meaty and mineral notes. It reminds me of liver and onions, one of my favorite dishes growing up. Being Filipino, my mom would make it, and we’d eat it on a pile of white rice. I’d pour a bunch of ketchup on it.
Don’t worry. That’s just my memory. There’s no ketchup in the cigar.
What’s remarkable about this transition is that despite its savory nature, it doesn’t clash with the rest of the profile.
Heading into the home stretch, the urge to abandon the review and simply enjoy the show is becoming increasingly irresistible. But I’m like Matt Damon lashed to the main mast in The Odyssey. I ain’t going nowhere. The complexity really is like a Siren song. I have this overwhelming sense of well-being and longing, and I’m fidgeting in my chair as I write this.
The core asserts itself again without an uptick in strength. I think it might be jealous that all the focus is on the immense activity around it. It’s like it’s saying, “I’m still the boss. Don’t forget it.”
There are no new flavors, but the cycling is ever-present. At this point, I’m not really paying attention to everything flashing by.
Suddenly, black tea and honey appear on the retro. Then a bunch of baked goods appears like late stragglers joining the party: sourdough, shortbread, and buttered croissants. Grilled skirt steak comes to play next with all its juicy goodness.
WTF?
I was settling into the flavor cycling, and the cigar threw me another curveball. I’m loving it! The baking spices step forward momentarily and separate themselves from the cycling, only to be sucked into the whirlpool again.
I can feel the profile beginning to compress, which pushes strength to just shy of medium-plus. But the cigar is still incredibly expressive and running on maximum overdrive.
As I enter the last couple of inches, the spice finally steps up. Before this, it simply played with the sweetness and acted more like a punctuation mark. Now it has become a more prominent figure. The cool thing is that it arrives pronounced, then quickly fades on the finish.
The profile continues compressing, affecting the cycling a bit. It isn’t slowing down, but I can detect a shift. Strength is holding steady just below medium-plus, which is remarkable considering how loaded the cigar is at this late stage.
The cream in the core takes on the consistency of heavy construction cream. It’s thick and viscous. The savory elements seem to have escaped the whirlpool and now sit at the front of the profile: soy sauce, grilled meat, shiitake mushroom, and light minerality.
As I hit the last inch, the profile really compresses, and the nicotine seems to have broken free of its bonds. The core now dominates, with dark espresso leading the way. Amazingly enough, the sweet cedar hasn’t charred at all.
The spice is persistent without becoming overpowering, and it has moved to my lips. The detached savory elements turn darker and become a little more pronounced. The other secondary flavors remain and continue cycling, though the core now mutes them.
At the nub, I make my first correction to burn off a small flap of wrapper. Other than that, the burn has been razor-straight throughout the entire experience. The spice is now mouth-coating, but again, it isn’t overpowering. It’s simply persistent and constant.
I’m smoking a Turkish coffee now as coffee becomes the dominant player and subordinates everything else. The cedar finally chars, while that lovely sweetness on the finish continues lifting the profile to the end.
I said this throughout the smoke: “Wow!” How’s that for literary descriptiveness? But this was one of those experiences that transcended language, and “Wow!” was all I could come up with.
I smoked one of these a couple of months ago and was blown away. I wasn’t in a position to review it at the time, but I knew then that I was smoking greatness. It was difficult to reconcile just how complex the cigar had become.
Now that I’ve sat down with one and given it my full attention, I’m overwhelmed by what it has become.
My advice: Buy a bunch of these. Definitely smoke some earlier, but set a few aside for long-term aging. You won’t be disappointed.
Buy these at Cigar Page. If you’re a Page+ member, the price goes down to $29.74 for a fiver, and $142.46 for a box of 25. At less than $6/stick, it’s a great deal for such a wonderful cigar. And as I’ve hopefully illustrated, it just gets better over time.
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