When choosing your cigars for the season, Upscale Living Magazine wanted to take a global approach to highlight five companies that have an excellent reputation in the world of cigars, along with our picks for the specific cigar these brands currently offer that we think you need to add to your wish list. Regardless of how you like your cigars – from strong to light and from sweet to earthy – this list has something for you.
China: Great Wall Cigar
With a rich history that extends nearly 100 years, Great Wall Cigar remains focused on high-quality raw materials as well as the distinctive and outstanding blending innovation that this company is known for around the world. Harmoniously combined with traditional cigar rolling technology and advanced manufacturing equipment, the diversified products provide satisfaction for consumers’ personalized tastes and needs.
Our Pick: Great Wall Collector’s Edition Year of the Ox
A great way to celebrate the Year of the Ox, this cigar is certainly a conversation starter, and a great cigar to have on hand to share with your friends. With a medium-full body, this limited-edition cigar is a great find.
Cuba: Ramon Allones
A name recognized and admired by true cigar aficionados, Ramon Allones was founded in 1837 and is still one of the oldest brands that are still in production today. Ramon Allones was the person who introduced the primary cigar packaging we know today – boxes decorated with labels and stamped with the brand’s emblem. The cigars are filled with a unique blend of tobaccos from the Vuelta Abajo region and are sure to be on the shortlist for true collectors.
Our Pick: Gigantes
Packed with flavor and smooth textures, these cigars are perfect for cigar smokers on every level. You will enjoy hints of green pepper, honey, mocha, ginger, coffee, and exotic woods that make it a smooth, yet earthy smoke.
Dominican Republic: Arturo Fuente
What began with Arturo Fuente rolling and blending his cigars with his wife and two sons has now become another one of the most influential names in cigars. Established in 1912, this company is still family-operated in the Dominican Republic, four generations later. As the family continues to pass down these cultures and traditions, the family is sure to keep the brand alive and well for many more generations to come.
Our Pick: Opus X Petit Lancero
The Opus X Petit Lancero cigar is one of the many reasons that the Dominican Republic cigars are so widely loved around the world today. This is not a cigar for the faint of heart, as it is a full-strength and full-bodied smoke that still packs a creamy flavor profile with vanilla, cedar, and hints of spice.
Nicaragua: Perdomo
This brand is headquartered in Miami, but Perdomo is still 100% Nicaraguan at heart, and the brand continues to produce world-class cigars using the finest ingredients from their agricultural operations in the fertile valleys of the Esteli, Condega, and Jalapa regions in Nicaragua. Quality is always their top priority, and their customers always appreciate the well-aged and complex flavors that these premium cigars deliver.
Our Pick: Reserve 10th Anniversary Maduro
These Reserve 10th Anniversary Maduro special cigars were created to honor the brand’s impressive history. They feature Cuban-seed Nicaraguan wrappers that have been aged six years and then filled with tobaccos hand-picked from their farms. To make it even better, the leaf has been bourbon barrel-aged for 14 months, which results in a natural sweetness with hints of espresso.
United States: Key West Cigar Factory
The story began with Elenor Walsh in 1963. Her passion was seen with every cigar she rolled, and the personal attention she gave to each of her customers for decades. Since her death in 2003, the Key West Cigar Factory has been operated by her family and several other owners, in addition to the brand pivoting and surviving a tragic fire that destroyed the location. The newest owners are dedicated to continuing the tradition of great cigars with the best customer service possible, and keeping the brand alive and well at home in Key West.
Our Pick: Jamaican Rhum
For those who enjoy a flavored cigar, this one is a winner. The Dominican short-filler is mixed with flavored pipe tobacco and then wrapped in a mild Dominican leaf to give you a fun smoke with a great aroma.
Acid Kuba Kuba
‘Acid Kuba Kuba: One of the more popular ACID cigars, the Acid Kuba Kuba starts with a handmade 5×54 Robusto. This cigar features spicy Nicaraguan tobacco wrapped in a dark buttery Indonesian Sumatra wrapper. On its own, the Acid Kuba Kuba is already a deliciously sweet and spicy smoke, good for more than a full hour. Like all ACID cigars, Drew Estate adds to this experience by infusing each cigar through several months of immersion in more than 150 botanicals and oils. The result is an unforgettable combination that will thrill your palate with flavor.’
