Balmoral Anejo XO Nicaragua Rothschild Masivo

The Balmoral line is manufactured by the Agio Caribbean Tobacco Company Ltd., located in San Pedro de Macoris, in the southeastern corner of the Dominican Republic in between the country's capital Santo Domingo and the village of La Romana. The line has been in production for just over 100 years for distribution in Europe, with an introduction to the US market in February of 1998. Although not a household name for most, Balmoral soon will be. The Balmoral Anejo XO Nicaragua Rothschild Masivo in your shipment today is the first one that features a Nicaraguan habano wrapper. Underneath the rich habano wrapper is a Cuban-seed Brazilian binder that hugs aged Dominican Olor, Nicaraguan Esteli leaves, and stalk-cut Brazilian Mata Norte. Packed with flavor, this premium handmade features rich notes of earth and espresso. Medium to full in flavor, pair this smoke with an old fashioned.

Though tobacco is indigenous to Hispaniola, the tobacco industry in the Dominican Republic existed in the shadow of Cuba’s dominance through the 1960s. When the exodus of Cuban cigar makers began in the wake of the revolution, many decided the Dominican Republic would be ideal for the resumption of their livelihoods. Unrest in Nicaragua in the 1980s fueled the Dominican cigar industry further. The country now makes more than half of the premium cigars imported into the U.S.

The Cibao Valley and the nearby city of Santiago are the center of cigar production in the Dominican Republic. Three main varieties are grown here: the mild and native Olor Dominicano; the intense Piloto Cubano, brought from the Vuelta Abajo of Cuba; and San Vicente, a milder and more acidic Piloto hybrid. Dominican puros were once unheard of as it was widely thought impossible to grow quality wrapper leaf on the island, but new growing techniques are now allowing some exceptional puros to be produced.