Boutique Blends La Boheme Encantador Fenice

Debuting at the 2014 IPCPR Trade Show, La Boheme was also the first cigar to come out of the Boutique Blends portfolio. The name comes from Giacomo Puccini’s illustrious 1895 opera, which also happens to be owner Rafael Nodal’s favorite work. The 91-rated La Boheme was excellent, and some people say “Don’t fix what isn’t broken!” We disagree, and thankfully so does Rafael, as he has released the La Boheme Encantador, which is fuller and bolder than the original. Inside is a Dominican binder and long-fillers that are topped with a high priming Ecuadorian Habano wrapper leaf, and the cigar is then boxed pressed to perfection. Toast up the foot to find medium to full bodied notes of white pepper, oak, spice, and honey. Try it with a Bulleit Bourbon.

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.