Brick House Double Connecticut Robusto

The J.C. Newman Cigar Company has been around since 1895, and it was all started by Julius Ceasar Newman rolling his first cigar in his family’s barn in Cleveland, Ohio. Once he discovered his passion for cigars, he moved his family down to Tampa and quickly had a world-class reputation for producing high-quality premium cigars. Even though most of their cigars these days are made in the Dominican Republic, in 2009 the family started working with the lesser known Fabrica de Tabacos San Rafael S.A. in Estelí, Nicaragua, which is where your cigar comes from today. Inside are Nicaraguan fillers with a Connecticut Broadleaf binder, all wrapped up with a natural golden brown Connecticut wrapper. This smoke is not as full bodied as its counterparts but it does have loads of rich flavor with creamy notes of toast and sweet cedar. Mellow and downright delicious, pair this Cigar Aficionado 91-rated cigar with a glass of a bold yet graceful red wine or, for something non-alcoholic, try an espresso.

The Nicaraguan cigar industry originated when Cuban cigar makers escaped the revolution and re-established their livelihood in Nicaragua with Cuban-seed tobacco. Blessed with dark, rich soil, their new home was ideal for tobacco cultivation and Nicaragua quickly became known for cigars that rivaled Cuban quality. Unfortunately, revolution and war came to Nicaragua in the 1980s and devastated the industry, but it’s rebounded dramatically and is once again producing tobacco considered by many to be the finest in the world.

The Esteli Valley is in many ways the heart of Nicaraguan production and is known for its very powerful and spicy tobacco. The Jalapa Valley produces arguably the finest tobacco in the country: somewhat sweeter and less intense than Esteli, but extremely complex. The tobacco of the Condega Valley is often described as a blend of the other two regions.