Carlos Toraño 1959 Exodus

Carlos Toraño cigars are recognized and resilient characters in the tobacco industry—they’ve been around for nearly 90 years! Their four generations of family cigar-making tradition began back in 1916 when Don Santiago Toraño emigrated from Spain to Cuba. After the Cuban revolution of 1959, his son Carlos would forever change the tobacco industry by introducing the concept of growing Cuban seed tobacco plants in the Dominican Republic. The seeds he brought from Cuba to the Dominican Republic yield tobacco that is today known as ‘Piloto Cubano’—a term you may be familiar with—which we can all enjoy these days due to the instincts of this cigar maestro. Since Carlos’ untimely death, his son, Carlos A. Toraño has continued the family business, expanding tobacco-growing to Nicaragua, Mexico and Ecuador, while also bringing Carlos Sr.’s grandson in to the trade. Today, the company is the only family cigar business to own and operate three cigar factories in each of the leading cigar producing countries (Nicaragua, Honduras and the Dominican Republic). It is at these famed factories that they continue making classic cigars such as the Tribute, Cameroon, Select and Signature lines, as well as a host of other private brands such as CAO and La Perla Habana (see above and below). The 1959 Exodus Gold we’ve selected for you commemorates the mass departure of expert Cuban cigar families and their impact on the cigar industry after the nationalization of all tobacco farms and cigar factories by the Cuban government in 1959. The Toraños were one of those very important families. The Toraño Exodus Gold is filled with creamy and herbal tones. After lighting, you should immediately notice creamy, slightly spicy, nutty notes. The taste is medium-to-full-bodied, powered mainly by the Habano ‘H-2000’ wrapper, accompanied by a complex, five-country blend of Dominican, Honduran, Mexican, Nicaraguan, and Costa Rican tobaccos. It is excellently constructed with a perfectly saturated draw. Pair with a Nut Brown Ale like Newcastle.