Carlos Toraño Dominico Torpedo

Carlos Toraño makes classics! In fact, the Toraño family is one of the unsung stars of the cigar industry. They are folks with a storied heritage who consistently make quality premium blends, although they remain largely behind the scenes and under the radar. Each Toraño cigar represents four generations of family tradition which began in 1916, shortly after Don Santiago Toraño arrived in Cuba from his native Spain. In the mid-1960s, his son Carlos made a significant contribution to the industry when he introduced the concept of growing Cuban-seed tobacco plants in the Dominican Republic. Today, Don Santiago's grandson and great-grandson continue his family heritage with this handcrafted robusto of unmistakable Toraño quality. The family produces 20 million cigars annually for themselves as well as other major labels. Among their jewels are their eponymous Carlos Toraño Tribute, 1916 Cameroon, Exodus and Virtuoso brands, but also literally dozens of other high-class contract brands such as CAO, Alec Bradley, 5 Vegas Series ‘A’, and Gurkha.

You can’t make this kind of cigar without starting with the best tobaccos, and Toraño goes out of its way to ensure that this criterion is met. The Dominico Torpedo offers an aged blend of Dominican tobaccos that are cloaked in a seamless Ecuador Connecticut leaf. Expect a mellow smoke with an earthy core, notes of cedar, oak, and nuts. The finish is soft, and disappears shortly to never out-stay its welcome. Also unique is the quality for the price point—in a blind taste test, you would be hard pressed to tell this cigar from some of Carlos Toraño's most expensive premium blends. Try it with a n amber ale.

Honduras has been a tobacco growing and cigar manufacturing area for hundreds of years, but it was the Communist revolution in Cuba that really put Honduras on the map. In the 1960s, many Cuban cigar makers fled their homeland and arrived in Honduras to re-establish their way of life. The immigrants took advantage of the climate, soil, and geography, which were well-suited to tobacco growing, and began producing high quality cigars. The center of the Honduran cigar industry is the city of Danli and the nearby Jamastran Valley. The majority of the world’s pure Corojo tobacco is grown here, now that Cuba has stopped production of this iconic, spicy, and rich variety in favor of Corojo hybrids. Other important areas of Honduran cigar production include the Talanga Valley, Copan, and Trojes.