La Aurora 1495 Special-Edition Cameroon 94

Established over 100 years ago, La Aurora has become one of the oldest and most respected Dominican brands. In 1994, they grew an exceedingly high-quality Cameroon leaf in one of their proprietary fields. The leaf was dark, thick, and flawless but it was so small in size that working with it was difficult. Too good to sell or pass up, La Aurora placed this leaf in their aging rooms for a future project. Fourteen years later, the vaults were opened and the rare leaf utilized. After much testing, Guillermo Leon and Jose Blanco found that the standard 1495 Series binder and long-filler blend (a mix of Dominican Piloto Cubano, Nicaraguan, Peruvian and Dominican Ligero filler) truly captured the savory nuances of their prized Cameroon leaf, and they created a cigar unlike any other in the world. They made it in just one size, a 5" x 44 Corona and packaged them in boxes of 10. Today fewer than 750 boxes exist, and we're glad to put a dent in that number for our cigar club members. This little Corona produces a lot of smoke but the draw is cool and easy. The ash—a nice white color—is firm. The smoke started out with a cocoa and spice blast that settled down by the first inch with the flavor of cocoa predominating and nuances of nuts. By the end of the first third, the taste transitioned into woodsy flavors without losing the light spice. Occasionally, we detected nuances of cinnamon. In the last half, the woody flavors gave way to flavors of light coffee and a long, medium-bodied finish. The 1495 is a complex, vibrant smoke that doesn't overpower. A V.S.O.P. brandy complements it nicely.