La Perla Habana Black Pearl Oro Toro

La Perla Habana is generally regarded among today's top boutique brands, consistently receiving the highest of ratings from Cigar Insider, Cigar Aficionado, and Smoke magazine alike. Sergio Cuevas and Doug Wood, two of the industry's most respected entrepreneurs, took it upon themselves to recreate this well-known Cuban brand in the Dominican Republic, and today La Perla Habana is among the most coveted brands produced. They have created a cigar which is a testament to their commitment to quality and flavor—one truly worthy of the name, the Pearl of Habana. They use closely guarded techniques to age and blend the tobaccos of their Black Pearl line. The Black Pearl Oro is a mellow version using a golden, smooth Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper with a Dominican binder and a bevy of Cuban-seed Dominican and Nicaraguan long-fillers. As it’s a mellow cigar, our panel recommended a Breakfast Blend Roast Coffee to pair with the savory, smooth and creamy notes of the smoke.

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.