Mark Twain The Press No. 2

Mark Twain once said, "Eating and sleeping are the only activities that should be allowed to interrupt a man's enjoyment of his cigar." Anyone who is acquainted with Twain through his legacy of literature knows he was a man for whom cigars were as important as the written word. He’s also famous for declaring: “If smoking is not allowed in heaven, I shall not go!” In the history of cigars, no one has been a bigger fan or a more dedicated smoker, so it’s fitting he should have a stogie named after him. Mark Twain was rarely seen without one. In fact, it’s reported that he regularly smoked 22 cigars a day and sometimes as many as 40. The man’s list of positive attributes doesn’t stop there. He was a humanitarian, a novelist, a humorist, and scholar. Similarly, Mark Twain cigars bring an extensive list of positive attributes to the table—all smooth and mild, all tasty.

The Mark Twain The Press No. 2 in your shipment today may not be a cigar he personally smoked, but we would like to think he would have! This tasty smoke comes dressed with a handsome Ecuador Sumatra wrapper leaf which secures a Honduran binder and a bevy of Nicaraguan and Honduran long-fillers. Medium in body, this smoke will lend notes of oak, leather, and earth with a toasty-smooth core. Perfect for any time of day, this smoke pairs perfectly with a cappuccino.

Though tobacco is indigenous to Hispaniola, the tobacco industry in the Dominican Republic existed in the shadow of Cuba’s dominance through the 1960s. When the exodus of Cuban cigar makers began in the wake of the revolution, many decided the Dominican Republic would be ideal for the resumption of their livelihoods. Unrest in Nicaragua in the 1980s fueled the Dominican cigar industry further. The country now makes more than half of the premium cigars imported into the U.S.

The Cibao Valley and the nearby city of Santiago are the center of cigar production in the Dominican Republic. Three main varieties are grown here: the mild and native Olor Dominicano; the intense Piloto Cubano, brought from the Vuelta Abajo of Cuba; and San Vicente, a milder and more acidic Piloto hybrid. Dominican puros were once unheard of as it was widely thought impossible to grow quality wrapper leaf on the island, but new growing techniques are now allowing some exceptional puros to be produced.