Room 101 Ichiban Habano Torpedo

Somewhat new to the boutique cigar scene, Room 101 cigars may have an unusual name but the cigars are 100% legit. If you’re still not convinced on the quality of these handmades, they are made by one of the best boutique manufacturers on the market today, Camacho. Actually, Room 101 Cigars was started by a chance meeting at an after-party in Las Vegas by Room 101 lifestyle founder Matt Booth and Camacho’s Christian Eiroa, and the duo have been working on this project ever since.

Crafted in the Dominican Republic, the Ichiban Habano is built with a smooth blend of Brazilian, Nicaraguan and Peruvian tobaccos at its core, augmented by a Habano binder leaf and finished with a smooth and sultry Habano wrapper. The result is a creamy and opulent experience with notes of cedar and toast. Enjoy this mild to medium smoke with a merlot, such as Duckhorn Napa Valley Merlot.

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.