Top Ten “Made In The USA” Cigars To Light Up The Fourth of July and Beyond: Part II

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Independence Day cigars to light up the Fouth of July Today is Independence Day in the United States, and as part of a commemoration of that holiday I am doing a week-long series of the top ten “Made in the USA” cigars. The series continues today as we look at two cigars made outside of Florida.

One line is made in a city that in symbolizes in many way an America of times gone past. It has a unique culture produced by a unique coming-together of people from many countries and many different ethnic groups. It has produced a unique cigar.

The other is made in a city that has no past. Or at least, not a past that stretches back very far. Calling the culture of this second U.S. city “unique” really would not do justice to it.

But enough preamble. Today’s entries in these reviews of the best premium cigars made in the United States start below the fold.

The order in which cigars are presented in this series does not indicate relative quality or rating. It is not a top-to-bottom or bottom-to-top list. All cigars in this list are quite good, all are quite different, and each one is a #1 cigar in its own way.

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3. Tres Hermanos Numero Tres

I like New Orleans.

I like the people. I like the food. I like the music.

I like the feel of the French Quarter, by day and by night. New Orleans, in fact, is one of my favorite cities on the face of the earth.

It broke my heart when Hurricane Katrina tore through the city.

I know that even though so much of the city was shattered, the hurricane didn’t touch the heart and soul of the Big Easy. Nothing could do that.

New Orleans will be back — in fact, much of it is back already. I haven’t had a chance to get there since the storm and check out some of my favorite places, but I will be doing that soon. And one of the places that I will be visiting produces some very good cigars.

Shawna Sharruf is president of the last cigar factory in New Orleans. It is called, simply, The Cigar Factory New Orleans.

The business is fairly new. They only started in 1998, toward the end of the cigar boom. The fact that they are still in business testifies to the quality of cigars they make.

Cigar Factory New Orleans Logo They have a location on Bourbon Street that is open until midnight, and a main store on Decatur Street where you can sit at a table, enjoy a cigar, and watch cigar rollers making cigars up until 10:00 at night.

You can also check out their walk-in humidor and marvel that cigar storage in New Orleans oten requires a de-humidifier to keep things at the proper relative humidity because the humidity outside is above 90%.

They produce three different lines of cigars. The Plantation Reserve is a smooth mild blend with a Connecticut Shade wrapper. The Vieux Carre is medium-bodied and wrapped in delicate and toothy African Cameroon. The Tres Hermanos is a medium-to-full bodied and full-flavored blend with a Mexican Maduro wrapper. All of them are good cigars. All of them are worth a try, which is easy to do if you visit their shop or if you order by mail since they offer sampler packs.

Regular readers will know that I am a big fan of Cameroons, and I also find the Plantation Reserve a very good morning smoke. In looking at a “top ten” list though, I have to say that I personally think that the Tres Hermanos blend is the best cigar to carry a “Made in New Orleans” label.

Tres Hermanos Numero Tres from Cigar Factory, New Orleans The Tres Hermanos Numero Tres is a 5 1/4 inch by 46 ring Robusto with very good construction. This is not a cigar that will make you think of a certain island south of miami like yesterday’s entries in this review of cigars made in the United States. It will, however, probably make you want to order more and keep them on hand for regular smoking.

The aroma is spicy. The draw is good. As you smoke it, you will get a peppery flavor, strong cedar tones and some spicy notes of cinnamon or nutmeg. I like it.

Remember that these are freshly rolled cigars. They only get about two weeks “aging” before being sent out. They really benefit from humidor storage for several weeks to several months before smoking. If you can hold them for a year before smoking them you will appreciate just how good they really are. The flavor profile I mention above refers to cigars that have spent some time resting in a humidor.

Some people really like the taste of a new, freshly-rolled cigar. Some do not. Which camp you fall into is something only you can decide for yourself.

Cigar Factory, New Orleans Where can you get the Tres Hermanos Numero Tres?

You will not find these cigars at the major online cigar retailers. I don’t think that I have ever seen a lot of Cigar Factory New Orleans cigars come up at one of the online cigar auction sites. Your local tobacco shop is not likely to have them on hand.

Then again, you aren’t going to be able to get a Beignet and a Café au Lait with Chicory at your local Krispy Kreme or Dunkin’ Donuts either.

You can sample these cigars by going to New Orleans in person — have I mentioned that New Orleans is a great city to visit? — or by going to the website of the Cigar Factory New Orleans and ordering them direct. You will enjoy the cigars either way.

The prices may seem high for a cigar that doesn’t have a “name” and a slew of glowing reviews in national magazines. They really are not high when you consider that labor costs in the United States are much higher than they are for bigger companies producing their cigars in Central America and the Carribean.

Rent isn’t as cheap in the French Quarter either, but don’t make the mistake of thinking that this is a tourist trap. The Cigar Factory New Orleans is serious about cigars — and they produce some seriously good smokes.

The current price of a 10 pack of the Tres Hermanos Numero Tres is U.S. $46.00. A box of 25 is $100.00. You can also order one of their sampler packs and try out all three lines in various sizes. Here’s a link to the sampler page at their website.

Just for the record, I have no connection with the company (or any of the companies I review), and I’m not getting any affiliate money or kickbacks from any orders placed with them. Most of these companies do not advertise on the Cigar Envy site, none of them were notified in advance about the fact that they would be in this Top Ten list or had any input on what I have written about their cigars.

Try some New Orleans cigars and celebrate the city that once was and the city that will be again.

Let the good times roll…

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4. Don Pablo Cuban Round Largo

Don Pablo Cigar Company Logo What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas…

…unless what happens is the rolling of some fine cigars. Then, word tends to get around.

Word of mouth is really responsible for the success of Bob Schear’s Don Pablo Cigar Company on the Vegas Strip. Visitors to Las Vegas found their way into the factory store, saw the cigar rolling demonstrations and tried the cigars. They took some back home with them, shared sticks with their friends, and those friends sought out Don Pablo’s when they in turn went to Vegas for business or pleasure.

Saying that things snowballed seems inappropriate considering where the cigar factory is located. One thing you can make book on is that the humidor at Don Pablo’s does not require a dehumidifier.

The story of how Shear got into the cigar business is as unlikely as is finding a premium cigar in the middle of the desert. A smoker since he was 18, he decided to start his own cigar company when he visited Las Vegas back in the early 80’s.

“I came through Vegas on business,” he said, “and I couldn’t find a decent cigar.” With that thought in mind, he interested a friend in filling what he saw as both a need and a tremendous potential market. They opened their factory and store across the street from the Stardust in 1986. Times have been mostly good since then.

In an industry that is dominated by Latin Americans, many with a long family tradition of involvement with the cigar industry in Cuba before emigrating to the United States, the success Bob Schear has enjoyed is a small miracle. It was slow starting, but he now has thousands of customers all over the world. His cigars have even been used in several Hollywood movies, including The Adams Family I & II.

Word of mouth and a quality product win out in the end.

Don Pablo produces some sweetened and liquor-infused cigars for the tourist trade. Those are not the cigars I am talking about in this review. The Don Pablo Vintage cigar line is good, and certainly worth a try, but their regular line is surprisingly good as well and that is what I am going to single out here.

Product quality got a boost from the expertise and knowledge of Cuban master roller Rubin Del Tauro who guided Schear in selection of tobacco, grading and curing. Tobacco for the Don Pablo Vintage cigar line, which is made with tobacco cured for five years, goes through one year of aging at the Las Vegas factory.

Cuban Round Largo from Don Pablo Cigar Company, Las Vegas Each cigar line that they make has a different blend, with five or six types of tobacco used. Tobaccos chosen come from the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Brazil, Mexico and the United States.

Again, as with all freshly-rolled cigars, you may find that “young” Don Pablos seem harsh and lack refinement. This is true of all cigars of every brand when they have not had a chance to age.

You might want to try one fresh from the roller’s table just for the experience, but I strongly recommend that you lay these aside in a humidor for several weeks to a year before you smoke them. Most people will find them much more satisfying after that rest has mellowed them and allowed the flavors to marry and blend.

The Don Pablo Cuban Round Largo is a mellow but full-flavored cigar of medium to full body. It is a 7 1/2 inch by 50 ring Double Corona that is available with either a Connecticut Shade or a Maduro wrapper. I prefer the Maduro, but both are good. Take your pick based on which type of wrapper you prefer.

They advertise them as “Cuban Style Cigars.” Cuban-seed tobacco and Cuban rollers aside, I would not say that this cigar has a Cuban flavor profile. It is, however, very good and very flavorful and stands well on its own merits. You’ll detect spicy notes throughout and the flavor is consistent throughout the smoke.

The rollers are Cuban expatriates brought by Schear from Miami. When he started, he set up housing for them and paid a premium to attract them across the country to his Nevada factory. Even so, getting them to leave Little Havana and come to Sin City wasn’t easy. Keeping them in town also isn’t easy.

It has paid off in the end. The prices are not high, especially considering where they are produced and the quality of the smoke Don Pablo Cigar Factory, Las Vegas for the money. In fact, all things considered these would have to be called Bargain Finds.

A box of 25 Don Pablo Cuban Round Largos cost U.S. $91.50 ordered direct from the Don Pablo website. That works out to $3.66 per cigar for Double Coronas that should take you over one hour to smoke.

Bringing home a box of Don Pablos is a sure way to walk away from Las Vegas a winner.

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Tomorrow: Back to Florida for two very different cigars that are outstanding in very different ways.

Posted on Tuesday, July 4th, 2006 at 11:12 pm.