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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Matt at Matt’s Cigar Journal has a review up of the Camacho Select Torpedo. One thing that he mentioned got my attention right away.

“A fantastic, flavorful Cameroon that is as good or better than any other Cameroon I have smoked.”

Check out the rest of his review at his blog.

I am very fond of Cameroons, so this is a cigar that I plan to pick up and sample in the near future. Matt had a chance to sample some of the pre-production versions of this particular cigar and says that the production version has been kicked up a notch.

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CAO, one of the world’s foremost premium cigar manufacturers, today announced the Grand Prize Winner of its recent “CAO Cx2 Challenge” Promotion.

Florida resident, Anthony “TJ” Waicul, was selected at random from the thousands of names who participated in CAO’s Cx2 Challenge. The on-line promotion asked participants to answer a list of multiple-choice questions pertaining to Cameroon tobacco and the CAO Cx2 Cigar line in order to receive a complimentary CAO Cx2 Cigar and CAO Cx2 Cap.

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Cigar Jack has a great review up of the AF Don Carlos #2.

Here’s a short excerpt:

The thing I love about Cameroon is how subtle it can be in revealing the flavors and spices. The Cameroon has a wonderfully sweet smell to the smoke that reminds me of toasted vanilla. I’ve also had couple comments from my wife about how she enjoyed the aroma of this cigar (trust me this is not something I normally hear).

I share his fondness for Cameroon wrappers, and while the cigar is one I haven’t reviewed here it is one that I also have enjoyed. I completely agree with what he says about it. and second his opinion. It’s a great smoke, and his review is an interesting read. Check it out.

(It also sounds like his wife and my daughter might agree on a lot of things. )

Summary:

This is a very good mild to medium bodied cigar and is becoming one of my personal favorites. Creamy and smooth, it is never harsh. There is a rich nuttiness to this cigar, mingled with coffee, chocolate and woodsy tones and a spicy complexity throughout. A perfect smoke when you’re in the mood for something lighter that isn’t at all bland.

Background Information:

At 6 1/2 inches with a 52 ring guage, this is a fat Belicoso. It is a medium-bodied cigar with an African Cameroon wrapper and a Nicaraguan binder. The filler an exceptional blend of Nicaraguan, Honduran and Peruvian tobaccos. Manufactured by Fabrica de Tabacos La Flor de Copan at their factory in western Honduras for Altadis.

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This is a very sweet deal from JR Cigars on two five-pack samplers of two very good cigars. It is only good for a week.

But for one quarter of an inch, this deal wouldn’t exist. You’ll understand that better later on. Let’s talk about the cigars.

The TTT Trinidad Corona is rated an 87 by Cigar Aficionado. They said that it was “a well-made cigar with a dark, toothy wrapper. It has a smooth, easy draw. It’s woody, spicy and smooth, with a few harsh edges.”

This cigar has a best online price at the moment of $25.00 per sampler of 5 cigars at Atlantic Cigar. The next best price is at Mike’s Cigars for $36.00 for 5 . The suggested retail price on the sampler is $40.00, so the Atlantic price would ordinarily be quite good. And next week it will be good again if it is still priced that way. This special deal from JR beats it though.

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