2016 Cigar of the Year – dmj Edition

This year’s Cigar of the Year contenders were a mixed bag…a couple of the oldest, most decorated companies in the business…a couple relative newcomers…and one that may have slipped your notice, although it does come from a family that has been in the biz for decades.

As always, I started off by looking for all the cigars I had rated a “Perfect 10” during the year. Then I included only those that I still thought had a chance and they were easy enough to get ahold of. Those are the contenders. I smoked each of these again as a way of refreshing my memory (although a couple I really didn’t need to because I burn them fairly often) and made up my mind.

Also, it has occurred to me that while I named “Connecticut Broadleaf” the “Leaf of the Year” a few years ago, it definitely deserves to be called that this year. There were simply an astounding number of high-quality Broadleaf-wrapped beauties that hit the shelves in 2016…Tabernacle, Charter Oak Maduro, The Angel’s Anvil 2016, Las Calaveras 2016, La Careme, Tatuaje TAA 2016, Tatuaje’s Reserva Collection, La Gloria Cubana Serie R Esteli Maduro, Dunhill Aged Maduro, Herrera Esteli TAA Maduro, Henry Clay Stalk Cut…as well as another we’ll get to shortly.

Here are my contenders for Cigar of the Year 2016, listed alphabetically by company.

Nicaragua Box-Pressed, Toro, by Davidoff

I enjoyed the original Davidoff Nicaragua, but I’ll admit that I wasn’t in love with it. It definitely has the nuance, subtlety and complexity to be called a Davidoff, but it just didn’t have as much body to it as I wanted. When I heard Davidoff was tweaking the blend to be a little stronger for a Box-Pressed version, I was excited. I was very happy to report that this blend totally lived up to expectations, being instantly familiar as a high-end, elegant smoke, but also cleaving closer to what you would expect from a Nicaraguan puro.

Flavors of earth, cedar and dark roast coffee dominate up front, with a subtle but vital berry sweetness adding balance, along with black pepper, leather and cocoa powder adding complexity to the finish. This is truly a delightful cigar that will please Nicaraguan leaf fans and should do more to convert Padron fans than the original Davidoff Nicaragua did. Great stick that I wish I could afford more often. My Davidoff quandary right now: for regular releases, do I prefer this blend and vitola, or the Winston Churchill in the Churchill size? I need further testing of both.

Mi Querida, Fino Largo, by Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust

Is it possible that one company…one new company, at that…puts out blends in two consecutive years that just utterly capture my imagination and palate? It seems a bit unlikely, except that it has happened. In 2015, Drew Estate veteran, Steve Saka, set up his own cigar company: Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust. The first blend from Saka & Company was the Sobremesa, a medium-bodied blend of 7 different types of tobacco from 4 different countries. The complexity and flavor was (and still is) astounding. What would Saka do for an encore?

Well, the biggest criticism that I heard about Sobremesa was “it’s not a Liga Privada!” Which seems a little childish if you stop to think about it. Why would someone go to a new company and just try to reproduce what they had tons of success with in the past? I would certainly want to move forward and produce new items. At the same time, if a certain segment of the buying public wants something, how can you justify not producing it? So that’s what Saka did with Mi Querida, his second major blend under the DTT label.

Mi Querida uses the Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper that works so well in the Liga Privada #9, although he uses a totally different filler/binder combo, using all Nicaraguan leaf underneath this time around. It might seem like that would make it less complex, but that’s mainly because he did not specify the exact types of Nicaraguan leaf he used this time. What this cigar brings to the table is a medium-to-full-bodied smooth and sweet smoke that has plentiful overtones of dried fruit, black coffee, dark chocolate, wet earth and red pepper.

Goldie, Dalia, by La Palina Cigars

A couple years back the La Palina Goldie Laguito Especial was one of my runners-up for Cigar of the Year. This year’s release—Dahlia—manages to repeat that feat. Goldie is a very special release every year for the company. It is blended in Miami at Titan de Bronze and each cigar is hand-rolled by Maria Serra, one of the premier rollers…in the world. Yes, it’s that special.

Bottom line, even with small ring gauge sticks, I’ve never had one that was anything short of flawless in terms of construction. The blend is amazing, too, with a medium-plus bodied mix of earth, molasses, coffee, and pepper spice that is always luxurious and appealing. Even though this year’s version saw a dramatic price increase (about $3 a stick) it’s still worth every penny. Bottom line, this is one of those ultra-premium blends that can actually stand toe-to-toe with the a Davidoff and come out unscathed. The revamped “Family Series” is supposed to share a lot in common with this blend (unfortunately, the price is not all that different, either) and that’s a very good thing. Truly a great cigar that you should seek out and try.

1926 Serie, No 90 Maduro, by Padron Cigars

I’ve long been a fan of Padron’s Maduros and this year I even went so far as to spend big bucks on their newest release in the Natural wrapper variety. Sadly, for me anyway, the Natural wrapper simply doesn’t have the body and flavor of the Maduro. Until this year, I would have argued with anyone that the 80 Years Maduro was the best of the 1926 Serie, but now that honor belongs to the No 90.

The No. 90 represents several firsts for Padron. First Serie 1926 that isn’t box-pressed. First time that Padron has shipped a cigar in a tubo (of course, having the cigar round helps it fit inside the tubo). First time I’ve ever seen a cigar in cellophane inside a tubo (from any company). And first time I can remember a new “special” version of a a long-lasting series costing less than the last “special” version. The No. 90 comes in $8 per stick less than the 80 Year, and while part of that is certainly due to the fact that the 80 is a double-perfecto, I would think that should balance out price-wise with the tubo.

Then you get to the cigar, which is truly magnificent. Smooth, rich, peppery, sweet, leathery…undeniably delicious and complex. This Padron burns slowly and with a fantastic mix of intensity and subtlety that I simply don’t get on the Natural version. Is it as good as the 50th Anniversary Hammer release? Maybe not, but it’s really close and less than half the price.

Golden Age, Corona Gorda or Robusto, by Saga Cigars

This wasn’t new for 2016, but it was new to me…actually, it was a revelation to me. I had vaguely heard of Saga Cigars before this year. When one of the local cigar brokers gave me one to try as he was thinking about bringing it into his portfolio, I was taken aback immediately. I smoked many others in the intervening months, including the Lancero and Toro sizes, but I first fell in love with the Corona Gorda, then found that the Robusto is every bit as good…maybe a little better.

While I originally was almost convinced that this cigar had some Cuban leaf in it, I have been assured by the Saga “factory guy” (who visited Burns late in the year) that what I’m really reacting to is the “original Piloto Cubano” they use. Most Piloto Cubano used now days is hybridized, but apparently they are using a non-hybrid varietal that hues closer to the original Cuban growth. The result is stunning, really. Golden Age does the best impersonation of a Cuban cigar I’ve ever seen. I’ll go a step further…I’ve been given maybe 8 or 10 Cuban cigars in the past 8 years, some of which were very good…Golden Age is better than any of them. Crazy? Maybe. Not had enough good Cubans? Maybe…but the names Bolivar, San Cristobal, and Romeo y Julieta get a lot of respect around the cigar world. I’d rather fire up one of these Sagas.

The Winner

I think it’s fair to say that this year has been the hardest in recent memory for me to pick a favorite. One of these contenders came onto the scene early in the year and was my top pick for at least the first half of 2016. One was a surprise in that when I reviewed it, I absolutely didn’t expect it to rate high enough to be in this competition by the end of the year.

In the second half of the year, I was hit by some surprising candidates, most of which didn’t rate high enough in the review process to get to this stage…but a couple did. Of those two, one seemed to have “the magic” every time I smoked one and the other about 90% of the time. Still, I knew which of the two I would pick.

Then came the late entry. It was unexpected…as was the late entry that won my COTY honors last year! And here I’ll start naming names…I thoroughly expected to enjoy the Padron 1926 Serie No. 90 Maduro. After all, I’ve loved pretty much ever other 1926 Maduro I’ve smoked. I didn’t expect it to be the best 1926 Maduro I’ve ever had, though. And I didn’t expect it to make me second-guess how I felt about Mi Querida.

So I agonized over this decision for a couple weeks. I bought extra sticks so I could smoke them both “back to back” (actually on consecutive days, not the same day) and give them one final consideration. I actually thought about declaring it a tie and saying they are co-COTYs. But there really can be only one…

And once again it’s Steve Saka and Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust taking that honor. Yes, this is the first time I’ve declared COTY two years in a row from the same company…actually, I don’t think any company I’ve declared COTY has repeated ever. In this year of Brexit, the Cubs and Donald Trump, I find it appropriate.

Mi Querida is simply a great blend using my favorite type of wrapper leaf. It is a complex and satisfying blend that I still haven’t found to get old, even though I’ve gone through about a box worth of the Fino Largo…as well as some number of every other available size, too.

Besides that, the price tag is accessible enough that I can afford to smoke Mi Querida often. If not every day, at least once a week…more likely several times a week. Although I don’t let price play that much of a part in the COTY decision, it did factor in…I just can’t afford a $25 cigar on a regular basis.

There’s not much left to say, except: Congratulations to Steve Saka and everyone else with Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust. You have another winner on your hands…but I’m sure the fact that you’re always low on shipping stock for these cigars already let you know that.

P.S.: someone asked me to rank all of these 1 to 5…  1) Mi Querida; 2) Padron 1926 Serie No 90 Maduro; 3) La Palina Goldie; 4) Saga Golden Age; 5) Davidoff Nicaragua Box-Pressed.