Originally published at Tiki Bar Online
Toro-ish (Box-Pressed), 6” x 52 ring gauge / Purchased at Burns Tobacconist
Three years ago I had to go in search of the original La Flor Dominicana Double Press. Nobody had it, nobody knew what it was. I finally caught up to this elusive cigar at the now-defunct Leaf & Ale and quickly fell in love with it. Indeed it became one of my all-time favorite cigars from LFD and I bugged Matt at Burns to bring it in…and he did. That made them a bit easier to find, except when they were out of stock, which seemed to be every couple months. I should have bought a box, but money always seemed tight when I was thinking about it. Anyway, so I heard they were coming out with a Maduro version of the Double Press and that it would be available only to TAA affiliated stores…and only to those TAA stores that had sent someone to the last annual meeting in the Dominican Republic. Burns qualified (hey, the owner is the President of the TAA…he kinda has to go to the meetings). So, what do we have here? Same filler and binder from the original Double Press is the story–all Dominican from the LFD farm–and instead of the Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, this time we have Connecticut Broadleaf. I’m starting to think I could do a whole month of reviews on Broadleaf wrappers…and I would enjoy it! This review stick is my second of this blend I’ve smoked and I paid for them both.
While the original LFD Double Press looked like a Hershey’s Milk Chocolate bar, this one was more of the “Special Dark” variety. The process by which they press these leaves very much sharper corners than a regular box press…at least for the top two corners of my sample…the bottom corners (at the back of the band) were more rounded. The wrapper was velvety and oily to the touch and the veins were much more seen than felt. Giving it a good sniff, I detected cocoa powder and fresh earth on the wrapper, and a riper, more manure earthiness, along with some cedar, on the foot. The prelight draw was very good and the flavor was outstanding. It was sweet with chocolate and there was plenty of earth and coffee as well, with just a bit of pepper spice.
I lit the Double Press Maduro and was greeted with chalky earthiness, dry cocoa and espresso bean on the palate, along with a sharp red pepper on the retrohale. The body was medium-to-full right from the start and the smoke was thick and oily. Through the first third, the cocoa powder and coffee flavors came through the strongest, with just a bit of sweetness to provide balance.
The second third continued on much the same with coffee coming even more to the forefront and some pepper spice developing on the palate. The retrohale was devoid of pepper by this point, turning more nutty and woody. Construction was very good, though it did contain some of the usual “Broadleaf caveats.” The burn line was fairly even, but very wavy and needed a few minor touch-ups. The draw was excellent. The ash was strong and lasted around half an inch at a time.
The final third of this Broadleaf Beauty brought more dark chocolate semi-sweet goodness with plenty of earth and coffee just underneath along with just a touch of spice to liven it up. In the end, did I enjoy this one as much as the Habano-wrapped regular version? It’s hard to say, really, but since that’s what I get paid (or not, as the case may be) to do, I will make a judgement call. It was indeed delicious, but I thought it might have been just lacking in some sweetness and complexity. That being said, I will buy more and I will keep a few around for long-term aging. This might be one of those that gains a bit of complexity with some extra time. And if not, they will still be great. Like many LFD’s this Double Press Maduro was full bodied and full strength, so I can’t recommend it for newer smokers, but LFD and Broadleaf fans will surely find something to like here.
Body: 8/10
Strength: 8/10
Complexity: 6/10
AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10
