The Best Cigar in the Shop, Part 1

Originally published at Tiki Bar Online

A couple months ago, I started working for Burns Tobacconist…yes, the same Burns that is a sponsor on this site…yes, the same Burns that is home to the annual Chattanooga Tweet-Up and Cigar Festival. It made sense, really. They needed someone to work every other Saturday to give some relief to the employee who was, at the time, working every single Saturday. He was working 3 or 4 other days a week and going to school, then ending the work week with a 15 hour shift, both opening and closing on Saturdays. Substantial discount and some extra cash in my pocket…and a chance to sell something I love and maybe get to meet some interesting people in the process? Sure!

I plan to share some of my views from “the other side of the counter” in a semi-regular series here on the blog, namely how my views on some things may have changed now that I’m working in the retail part of the industry and not just as a “well-educated” consumer. I thought I’d tackle an age-old question first…

What’s the best cigar we sell?

Aside from being a totally subjective issue, there are some amazing sticks that are carried on a regular basis at Burns East, so I thought I would sample a few of what the other employees frequently call “the best cigar in the shop” and offer up a few thoughts.

I elected to start off with a cigar that store manager, Matt Allen, can go on about at length if you allow him to get started: the Padron 80th Maduro.

More properly, this is the Padron 1926 Serie 80 Years Maduro. It first showed up in the cigar market in 2006 or 2007 (celebrating 80 years of life for Jose Orlando Padron, whose 1926 birthday is celebrated with the 1926 Serie). It is made in Nicaragua and uses Nicaraguan filler and binder. What is the wrapper? Well, that’s a good question. One source calls is Nicaraguan Habano Maduro and Padron’s website never reveals anything. It is fairly commonly known that the 1964 Anniversary Series Maduro uses Mexican leaf; whether they say so or not, it has that distinctive Mexican flavor. And it’s widely believe that the 1926 is Mexican as well, although it’s been so long since I’ve had one that I can’t remember. What I can say is that the wrapper was dark and toothy and oily, with a rich chocolatey and earthy aroma. The box-pressed perfecto is an interesting shape and apparently only one of Padron’s rollers is allowed to make this cigar.

Two puff into the 80th Maduro and…yes…that is a Mexican Maduro wrapper. It had the bitter earth flavor that is distinctly Mexican, although with enough Maduro sweetness to provide proper balance and a potent pepper spice due to the combination of Mexican and Nicaraguan leaves. Although a lot of people would say “the best cigar” should be elegant, buttery and smooth, this really has little of any of those qualities. Smooth? Not even close. This is earthy, raw, spicy, rough and strong in a way that you would expect from a Padron product. Buttery? No. It did have dark chocolate sweetness and cocoa powder and espresso bitterness, though. Elegant? I guess that would depend on your definition, but I would say, “No.” Davidoff White Label and Fuente Opus X has elegance all tied up, but this impresses with its presence, strength and body, not with its nuanced, refined flavors.

Good candidate for best cigar in the shop? Absolutely. With a price point north of $30 apiece, it’s not something I can smoke every day (not even with the employee discount), but it’s definitely one of the best “special occasion” smokes I can remember lighting up. If you want to try them, in Maduro or Natural, Burns ships…call 423-855-5200.