CA Report: Top New Cigars (January 31, 2022)

The best new cigars in the Famous humidor!

“You can’t eat the chandeliers.” My father said this to me about 20 years ago. I was treating him—a retired steelworker—and my mother to dinner at a fancy Italian restaurant rather than the mom-and-pop red sauce joint we’d gone to growing up. We walked in and I asked him what he thought.

Here’s the interesting thing, decades later, I still go to that red sauce joint and haven’t been back to the fancy place. Because I like it better. Because I don’t have to be on my best behavior. Because my dad was right, “you can’t eat the chandeliers.”

I still carry that simple bit of wisdom with me today—although I’ve repurposed it somewhat.

And so, with cigars, “you can’t smoke the bands.” It’s as simple as it is true—a cigar is good if smoke it and think it’s good. In that same spirit, light up your go-to blend—no matter what it is—and check out this edition of Top New Cigars with the latest smokes from Rojas, Partagas, and Warped.

Have you enjoyed a new cigar that you think should be on our must-smoke list? We’d love to hear from you! Please give us the details in the comments below!

Companion de Warped

Wrapper: Mexican San Andres
Binder: Dominican Republic Criollo ‘98
Filler: Dominican Republic and Nicaragua

Companion is only the second Warped blend to be made in the Dominican Republic, and like the Chinchalle coming before it, this blend is crafted at the ultra-boutique Tabacalera La Isla. That’s not all though, this is also only the second Warped cigar to use a Mexican San Andres wrapper. All this translates into an exquisite medium bodied blend with a jam-packed flavor profile. You’ll be greeted by dark chocolate, both red and black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, caramel, and earth. The Companion is an excellent blend that’s approachable for cigar smokers of any experience level.  

Rojas Street Tacos Barbacoa

Wrapper: Ecuador Sumatra
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua

A name like Street Tacos Barbacoa leaves a lot to the imagination. One thing I can tell you, however, is like the Southwest food truck favorite inspiring it, Rojas Street Tacos is a spicy and savory flavor bomb. With a festive cigar band—featuring a mariachi-esque sugar skull—the Street Tacos starts off with a spicy kick of red pepper before creaminess settles in. The smoke has a chewy texture as the profile progresses with vanilla sweetness, cedar woodiness, and rich tobacco. Normally, that would be enough, but as the cigar marches forth—so do the flavors including notes of cinnamon, anise, and fruity sweetness. Throughout, Rojas Street Tacos maintains flawless construction and the strength is medium plus—and gains the closer it gets to nub territory—and believe me, you’ll want to nub this cigar. Perhaps most appetizing part of Street Tacos Barbacoa is its price—providing great bang for your hard-earned buck.

Partagas Limited Reserve 10 Decadas

Wrapper: ’08, ’09 Cameroon
Binder: San Andres
Filler: ’09 Dominican Republic Piloto, ’97 ’98 Mexican San Andres

This limited release features some truly exquisite tobaccos. Partagas went the extra mile to source some of the rarest leaves its ever used for the Limited Reserve Decadas. In fact, the standards for the Cameroon wrapper are so high that only three out of every thousand leaves are selected for this cigar. And these rare and refined tobaccos really deliver in the flavor department. Expect subtle and nuanced notes of baking spice, chocolate, pepper, and cedar that interplay with walnut and a peach-like sweetness that complements its medium body.