#NowSmoking: La Gloria Cubana 8th Street

#NowSmoking: LA Gloria Cubana 8^th Street Cigar Review (Video)

Blend Details:

Factory: El Titan de Bronze, USA
Size: 6” x 50 (Toro)
Strength: Full
Wrapper: Ecuador Havana Oscuro
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua and Dominican Republic

Presented in boxes of 10

La Gloria Cubana 8^th Street Backstory

The La Gloria Cubana we’re familiar with, ‘the original boutique cigar,’ was born in Miami in the 1970s at El Credito—a small factory on Calle Ocho (8^th St) owned by EP Carrillo and his father. Seeking to pay homage to these roots, and to the cigars that put La Gloria on the map, the new limited edition LGC 8^th Street is crafted at El Titan de Bronze (which is located on 8^th Street in Miami) with a flavor profile that’s elegant and complex.

8^th Street comes dressed in a dark Ecuador Havana Oscuro wrapper atop a Nicaraguan binder and long fillers from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. The limited-edition, made in the USA, La Gloria 8^th Street arrives in boxes of 10, with only 5,000 boxes available.

Cigar Basics

The La Gloria 8^th Street features 3 bands—a gold ribbon covering the foot along with a primary and secondary band. The primary band features an art deco design and an attractive color scheme of opposing blue hues—one aquamarine and the other royal navy—and immediately calls to mind the many shades of Collins Ave in Miami. The secondary band is navy blue and simply states, Miami, USA. The cigar itself is smooth with some visible oil on the dark brown wrapper. It’s firmly packed with no soft spots and the cold draw reveals notes of light spice, earth, and wood.

La Gloria Cubana 8^th Street Cigar Review

Remove any notions that 8^th Street is just another ‘run of the mill’ La Gloria Cubana offering. Balk at the price if you must but move past it and you’ll find a cigar worth savoring. Opening notes include a volley of dry, baking spice followed with—what I can best describe as—a natural tobacco sweetness (no doubt from the extended time the wrapper leaf spent on the stalk and in aging barrels), and strong Italian espresso.

As the smoke progressed, I picked up additional elements of oak, leather, earth, and mushroom. I say mushroom, but I’m really after what some call umami—or put simply, an overall savory component. La Gloria Cubana 8^th Street is rich, balanced, and meets the complexity threshold with notable transitions and a panoply of complementary flavors. The cigar began at a robust medium-plus in body and intensity and progressed to the point of becoming a full-bodied feast. I had no complaints with construction either, as the La Gloria Cubana 8^th Street burned true, needing no touchups and able to hold a dense and firm grey ash.

Are La Gloria Cubana 8^th Street worth buying?

I’d say yes, if not only for the fact that a premium cigar made in the United States is a rarity these days. Beyond that, the answer is still a resounding yes—try the La Gloria Cubana 8^th Street. Full-bodied, balanced, rich, complex, and elegant—8^th Street is a cigar that benefits from being enjoyed at a leisurely pace, perhaps with a glass of dry red wine or a healthy pour of bourbon. Remember that this isn’t any ordinary La Gloria—this is the ne plus ultra of LGC and that’s an experience worth the price of admission.