Oliva Connecticut Reserve Double Toro 6″ * 60

From the Oliva family, the Oliva Connecticut Reserve Double Toro is a Connecticut-wrapped gordo, handmade in Nicaragua. The Oliva family’s tobacco roots reach back to 1880s Cuba; their Serie V Melanio was Cigar Aficionado’s Cigar of the Year in 2014.

It blends an Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper over a Nicaraguan binder and filler at a mild to medium body, leading with cream, cedar, blanched almond, and a gentle white-pepper snap. At 6 by 60, the thick format holds a lot of tobacco, which means a long, cool burn and a blend with time to show all of itself.

Shade leaf is picked a leaf at a time from the bottom of the plant up, unlike Broadleaf which is cut at the stalk, and it is cured in barns rather than fermented hard. The gentle handling is why it stays pale and why it tastes of cream rather than earth.

Pairs well with coffee, cream ale, or champagne.