La Flor Dominicana (LFD)

La Flor Dominicana built its name on power at a time when most Dominican cigars were known for being mild. Founded in 1996 by Litto Gómez and his wife Inés Lorenzo-Gómez, the company started with a single rolling table and a blend that leaned hard on ligero, the strong, slow-burning leaf from the top of the plant. The motto says it plainly: home of the ligero. Gómez came to tobacco late, by way of the jewelry trade, with no family history in cigars, which may be why he broke so many rules. He grows his own leaf in La Canela and is known for unusual shapes, above all the patented wedge-tipped Chisel. From the full-bodied Double Ligero to the Andalusian Bull, named Cigar Aficionado’s top cigar of 2016, La Flor Dominicana cigars reward smokers who want strength done well.