Diamond Crown Double Robusto No. 4 5 1/2″ x 54

Diamond Crown is the luxury line of J.C. Newman. The name first appeared more than a century ago and came back in 1995 to mark the company’s 100th anniversary. The Double Robusto No. 4 is the 5 1/2 by 54 of the Classic range, rolled in the Dominican Republic at Tabacalera A. Fuente.

The Connecticut Shade wrapper is aged five years and fermented twice, which deepens its color and takes away any rawness. Underneath sit a Dominican binder and a blend of five filler tobaccos from the Caribbean and Central America. It smokes mild, leading with cream, cedar and blanched almond, a little coffee, and a gentle white pepper snap on the finish. At 5 1/2 by 54 it burns cool and even.

Connecticut Shade is grown under cloth to keep the sun off, which keeps the leaf thin, pale and mild. Ecuador is the exception worth knowing: the cloud cover there sits low enough year round that growers skip the cloth entirely and let nature do it.

Pairs well with coffee, cream ale, or champagne.