Obsidian Redrum Gordo

If you haven’t tried Obsidian cigars then you’re in for a real treat. Under the watchful eye of the legendary Abe Flores, Obsidian cigars are created in small batches by PDR Cigars. This handmade hails from the Dominican Republic and features an oily and handsome San Andrés wrapper that hugs an Indonesian Sumatra binder and a bold mix of long fillers consisting of Nicaraguan Jalapa and Dominican Piloto leaves. Medium to full in body, this stellar stick has notes of pepper, earth, chocolate, spice, wood, nuts and coffee. The Redrum is slow burning and perfect to pair with an espresso after dinner.

Though tobacco is indigenous to Hispaniola, the tobacco industry in the Dominican Republic existed in the shadow of Cuba’s dominance through the 1960s. When the exodus of Cuban cigar makers began in the wake of the revolution, many decided the Dominican Republic would be ideal for the resumption of their livelihoods. Unrest in Nicaragua in the 1980s fueled the Dominican cigar industry further. The country now makes more than half of the premium cigars imported into the U.S.

The Cibao Valley and the nearby city of Santiago are the center of cigar production in the Dominican Republic. Three main varieties are grown here: the mild and native Olor Dominicano; the intense Piloto Cubano, brought from the Vuelta Abajo of Cuba; and San Vicente, a milder and more acidic Piloto hybrid. Dominican puros were once unheard of as it was widely thought impossible to grow quality wrapper leaf on the island, but new growing techniques are now allowing some exceptional puros to be produced.