Pappy Van Winkle Barrel Fermented Robusto (5 1/4 x 52) Cigar

In November 2014 Drew Estate announced an exclusive manufacturing agreement with Pappy & Company — the family-owned merchandise arm of the Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery — for the Pappy Van Winkle Barrel Fermented cigar, a blend built from the start to be paired with the family's legendary bourbon and rye. The filler tobaccos were personally hand-selected by Drew Estate founder Jonathan Drew, who describes the result as a well-rounded, sophisticated cigar with body and a hearty expression. The Robusto was released on April 21, 2015 as a small-batch regular production and remains the line's perennial best-seller.

A "barrel fermented" Kentucky fire-cured tapa negra wrapper laid over a Mexican San Andres base wrapper, with a Nicaraguan binder and aged Kentucky and Nicaraguan long-fillers. The barrel fermentation is the line's signature step — bundles of Kentucky fire-cured leaf are pressed into freshly emptied Pappy Van Winkle bourbon barrels and left for 12 to 18 months. Made 100% by hand in very small batches at La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate in Esteli, Nicaragua. Robusto format, 5 1/4 x 52. Box count: 10 cigars.

A bold, unmistakably barrel-and-barn profile: charred oak, aged leather, vanilla and a thread of cinnamon run from the first third straight through, carried on dense smoke and an ideal draw. The pre-light aroma is famously strong — musty charred wood, tanned leather and a smoked-meat edge on the cold draw — and the two wrappers each contribute, with the tapa negra side pushing more charry oak. It is a very different profile from the average cigar, and it lands squarely with bourbon and whiskey drinkers.

Alcoholic: Pappy Van Winkle bourbon (if you can find it), or any quality bourbon. Non-Alcoholic: Strong black coffee.

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