As I write this, it’s a late November afternoon and it just so happens to be the day of my birthday. In celebration of another spin around the sun, I intend to smoke a Davidoff Winston Churchill Limited Edition 2022 cigar in the late afternoon.
Tomorrow, is Thanksgiving in the United States. A Thanksgiving ritual of mine is to smoke a cigar and watch the classic Thanksgiving-themed laugh fest, Plains, Trains and Automobiles. Two years ago, I enjoyed a cigar while watching the film.
Tomorrow I will enjoy an Arturo Fuente Opus X Forbidden X that has been aging in my small cabinet humidor; a rare cigar that I brought back from the Pro Cigar Festival in Santiago, Dominican Republic.
Following Thanksgiving, sights get set to Christmas, and then shortly thereafter we ring in yet another new year.
Yes, there’s lots of stuff coming down the pipe to celebrate, and for me, as with so many others, such events call for a celebration cigar.
A Cause for Celebration
There are many things that set cigar smokers apart from the rest of the smoking crowd, but what really stands out to me is the fact that we frequently enjoy cigars as a means to celebrate something instead of merely searching for some routine “hit” like smokers of other things tend to. Depending on how frequently you smoke a cigar, some cigar smokers will go days, weeks, or months before arriving upon something to celebrate with a cigar.
Of course, others will celebrate each new day of life with a fine cigar.
Finding something to celebrate isn’t very hard. It could be something as simple as making it to the weekend after a tough workweek, an anniversary, or something as monumental as the birth of a new child.
Whatever you choose to celebrate, I hope that you do so with a special cigar. Although what is considered a ‘special cigar’ is entirely up to you, the following are 10 rare or limited release cigars that are a special treat to smoke.
Though I have not smoked all of them, I have had the pleasure of smoking exactly half of this list. The others I continue to seek out.
Finding these cigars will involve going on a bit of a hunt, but there’s a very good chance that the catch will be well worth it.
1. DAVIDOFF
Oro Blanco
What makes it special?
Hailed as “the most exceptional cigar blend that Davidoff has ever created”, the Oro Blanco consists of the rarest tobacco, harvested between 2000-2001 in some of the richest soils in all of the Dominican Republic, where the Mao, Gurabo and the Yaque Del Norte rivers weave their way through the Mao zone.
After undergoing a very long 12-year aging period, the blend is rolled exclusively by the most experienced cigar rollers, each with over 15 years of experience rolling for the Swiss luxury brand.
Sold individually or in boxes of 10, the Oro Blanco is celebrated for being remarkably balanced and elegant, yet refined.
2. COHIBA
Behike 56
What makes it special?
It is said that Cuba’s super fertile Vuelta Abajo growing region is home to the world’s best tobacco. Only a selection of the finest tobaccos from selected plantations in the San Luis and San Juan y Martinez regions in the Vuelta Abajo area form the basis for for Habanos S.A.’s most premium cigars, like Cohiba. Unlike most other Cubans, the tobacco used for Cohiba undergoes an extra fermentation cycle in oak barrels.
The best of the best tobacco within the Vuelta Abajo is reserved exclusively for the almighty Behike.
Due to the limited availability of the tobacco used, these cigars are only available in limited annual quantities. In the Cohiba El Laguito factory, a select group of the best Torcedores have been specially trained for the production of cigars in the Cohiba Behike line.
3. ARTURO FUENTE
Opus X 20th Anniversary God’s Whisper
What makes it special?
Arturo Fuente Opus X cigars are some of the rarest and most sought-after super-premium cigars in the world.
Carlos “Carlito” Fuente trains rollers “from the ground up” to exclusively roll his prized Opus X cigars.
The Arturo Fuente 20th Anniversary God’s Whisper is a limited edition that was created to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Fuente Fuente Opus X brand. The cigar is praised for its smooth, yet complex flavor, and is highly sought after by enthusiasts.
The “God’s Whisper” name is a reference to the cigar’s exceptional quality and flavor, which is said to be “like a whisper from the heavens”.
4. COHIBA
Siglo de Oro Year of the Rabbit
What makes it special?
Since China has recently usurped Spain as the world’s number-one market for Habanos products, it comes as no surprise that Habanos has created a Year of the Rabbit release to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the universally-lauded Cohiba Siglo.
Similar to the Behike, the leaves used in this medium-full cigar are the “selection of selection” from the 5 finest Vegas de Primera in San Juan y Martinez and San Luis districts of the Vuelta Abajo zone.
5. PADRÓN
50th Anniversary
What makes it special?
The Padrón 50th Anniversary is a very rare 6.5 x 52 box-pressed Toro blended to commemorate the brand’s fiftieth anniversary. Originally, this special cigar was only available in a limited run of 1,000 immaculate humidors, each made by hand, each containing 50 cigars.
Though still made in the smallest of batches, the Padrón 50th Anniversary cigar is a challenge to find but is possible to find at select retailers.
6. ARTURO FUENTE
Opus X Heaven & Earth Rare Black
What makes it special?
These rare vintage cigars are created by Carlos “Carlito” Fuente in Santiago, Dominican Republic, and are highly sought after by cigar aficionados and collectors alike.
Released only twice a year – in the spring and fall – they presented in elegant limited edition travel humidors produced by Prometheus.
7. LFD
The Golden Salomon
What makes it special?
Salomon cigars fall under a larger shape category of cigars called diademas, which are one of the most unique shapes to ever be rolled.
Since 2018, La Flor Dominicana has utilized what it calls “the Golden Blend” to create cigars for the Tobacconists’ Association of America (TAA) and its Exclusive Series Program. The Golden Salomon Natural was created in celebration of the TAA’s 50th anniversary, also known as the Golden Anniversary.
It is available in 7 x 64 Natural and Maduro versions.
8. DAVIDOFF
Year of the Rabbit Limited Edition 2023
What makes it special?
Davidoff’s Zodiac Series began back in 2012 with the Year of the Dragon. The 2023 Limited Edition release is another celebrated entry into Davidoff’s annual Zodiac cigar releases. The Year of the Rabbit is an exceptional cigar with fillers aged on average 4.5 years and is beautifully presented in Davidoff’s double-perfecto signature style.
9. LFD
Andalusian Bull
What makes it special?
La Flor Dominicana’s Litto Gomez cemented his status as one of the world’s top cigar makers when he achieved the #1 Cigar of the Year in 2016 with the Andalusian Bull. Paying homage to the type of cattle breed that is involved with bullfighting in the Andalusian region of Spain, this medium-to-full-bodied smoke exhibits a dark Ecuadorian Corojo wrapper covering some of the strongest binder and filler tobaccos grown on the company’s farm in the Dominican Republic.
Thankfully, this is an affordable and still somewhat easy to find cigar that is worthy of celebration.
10. MY FATHER
Don Pepin 20th Anniversary
What makes it special?
I had the pleasure of thoroughly enjoying this cigar at the PCA 2023 Expo in Las Vegas at a My Father/Tatuaje 20th anniversary dinner. Don Pepin Garcia 20th Anniversary cigars commemorate the twentieth anniversary of Don Pepin line, one of the first releases by master cigarmaker José ‘Pepin’ Garcia, the patriarch of the My Father Cigars brand.
The 20th Anniversary is an exceptional cigar blended with the finest and rarest tobaccos grown and aged by the Garcia family. A Cuban-seed Oscuro wrapper, grown in Nicaragua, envelopes choice Nicaraguan long-filler tobaccos, including Pelo de Oro tobacco, grown from a special seed varietal from Cuba that the Garcias reserve for their rarest cigars.
Kurt Bradley is the founder of The Gentleman’s Flavor, to which he is also a contributing editor, host and curator.
Kurt is a certified Whisky Ambassador accredited by The Scotch Whisky Association and has achieved Level 2 Award in Wine & Spirits Education Trust with distinction.
He lives in Toronto, Ontario.
