Diesel and Rabbit Hole Come Together for Whiskey Row Founder’s Collection Boxergrail

Diesel Cigars and Rabbit Hole Bourbon and Rye are coming together for their third collaboration, the Diesel Whiskey Row Founder’s Collection Boxergrail.

It’s a 6 x 52 toro that uses what was described in a press release as a proprietary Nicaraguan habano binder leaf that was selected for aging in the handcrafted wood fired, toasted and charred #3 new American oak barrels that aged Rabbit Hole Founder’s Collection Boxergrail Rye Whiskey. The company says that those barrels impart nuances of caramel, black pepper, vanilla and a hint of citrus on the binder leaves.

The cigar then also uses a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper and Nicaraguan habano tobacco in the filler. A press release sent by Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG), which owns the Diesel brand, said that the cigars feature a proprietary aging process developed by Abdel Fernandez.

The Diesel Whiskey Row Founder’s Collection was developed by Justin Andrews, while the cigars were blended by Fernandez and produced at Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A.

“With Diesel Whiskey Row Founder’s Collection, we set out to take our partnership with Rabbit Hole to a deeper level,” said Justin Andrews, business development manager of Scandinavian Tobacco Group’s (STG) North American Branded and Rest of World divisions. “Aging tobacco in rye barrels is completely unique in the handmade cigar space and I believe that we have created a cigar that will stand apart in a crowded marketplace.”

Pricing is set at $15.79 per cigar and $157.90 for a box of 10 cigars, with the boxes designed to mirror the packaging of Rabbit Hole Boxergrail Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey.

“As a longtime cigar smoker, I believe that pairing cigars with whiskey is an art,” said Kaveh Zamanian, founder and whiskey maker of Rabbit Hole. “It is for this reason that I instinctually selected our highly-regarded Boxergrail Founder’s Collection Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey casks for this collaboration. I knew that these exceptional barrels would lend intriguing notes to the tobacco and would elevate the smoking experience.”

The Diesel Whiskey Row Founder’s Collection Boxergrail is scheduled to begin shipping on Monday, May 1, which will have the cigars on store shelves in time for Kentucky Derby weekend. STG describes it as a limited edition cigar, but is not disclosing how many cigars are being produced.

The Diesel Whiskey Row line debuted in June 2018 and marked the first collaboration between Diesel and Rabbit Hole. It was also the first cigar to feature a binder leaf aged in Rabbit Hole’s bourbon barrels and generated a significant following among cigar lovers nationwide. The partnership expanded in 2019 with the launch of Diesel Whiskey Row Sherry Cask.

Images courtesy of Scandinavian Tobacco Group.