Sacrificio Junior

Followers of cocktails and the bar business should recognize the name Julio Cabrera, an internationally renowned bartender who specializes in classic Cuban cocktails and bar culture. Born and raised in Cuba and formally trained as a bartender, or cantinero, he has worked at a number of stops all over the world, eventually landing in Miami, where in 2019, he opened Café La Trova, where he won multiple awards. In 2023, it was named one The World’s 50 Best Bars and was named the best bar in a U.S. restaurant at the Spirited Awards that year. Its chef, Michelle Bernstein, has won a James Beard Award.

But for cigar smokers, the name might not be as familiar, though Cabrera is looking to change that.

In June 2023, Cabrera announced that he was getting into the cigar business by way of his new cigar company, Sacrificio Cigars, which debuted at the 2023 PCA Convention & Trade Show. The name of the line comes from Café El Sacrificio, Cabrera’s family’s bar in Cuba, which was lost after the Cuban Revolution in 1959. Sacrificio was also the nickname of Cabrera’s father, Israel “Sacrificio” Cabrera, which was given to him by friends and patrons.

Sacrificio launched with four blends: El Caballo, Elegante, Junior, and Maestro, each of which is available in a single vitola.

The Sacrificio Junior uses an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper, a Cameroon binder and fillers from Nicaragua’s Condega and Jalapa regions. It is offered in a 5 x 50 robusto vitola priced at $15. As fitting for a cigar company started by a bartender, the company says that the Junior pairs well with cappuccinos, lattes, sparkling wine or a classic daiquiri.

The cigars began shipping to stores in late January 2024.

• Cigar Reviewed: Sacrificio Junior
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Tabacalera Oliva de Nicaragua S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
• Binder: Cameroon
• Filler: Nicaragua (Condega & Jalapa)
• Length: 5 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 50
• Vitola: Robusto
• MSRP: $15 (Box of 10, $150)
• Release Date: January 2024
• Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

There is something about the color of the wrapper that makes it look just different from other wrappers in this range. It might be the color of the band playing some tricks on my eyes, but the wrappers all appear to have a richer, almost honey-like color to them. It’s also not quite as golden as what I think of in a Connecticut-seed leaf. Beyond that, these look like textbook cigars; rolled well with nearly invisible seams and well-applied caps. The veins are small and thin with some puckering, and the leaf is smooth without much oiliness to it. The foot has a bright aroma that reminds me a bit of dried flowers but is not as fragrant and lively as potpourri. Behind that, there’s a more familiar aroma for a cigar using an Ecuadorian Connecticut-seed wrapper, namely bread, a bit of cream, some plain muffin, and a touch of pepper. The cold draw is smooth and creamy, with a bit of raw almond around the edges.

The Sacrificio Junior starts off on a familiar note, a profile I don’t want to simply call a typical Connecticut profile, but it’s not far off. There’s both white bread and bread crust, creaminess, touches of pepper and an occasional bit of what I generally call Connecticut-seed funkiness. It’s not like the sourdough bread I find in Connecticut-grown shade tobacco, but it’s in that same vein. Retrohales are fairly light and creamy with a touch of pepper should an accent be desired. The cigar shines brightest when creaminess takes the reins and drives the profile as it helps both the flavor and body of the smoke. It also softens what can be an occasionally rougher and more textured flavor than I would have expected based solely on how the cigar looks. Bread turns to toast around the one-inch mark, which dries the profile and seems to call out some light pepper as the creaminess fades. There’s a bit of lingering pepper at the top of the throat, but otherwise, the profile is fairly smooth. Flavor is medium, body is medium-plus and strength is mild. Construction is great, particularly the ash, which is surprisingly durable.

The second third of the Sacrificio Junior doesn’t see much change, and with the long ash that this cigar can produce, it’s easy to sort of overlook whatever transition there is. Creaminess makes some attempts to remain in the profile but remains on a downward trend when it comes to its roll in the profile, with toast and pepper standing out, now joined by some dry almonds. There’s a touch of roughness emerging around the midpoint, not necessarily harsh but not as smooth as earlier. Retrohales continue to be fairly light, sprinkling a bit more pepper into the experience. This section closes with more of the ebb-and-flow between a creamier profile and one driven by toast and pepper, with the latter beginning to pull away. Flavor is still around medium, body dials back to medium, and strength is mild. Construction is generally excellent and problem-free.

Instead of leaning into the toasty profile, the final third of the Sacrificio Junior takes a bit of a turn, picking up some light earth and chalk, while the retrohale has more pepper intensity but it’s also a bit duller as opposed to having the crispness of the first two thirds. The flavor isn’t keen on making too big of a step in any one direction, playing it fairly safe and staying agreeable, leading me to want to compare this to a cigar you’d offer to someone who isn’t looking for big flavor or that you want to have on hand because it has enough flavor to satisfy most cigar smokers but not so much that it’s overpowering. The cigar coasts to its final puffs without much more change, with flavor finishing just shy of medium, body is medium, and strength is mild. Construction continues to be very good, as there are no issues with the draw, the burn line, smoke production or combustion, as I don’t need to touch up any of the cigars.

Final Notes

• One cigar had a small hole on its backside, partially covered by the band. It was more than simply a chip in the wrapper, yet it didn’t look quite like a beetle hole.
• I’d be fascinated to talk about this cigar with Julio Cabrera while smoking it to see how he describes the flavors he tastes and, in turn, what that suggests for pairings. We hear all the time that the flavor notes we reference are either esoteric or simply not present, so I’d be interested to hear how someone who works in food and beverage and is tasked with creating flavorful offerings relates to cigars.
• I could certainly see this cigar pairing well with the recommendations that the company makes for it.
• I didn’t find the Sacrificio Junior to have any appreciable strength at any point across the three cigars.

• The company lists these as a 5 x 50 robusto. The numbers above are the measurements we found for the three cigars used for this review.
• As you can see, there was some variance across the cigars, most notably in weight, but also a decent amount in ring gauge.
• This cigar can be smoked fairly quickly without too many negative effects, with the lighter, thinner tobacco contributing to its ability to be smoked in a shorter timeframe than what I experienced by drawing it out a bit.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• Final smoking time was one hour and 45 minutes on average.