The Consensus 2023

What would happen if you were to see all of the various Top 25 cigars lists and put them into one big list?

That’s the idea that I had more than a decade ago, trying to understand how much agreement—or disagreement—there was within cigar media about what the best cigars of any given year were. The Consensus has been published every year that halfwheel has been around, this is the 13th version of the project.

For those unfamiliar with The Consensus, it works like this.

I try to look at as many top 10/25/etc. lists published by cigar media outlets including blogs, magazines, podcasts, YouTube channels, etc.

Scoring:

• Up to 25 entries were accepted per list. The best cigar was awarded 25 points, the second best 24 points, etc. Each publication can only award a maximum of 325 total points.
  • If the list has 30 cigars, cigars #26-30 are discarded.
  • If a publication publishes two lists from different people, each list’s points are divided into two, meaning each top cigar gets 12.5 points, etc.
• In the case of ties, points were split between the affected spots.
• In lists that included “honorable mentions” alongside a Top 10 or Top 20, the “honorable mentions” were excluded. Cigars labeled as “top cigars” or equivalent were included as entries.
• In lists that divided cigars up into sub-categories, I try to make sense of them in the easiest way possible. If an outlet publishes a “regular list” and then a “limited list” only the “regular list” was used.
• Once all lists have been entered, the vitolas for each line nominated were combined into a singular entry. The Consensus is categorized by blend.
• Lines with multiple blends, including wrappers or publicized “tweaks,” were separated into multiple entries.

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Qualifications for a list to be considered:

1. Any list created by a media member that is published on a website (or in print) is eligible so long as that author/publication has reviewed at least one cigar in 2023.
2. Tweaked for 2023: Any lists created by someone who owns a cigar company or cigar store are excluded. For 2023, I’m allowing lists produced by people who work at but do not own cigar stores.
3. Honorable mentions were largely excluded unless the list was largely made up of honorable mentions.
4. No user-voted/driven lists were used.
5. The publication must meaningfully exist on a platform other than just Facebook, Instagram or TikTok.
6. Lists must be published by Jan. 19, 2024 11:59 p.m.

As always, a few disclaimers from me:

1. This is not my list; it’s based on 42 different media publications. I am unsure if I have smoked all of the cigars that made The Consensus, so I cannot agree with this list.
2. It’s not halfwheel’s Top 25, that list is here.
3. It’s probably not “unbiased.” The Consensus is based on the data from other lists, which were created by some people that you may think have biases. Furthermore, I am the one who curates the lists and makes decisions about the qualifications.
4. It’s not, in my opinion, the list that proves what the best cigar of 2023 was. The Consensus is a sum of its parts. If you think there are flawed things about any of the ~45 lists used, those will show up in The Consensus.
5. This is best used as a window into the relationships between cigar companies and cigar media.

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A total of 496 cigars were nominated by 42 media outlets; the results are as follows.

1. Mi Querida Black

Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Nicaragua American Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: U.S.A. (Connecticut Broadleaf)
• Binder: Mexico (San Andrés Negro)
• Filler: Dominican Republic, Honduras & Nicaragua
• MSRP: $15.95-100
• Release Date: August 2022

Limited Production.

This is the second consecutive year Mi Querida Black has made The Consensus.

2. Muestra de Saka Krakatoa

Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Fábrica de Tabacos Joya de Nicaragua S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Habano)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $20.75
• Release Date: September 2023

3. Angel Cuesta

J.C. Newman Cigar Co.

• Country of Origin: U.S.A.
• Factory: El Reloj
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Habano Rosado)
• Binder: Undisclosed
• Filler: Undisclosed
• MSRP: $18-22
• Release Date: April 2023

Regular Production

4. CAO Amazon Basin

General Cigar Co.

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: STG Estelí
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Sumatra)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Brazil (Bragança), Colombia & Dominican Republic
• MSRP: $14.29-14.99
• Release Date: August 2014

Limited Production

5. Long Live the Queen

Caldwell Cigar Co.

• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: El Maestro
• Wrapper: Cameroon
• Binder: Indonesia (Sumatra)
• Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua
• MSRP: $14-18
• Release Date: January 2023

Regular Production

6. El Pulpo

Artesano Del Tobacco

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: San Lotano Factory
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $15-40
• Release Date: April 2023

Regular Production

7. La Vereda

Crowned Heads

• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Tabacalera La Alianza S.A.
• Wrapper: Nicaragua (Shade Grown Jalapa)
• Binder: Nicaragua (Jalapa)
• Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua
• MSRP: $18.40-21.80
• Release Date: August 2023

Regular Production

8. Micallef Black

Micallef

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Micallef Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Ecuador (Habano)
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $7-8
• Release Date: June 2023

Regular Production

9. Room101 Johnny Tobacconaut (2023)

General Cigar Co.

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut-Seed Shade-Grown)
• Binder: Mexico
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $8.99-15.99
• Release Date: August 2023

Regular Production

10. Intemperance Volstead VO 1920

RoMa Craft Tobac

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Fábrica de Tabacos Nica Sueño S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Sumatra Hybrid)
• Binder: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Filler: Nicaragua (Condega, Jalapa & Pueblo Nuevo)
• MSRP: $6.75-13
• Release Date: June 2023

Regular Production

11. West Tampa Tobacco Co. Red

West Tampa Tobacco Co.

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Garmendia Cigars Co.
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Nicaragua (Condega)
• Filler: Nicaragua (Condega & Estelí)
• MSRP: $8.99-10.99
• Release Date: May 2023

Regular Production

12. Quinquagenario

RoMa Craft Tobac

• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Tabacalera La Alianza S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Sumatra)
• Binder: Dominican Republic
• Filler: Dominican Republic
• MSRP: $15
• Release Date: September 2023

Limited to 50,000 total cigars.

13. Davidoff Millennium

Davidoff

• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Cigars Davidoff
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
• Binder: Dominican Republic
• Filler: Dominican Republic
• MSRP: $17.70-32.70
• Release Date: 2001

Regular Production

14. Flor de las Antillas 10th Anniversary Limited Edition 2022

My Father Cigars, Inc.

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Nicaragua
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $40
• Release Date: January 2023

Limited to 60,000 total cigars.

15. Highclere Castle Senetjer

Foundation Cigar Co.

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Habano)
• Binder: Brazil (Mata Fina)
• Filler: Undisclosed
• MSRP: $33
• Release Date: November 2022

Limited Production

16. Davidoff Signature No. 1 Limited Edition

Davidoff

• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Cigars Davidoff
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
• Binder: Ecuador (Hybrid 151 Seco)
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Hybrid 192 Seco, Piloto Seco & San Vicente Seco)
• MSRP: $28
• Release Date: January 2023

Limited to 150,000 total cigars.

17. Arturo Fuente Don Carlos

Arturo Fuente

• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia
• Wrapper: Cameroon
• Binder: Dominican Republic
• Filler: Dominican Republic
• MSRP: $9.15-14.20
• Release Date: 1976

Regular Production

18. Tatuaje Lomo de Cerdo

Tatuaje Cigars, Inc.

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $15
• Release Date: March 2023

Limited to 204,000 total cigars.

T-19. Knuckle Sandwich Connecticut

Knuckle Sandwich Cigars

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: San Lotano Factory
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $12.50-13.50
• Release Date: January 2023

Regular Production

T-19. Tatuaje 20th Anniversary

Tatuaje Cigars, Inc.

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Habano)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $13-14
• Release Date: October 2023

Regular Production

21. Blackened Cigars “M81”

Drew Estate

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: La Gran Fábrica Drew Estate
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: U.S.A. (Connecticut River Valley Broadleaf)
• Filler: Nicaragua and U.S.A. (Pennsylvania Green River One Sucker)
• MSRP: $9.15-10.35
• Release Date: November 2022

Regular Production

T22. Davidoff Aniversario No. 1 Limited Edition Collection

Davidoff

• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Cigars Davidoff
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
• Binder: Ecuador
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Piloto Viso, San Vicente Viso and San Vicente Mejorado Viso)
• MSRP: $64
• Release Date: October 2023

Limited to 65,000 total cigars.

T22. Perez-Carrillo Allegiance

E.P. Carrillo

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Tabacalera Oliva de Nicaragua S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Sumatra)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $12-14
• Release Date: November 2022

Limited to 150,000 total cigars.

24. Rare Leaf Reserve Maduro

AGANORSA Leaf

• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: AGANORSA
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• MSRP: $13.50-14.50
• Release Date: May 2023

Regular Production

25. Meerapfel Cigar Richard

Meerapfel Cigar

• Country of Origin: Undisclosed
• Factory: Undisclosed
• Wrapper: Cameroon
• Binder: Undisclosed
• Filler: Undisclosed
• MSRP: $38-63
• Release Date: October 2022

Regular Production

*During The Consensus 2023 Live Show, it was pointed out to me that there are two different Liga Privada 10 Aniversario blends. That made a difference and bumped the Liga Privada 10 Aniversario off the top 25—it was tied for 13th—and meant the Meerapfel Cigar Richard became the 25th cigar.

Prices are likely MSRPs upon a cigar’s introduction.

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Top Country — Nicaragua

Last year, nine out of the top 10 cigars were made in Nicaragua, a country which garnered 62.15 percent of the total points. This year, it’s only seven out of the top 10 and only 55.29 percent of the total points. While Nicaragua still dominated, the Dominican Republic has narrowed the gap from a whopping 42.5 percentage points difference between #1 and #2 last year, to just 30.5 percentage points this year.

This is the first time since 2015—Barack Obama was still president then—that Nicaragua hasn’t gotten at least 60 percent of the total points.

1. Nicaragua (55.29 percent)
2. Dominican Republic (24.76)
3. Honduras (5.69)
4. U.S.A. (3.96)
5. Costa Rica (2.62)
6. Cuba (2.38)
7. China (.18)
8. Haiti (.13)
9. Peru (.06)
10. Mozambique (.03)

Top Factory — Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A.

Abdel Fernández’s main factory—the big one in Estelí—takes home the top spot for the second year in a row. Like last year, the more impressive thing to me is that his smaller factory, San Lotano, is also in the top 10. (Last year, it was in the top five.) This year, three Dominican factories make the top 10 list, up from just one last year.

1. Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A. (8.95 percent)
2. My Father Cigars S.A. (7.1)
3. Cigars Davidoff (5.19)
4. Fábrica de Tabacos Joya de Nicaragua S.A. (5.08)
5. NACSA (4.27)
6. AGANORSA (4.2)
7. Tabacalera La Alianza S.A. (3.7)
8. San Lotano (3.57)
9. Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia (3.04)
10. Plasencia Cigars S.A. (3)

Top Company — Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust

Since 2017, Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust has taken this spot on The Consensus in all but 2021. It’s back on top again, though it’s closer than last year. This is the first time that a company has had both the #1 and #2 on The Consensus in the same year. I think it’s possible that some other companies could do this—Drew Estate, Arturo Fuente, RoMa Craft Tobac, Habanos S.A., J.C. Newman, Crowned Heads—but there aren’t that many that could do it. It’s not simply about having good cigars—though that is a part of it—it would also need to come fro a company that really focuses on two releases for a particular year and puts them in the hands of media. I think companies like General Cigar Co. or Tatauje—both of which are in the top five—release too many new cigars to get this narrow focus.

Eight of the 10 companies below were on this list last year, J.C. Newman and RoMa Craft Tobac are the two new entrants for 2023.

1. Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust (7.95 percent)
2. Davidoff (6.05)
3. General Cigar Co. (5.93)
4. Tatuaje (3.74)
5. Foundation (3.71)
6. J.C. Newman (2.85)
7. Habanos S.A. (2.62)
8. RoMa Craft Tobac (2.61)
9. Arturo Fuente (2.56)
10. Drew Estate (2.52)

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A Brief Comparison of Data

I have looked at a few different data comparisons for the last few years, I will continue that practice this year.

This looks at how many points the #1 cigar on The Consensus got and what that represents in terms of points.

• 2018: #1 received 255.25 out of 7,448.75 points, 3.43 percent of total points awarded
• 2019: #1 received 147.5 out of 8,760.5 points, 1.68 percent of total points awarded
• 2020: #1 received 230 out of 9,343 points, 2.46 percent of total points awarded
• 2021: #1 received 323.5 out of 10,184.9 points, 3.18 percent of total points awarded
• 2022: #1 received 214.03 out of 9,058.21 points, 2.36 percent of total points awarded
• 2023: #1 received 286.5 out of 9,978.9 points, 2.87 percent of total points awarded

This is the same comparison but for the #25 cigar.

• 2018: 25th place received 48.25 points (.64 percent)
• 2019: 25th place received 63 points (.72 percent)
• 2020: 25th place received 61 points (.65 percent)
• 2021: 25th (T-24) place received 69 points (.68 percent)
• 2022: 25th place received 62 points (.68 percent)
• 2022: 25th place received 71 points (.71 percent)

I’ve long been a fan of this metric, which evaluates how much greater of a share the #1 cigar got compared to the #25.

• 2018: #1 scored 5.3x #25
• 2019: #1 scored 2.34x #25
• 2020: #1 scored 3.77x #25
• 2021: #1 scored 4.69x #25
• 2022: #1 scored 3.45x #25
• 2023: #1 scored 4.04x #25

This looks at the same metric but comparing the #1 and #2 shares.

• 2018: #1 scored 1.09x #2
• 2019: #1 scored 1.12x #2
• 2020: #1 scored 1.12x #2
• 2021: #1 scored 2.22x #2
• 2022: #1 scored 1.18x #2
• 2023: #1 scored 1.45x #2

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A Year of Repeat Winners

• #1 Cigar
• Top Company
• Top Factory
• Top Country

All four of those winners are the same as they were in 2022. While none of them are surprising, it is a bit boring. There’s also the question of what happens if the outputs of The Consensus continue to be the same, even when the inputs are different. I don’t think it’s a problem to have it happen once, but if the results are the same next year, there probably needs to be critical questions about what’s happening here and might raise the question about the curation of the lists themselves.

For example, while Mi Querida Black (#1) and Muestra de Saka Krakatoa (#2) are, in my opinion, good cigars, they each took the undisputed top spot on just one list per cigar. Both cigars appeared on a lot of lists, but neither was on the majority of lists, neither garnered more than one bonafide #1 cigar vote from the lists, and yet here they are, one and two.

Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A. is on here because it makes lots of new cigars. It made three cigars in the Top 25 (El Pulpo, Room101 Johnny Tobacconaut and Highclere Castle Senetjer), but it also had 35 different entries on the list, 10 more than the next most-represented factory, My Father Cigars S.A., with 25. Tied for third at 20 is Abdel Fernández’s other factory, San Lotano.

I’ve thought about this issue—I don’t know if it’s actually a “problem”—a lot, and I’m unsure what the solution is. Individual media outlets like halfwheel can produce very different lists each and every year, but when all of the lists get added up, things like this happen.

Drew Estate Didn’t Release a Regular Production Line in 2023, And It Shows

In 2023, Drew Estate didn’t release a new regular production, and it showed up in a big way.

Blackened Cigars “M81”—Drew Estate’s newest core line, a collaboration with the members of Metallica—was released in November 2022. Releasing a cigar in November or December is not a good strategy for The Consensus—unless you are Steve Saka of Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust and you send samples to media before the cigars go on sale to make sure the cigars have a chance of making Top 25 lists—but Blackened also seems to be a divisive cigar in a way that Mi Querida Black is not.

Whatever the case, Drew Estate wasn’t in the top 10 list of companies for The Consensus. Given that it’s both the largest and loudest cigar company, I think the lack of a new core line offering is the clear reason why.

Why Isn’t the ______ List on Here?

There are a few common reasons that show up each and every year, such as:

• This list was not entirely published by the end of Jan. 19. (Cigar Journal, Developing Palates, The Bakersfield Gentlemen)
• The list is published by someone who also owns a retail store. (The Cigar Authority, Cigar Prop)
• The list wasn’t published outside of Facebook/Instagram. (El Oso Fumar)
• It’s a user-generated list. (Ash Quarterly)

I want to make it clear: this isn’t me complaining. This is me preempting the questions. No publication should try to conform their list simply to get on The Consensus. 

For reasons that should be obvious, it’s impossible for me to see every list. What I have tried to do is to make sure people are aware of The Consensus, what they would need to do to have a list qualify, etc. That included this post, which was published on Christmas and was on the halfwheel homepage all of last week. One other thing I did this year was to publish the list of the included 2023 lists live, that way people could see what was already included. I need to do a better job of explaining that, as that should clear up any issues.

It’s also possible—and has happened before—that I just missed a list.

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To download the Excel spreadsheet with all votes, click here.

For links to the 44 lists used, click here.

To view previous versions of The Consensus:

• The Consensus 2011
• The Consensus 2012
• The Consensus 2013
• The Consensus 2014
• The Consensus 2015
• The Consensus 2016
• The Consensus 2017
• The Consensus 2018
• The Consensus 2019
• The Consensus 2020
• The Consensus 2021
• The Consensus 2022

Brian Hewitt of Stogie Review performed a similar concept in 2010, which you can read here.

One final note: thanks to Brooks Whittington for the photography, all of which is the property of Rueda Media, LLC.