2. Davidoff Winston Churchill The Late Hour Robusto
Davidoff of Geneva USA
- Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
- Factory: Cigars Davidoff
- Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro Marron
- Binder: Mexican San Andrés Negro
- Filler: Dominican Republic (Olor, Piloto, San Vicente) & Nicaragua (Condega, Estelí)
- Length: 5 Inches
- Ring Gauge: 52
- Vitola: Robusto
- MSRP: $17.50 (Boxes of 20, $350)
- Release Date: Aug. 2, 2017
- Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
- Original Score: 92
For the first full extension to its revamped Winston Churchill line, Davidoff combined the British leader’s love of cigars and spirits through a process known as barrel aging, but this is far from a flavored or infused cigar.
The Late Hour is built around viso leaves from Nicaragua’s Condega region that get three months of fermentation and three months of aging, both in spent Speyside single malt Scotch whisky barrels. The process adds a unique, almost lush character to the profile, which is measured out with seemingly exact precision. Add in fillers from Estelí and the San Vincente region of the Dominican Republic, a Mexican San Andrés negro binder and wrap it all in an Ecuadorian habano marron oscuro wrapper, and you get a full-flavored smoke that scored well because of its ability to layer on flavors and gain complexity without losing balance.
The cigar requires a slow, methodical smoking process to get the most out of it, but the rewards are plentiful with notes of floral sweetness, rich woods, clean smokiness and just a hint of pepper. This is not just one of the best cigars of 2017, it’s one of the best Davidoff products on the market today. — Patrick Lagreid.
