Montecristo 1935 Anniversary

Nicaragua

For this special creation,Montecristo Cigars has once again turned to brand ambassador Rafael Nodal, their elite Grupo de Maestros, and famed cigarmaker AJ Fernandez. All three have teamed up with the company on several occasions to lend their talents to some of the brands enormously popular Cuban heritage lines. For this landmark offering, they chose a Nicaraguan puro blend made entirely of Cuban seed tobaccos expertly hand rolled in AJ Fernandez’s prestigious San Lotano factory in Ocotál Nicaragua.

Nodal said of the smoke in a press release: “The cigar offers a luxury showcase from seed to smoke that combines classic craftsmanship and extra-aged estate tobaccos from Nicaragua’s best growing regions.”

The Montecristo 1935 Anniversary Nicaragua is offered as a box-pressed series of four sizes. Box-pressed, or Soft -Press cigars do not have the sharp angles and defined corners of square -pressed cigars, (which are formed in slotted wooden trays), but rather they are round cigars that are packed tightly into their own dress boxes and then compacted by a hand press. The result is a squarish shaped cigar that provides an exceptionally slow burn and an effortless draw.

These hand selected tobaccos provide a medium to full bodied smoke with savory flavors of wood, coffee, cinnamon, earth, and spice, all enhanced with a long-lasting sweet tobacco finish.

The Montecristo 1935 Anniversary Nicaragua received a well-deserved 95-point rating and was awarded the #2 spot in Cigar Aficionado’s Top 25 Cigars of 2021.

For reference, a 95 point rating from Cigar Aficionado is incredibly rare. The magazine reprinted recently a 1992-1993 issue in which it discussed the ratings for the greatest cigars of all time. Back then, and with an incredibly long and rich history from which to draw, only three cigars, two from Cohiba and one from Hoyo de Monterry, outscored the 95 that was bestowed upon the 1935 Anniversary Nicaragua.

Halfwheel, another industry-leading publication known for its arduous review process when it comes to cigars, bestowed a hard-earned 87 for the Montecristo 1935, noting the intense black pepper and spice jumping straight from the foot of the cigar upon first light.

When smoking a Nicaraguan puro, a drink pairing is critical. Because of the heaviness of the spice, there’s a necessity for some equally bold jam-like sweetness, or sugary sweetness to add a depth of flavor to the profile. If you’re a coffee drinker, that can be accomplished with a dark roasted espresso. For those who enjoy a fine spirit, there are a wide selection of dark aged rums which can perfectly align with the smoking profile. Among the best dark aged rums on the market, the St Aubin Agricole Black Rhum is a worthy selection given the usage of high quality burnt sugarcane. A Jungle Bird, Mai Thai or Dark and Stormy are also worthy options when lighting up this prestigious smoke. If you consider yourself more of a beer drinker, lean toward the German black beers, such as the Kostritzer Schwarzbier, which offers exceptional notes of pumpernickel and bitter chocolate. The wine enthusiasts rejoice, because this smoke pairs beautifully with a Red Zinfandel. Just imagine the wine’s lingering plum, black cherry and raspberry notes in perfect concert with the Nicaraguan puro blend expertly crafted by the maestros themselves. Talk about a symphony!

While smoking times range, the expert draw and ideal construction on this cigar provide over an hour of enjoyment. Merely looking at the stately construction and beautiful press on these cigars should take up a good chunk of time.

Order a box from JR Cigar and savor a smoke that combines the Grupo de Maestros unsurpassed Cuban craftsmanship with AJ Fernandez’s modern blending style. Along the way, enjoy our unbelievable pricing, which consistently puts the top smokes in the cigar industry into your hands for less. Our goal is to provide a comprehensive and curated experience for both the aficionado and the newcomer to the cigar hobby who wants to enjoy the best there is but is not sure where to start.

Starting with Montecristo 1935 and a smoke commemorating such an important anniversary is a great choice.