Cigars with Barbecue Notes
When we talk about cigars with tasting notes of “barbecue,” we’re referring to a broader category of flavors, like mesquite, hickory, and spice with hints of molasses and syrup. These cigars tend to be savory and tangy and offer an excellent balance of sweetness and zest. Lots of cigar lovers enjoy grilling out, and they love the taste of smoked meat. That’s why they look for cigars with notes of mesquite and hickory. If your mouth is watering, consider our list of the top cigars with barbecue tasting notes below.
1. La Aroma de Cuba Reserva
Rated 94 points by the critics in Cigar Aficionado and finished in a dark and attractive San Andrés Oscuro wrapper leaf, La Aroma de Cuba Reserva is a bold but refined smoke. Notes of hickory, espresso bean, leather, and black pepper mingle with a resounding undercurrent of dark chocolate in a series of popular sizes. The father-and-son cigarmakers behind My Father Cigars, Pepin and Jaime Garcia, blend their finest Nicaraguan long-fillers in this delicious expression of sweet and peppery flavor.
2. San Cristobal
The original San Cristobal develops with distinctive notes of espresso bean, black cherry, dark chocolate, and walnut with supporting spices in seven flawless sizes. Vintage Nicaraguan long-filler tobaccos come together under a stunning Cuban-seed Oscuro wrapper leaf grown in Ecuador. This full-bodied classic from San Cristobal satisfies the senses after a steak on the grill with an ice-cold stout in your hand.
3. Perdomo 10th Anniversary Maduro
Nick Perdomo operates a vertically integrated company, which affords him total control over the quality and consistency of his cigars. Perdomo 10th Anniversary Maduro evokes a formidable profile of dark chocolate, hickory, espresso, and spice, courtesy of well-aged Nicaraguan tobaccos grown on Perdomo family farms, including the cigar’s dark and toothy wrapper leaf. Perdomo cigars resonate with a unique sweetness because Nick is fond of aging much of his tobacco in former bourbon barrels.
4. Tatuaje 20th Anniversary
Tatuaje brand founder Pete Johnson works intimately with Pepin and Jaime Garcia to blend several small-batch gems in his portfolio, including Tatuaje 20th Anniversary. An oily Cuban-seed wrapper, grown in Ecuador, surrounds a potent blend of premium Nicaraguan tobaccos. Assertive notes of leather and spice unfold with nuances of cedar, smoked nuts, and earth. Tatuaje 20th Anniversary comes in a pair of consistent sizes finished with an uncut foot for a little more intensity in the first few puffs.
5. Plasencia Alma del Fuego
Sales of Plasencia cigars have picked up considerable steam in recent years. Although the Plasencia family has been growing premium tobacco and making cigars under contract for other brands for several generations, their eponymous brand has only been around for roughly a decade, and it stands out for its power and complexity. Plasencia Alma Fuego is a perfect introduction, layering the palate with intense notes of coffee bean, clove, and pepper before a big finish of espresso and smoked nuts lingers. This oily Nicaraguan Puro is rated 93 points.
6. Foundation Olmec Claro
Foundation cigars are blended and produced by a handful of cigarmakers for Foundation brand owner Nick Melillo. Olmec Claro hails from the AJ Fernandez factory in Nicaragua, and it’s blended from select Nicaraguan long-fillers, matured for perfect flavor, and an oily San Andres wrapper leaf. Tasting notes of malted chocolate, almond, coffee bean, and crème brûlée layer the palate with intonations of hickory and spice.
7. Rocky Patel Sixty
One of the highest-rated Rocky Patel cigars to date is the 96-rated Rocky Patel Sixty. A lustrous San Andrés wrapper conceals a well-blended core of Nicaraguan long-fillers in a trio of excellent sizes. In 2022, the critics in Cigar Aficionado named Rocky Patel Sixty their ‘#2 Cigar of the Year.’ Robust notes of hickory, leather, and cedar form the primary profile while hints of red pepper, nuts, and coffee bean weave an intriguing tapestry over the palate.
8. Southern Draw Cedrus
Southern Draw cigars are also produced in Nicaragua by AJ Fernandez, and Cedrus features an oily Indonesian Sumatra wrapper leaf over an intricate recipe of long-filler tobaccos harvested from several different seed varietals, including Dominican Piloto Cubano, Nicaraguan Criollo ’98, Nicaraguan Habano ’92, and Nicaraguan Corojo ’99. Complex notes of coffee bean, leather, and spice mingle with hints of toffee and caramel over a continual spice from the first puff to the last.
9. Liga Privada T52
Liga Privada T52 is blended and handcrafted by the folks at Drew Estate in Nicaragua. A reddish-brown Cuban-seed wrapper, cultivated in the Connecticut River Valley, covers a Brazilian Mata Fina binder and long-fillers from Nicaragua and Honduras. Hints of perique pipe tobacco and mesquite characterize Liga Privada T52 cigars alongside notes of cedar, oak, and pepper throughout a robust and smoky profile. Savor a strong and succulent blend constructed from a detailed recipe.
10. E.P. Carrillo The Pledge
Ernesto Perez Carrillo is the famous cigarmaker behind dozens of hits over the past forty years. The Pledge from E.P. Carrillo scored a coveted ‘#1 Cigar of the Year’ title with a 98-point rating in Cigar Aficionado in 2020. Notes of molasses, black cherry, hickory, and pepper create a sweet and full-flavored portrait. The Pledge is drawn from a Cuban-seed Maduro wrapper, grown in Connecticut, a binder from Ecuador, and Nicaraguan long-filler tobaccos. Indulge in a standout smoke from the E.P. Carrillo brand with The Pledge today.
