Veterans Day Cigars
On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918, fighting ended between the Allied nations and Germany, bringing the hostilities of World War I, aka the “The Great War,” to a conclusion. In November 1919, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11 Armistice Day to honor those who fought and fell in the greatest conflict the world had seen to that point. On May 13, 1938, Congress officially declared November 11 a federal holiday. In 1954, Congress passed a bill, signed by President Eisenhower, proclaiming November 11 as Veterans Day. All who have served honorably in the military during wartime or peacetime are honored on Veterans Day.
Cigars and the military share a long history. Cigars were an integral component in the regimen of Ulysses S. Grant throughout the Civil War. Many presidents and military leaders have been avid cigar lovers. Premium cigars represent an essential form of recreation and bonding for many of those in our armed forces who spend extended periods away from their loved ones and the day-to-day comforts most of us take for granted. At Holt’s, we encourage customers to send cigars to soldiers serving our country at home and abroad.
When Richard Overton passed in 2018, he was the oldest man in the United States, at 112, and a revered U.S. Army Veteran who had been honored by President Obama on Veterans Day in 2013. And he smoked twelve cigars a day. A good handmade cigar is a fitting observance of military service, if you or your loved ones are active or retired members of our military. Here are five excellent cigars to smoke this Veterans Day.
1. Ashton VSG
Ashton VSG became an instant classic when it debuted in 1999. World-renowned cigar-maker Carlito Fuente blends an ultra-rich and oily Ecuador Sumatra wrapper leaf over a premium interior of Dominican long-fillers matured for perfect taste and balance. Succulent notes of leather, espresso bean, cedar, and earth mingle with chewy spices in a wide variety of sizes. A long finish lingers in this 94-rated classic, ideal when you’re catching up with fellow servicemen and servicewomen.
2. La Aroma de Cuba Pasión
La Aroma de Cuba quickly became one of Winston Churchill’s favorite cigars when he discovered it in the late 1800s during his military deployment to Cuba to cover the Cuban War of Independence. More than a century later, La Aroma de Cuba is a prestigious Nicaraguan brand blended by Cuban expatriate Jose ‘Pepin’ Garcia, considered one of the top cigar-makers in the world today. The 94-rated Pasión is drawn from a rare Shade Grown Nicaraguan wrapper leaf cultivated in the delicate microclimate of Namanji. Inside is a complex blend of Nicaraguan long-fillers, married to convey hearty notes of smoked cashew, cedar, leather, and molasses.
3. Perdomo 20th Anniversary Maduro
Perdomo brand founder Nick Perdomo proudly served in the U.S. Navy before working as an air traffic controller, investing every spare moment and dime he had to launch his brand and pursue his dream of making cigars as his father and grandfather had done. Perdomo 20th Anniversary Maduro is a worthy Veterans Day treat with its succulent profile of coffee, earth, leather, and spices. An oily Nicaraguan Maduro wrapper leaf harbors an intricate blend of Nicaraguan long-fillers grown in Estelí, Condega, and the Jalapa Valley. Only the highest tobacco primings are reserved for Perdomo 20th Anniversary Maduro cigars.
4. Southern Draw Jacob’s Ladder
Southern Draw cigars are blended by AJ Fernandez and handcrafted at his factory in Estelí, Nicaragua, but the brand is owned and operated by a family of U.S. Army and Navy Veterans, including brand founder Robert Holt. Jacob’s Ladder is one of the most popular cigars from Southern Draw. A dark and toothy Pennsylvania Broadleaf wrapper conceals hearty Nicaraguan long-fillers tucked under an Ecuador binder. Malty notes of cedar, molasses, and coffee bean weave a sweet and spicy tapestry over the palate.
5. CAO America
CAO America, outfitted in a red-white-and-blue band, is an obvious cigar to smoke on Veterans Day. A four-country blend of premium tobaccos from the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Italy, and America is finished in an unusual barber pole wrapper consisting of a Connecticut Broadleaf with a Connecticut Shade pinstripe. This complex smoke earned a 92-point rating from Cigar Aficionado for its medium-bodied profile of leather, cocoa, cedar, and pepper.
