Last year was a terrific growth year for Dominican Big Leaguer (DBL) Cigars, as Francisco Almonte lead his boutique cigar brand to new heights and introduced 4 new products to the market. These included the addition to the Derrame line – the Derrame II, the new super powerful Big Mama, a unique Cigar Baseball Bat cigar and the topic of today’s review; the 2nd Generacion Reserva Exclusiva. As you may know by now, Francisco is not new to the cigar business, he cut his teeth with Litto Gomez and Carlos Fuente before opening his own Tobacalera and Campo de Tabaco (Fields) in the Dominican Republic.
I have written a lot about DBL Cigars these past couple of years and consider Francisco and his brother Martin to be family. You may even have read the Stogie Press article on our visit to the DBL factory last year. So when I get my hands on a new DBL Cigar, my palate anticipates the pleasure and flavor I hope to enjoy.
The 2nd Generacion Reserva Exclusiva is described by Francisco as:
“..an exclusive Limited Edition Series that features rare, unique or hard -to-find tobaccos. This particular gem is an extremely tasty, smooth, medium to full-strength smoke … There are only 500 boxes produced.”
Available in just one vitola, a 6 5/8 x 52 Toro, the 2nd Generacion Reserva Exclusiva is a delectible cigar blend consisting of:
- Wrapper: One-of-a-kind Cameroon wrapper leaf sun grown in Ecuador
- Binder: Dominican Filler: All Dominican Piloto Cubano & Criollo 98 grown on the DBL farm
The packaging is bold. They come in a 14-count, cedar tray, box humidor, including a humidifier and gauge! MSRP for this is $8.30/cigar.
It has been a rainy, wet, and windy day and I have finally got a break from my day job to sit back and enjoy this latest addition to the DBL Cigars line. The look of this cigar is nothing short of spectacular, with its gleaming medium to dark brown Cameroon wrapper adorned with a bright orange footer band and two primary bands. The main band proudly declares this as a DBL cigar and the second identifies it as the 2nd Generacion Reserva Exclusiva. The bands are a departure from the black and red bands of the previous lines as Francisco chose to go with bright white and copper as the primary colors.
Let’s see how the DBL 2nd Generacion Reserva Exclusiva stands up to the high bar set by earlier DBL introductions.
Cigar Review Notes
- Oily, slight marbled, wrapper with a brilliant sheen
- Crisp cinnamon and raisin aroma along the barrel and foot
- Draw is lightly restricted
- Distinct raisin on the cold draw
- Once ignited, the nose is graced with a solid peppery burst
- Pepper pulls back and gives way to a full body of cinnamon spiced smoke
- Medium grey ash rests on a thick, straight, char line
- Ash holds for about an inch before falling
- Burn cone is perfectly centered and flat
- Coffee notes break through wrapped in the cinnamon spice
- Fruit aroma develops
- Spicy cherry flavor enters half-way
- Strength is clocking in close to full
- The barrel gets a bit more springy near the end of the second third
- Sweetness and cedar enters with a mellowed set of flavors in the last third
- Finishes with a bold spice
- Total Smoking Time was 1 hour and 40 minutes – a real slow burner.
Overall, the DBL 2nd Generacion Reserva Exclusiva was a flavorful cigar that not only had the DBL signature cinnamon spice notes, but imparted some delicious flavor transitions. The burn was perfect throughout. The strength crept up during the journey, and may be a bit strong for a new cigar smoker. If I was to pair this with a beverage, I would choose a dark sweet espresso.
DBL 2nd Generacion Reserva Exclusiva