AJ Fernandez Collaborations
Abdel Josef Fernandez, the Cuban-born cigarmaker behind the sizeable AJ Fernandez Cigars portfolio, has overseen his brand’s explosive growth over the past ten years. He’s achieved dozens of top ratings and rankings from the critics in Cigar Aficionado across multiple lines, including New World, Dias de Gloria, Enclave, and Bellas Artes.
Long before AJ debuted his own brand, he built his reputation by making cigars under contract for big and small clients that ranged from Rocky Patel to Cigars International. AJ can count some of his collaborations with other cigarmakers and brands as his biggest hits. He is routinely sought out by other companies to blend new cigars and rejuvenate older Cuban-legacy brands. Here are the top cigars AJ Fernandez blends and produces for other companies. Some include his name on the label; others you may or may not know he was involved with. All deserve your attention and are worth smoking, especially if you enjoy other cigars in AJ’s repertoire.
1. Montecristo 1935 Anniversary Nicaragua
Montecristo is already one of the most famous cigar brands in the world, noted for its Cuban and Dominican blends. Altadis U.S.A., the parent company of non-Cuban Montecristo cigars, reached out to AJ Fernandez to blend Montecristo 1935 Anniversary Nicaragua in 2020. The cigar was released to celebrate the brand’s eighty-fifth anniversary, and the critics awarded it 97 points and ranked it as their ‘#2 Cigar of the Year’ in 2021 and again in 2024, calling it the finest non-Cuban Montecristo they’d ever tasted. Order a few of these box-pressed gems and decide if this Nicaraguan puro lives up to its reception. An oily, brown Nicaraguan wrapper conceals a hearty blend of aged Nicaraguan long-fillers in a robust profile of malted chocolate, leather, red pepper, and earth.
2. Romeo y Julieta San Andrés
Romeo y Julieta is another renowned Cuban-legacy brand owned by Altadis U.S.A. and blended and produced by AJ Fernandez. A jet-black San Andrés wrapper leaf covers a bold recipe of Dominican and Nicaraguan long-filler tobaccos in a handful of popular sizes that resonate with dark and earthy notes of cedar, leather, chestnut, and fresh ground coffee. This beefy smoke has picked up its fair share of admirers and offers a genuine contrast from the traditionally mild and nutty Romeo y Julieta blends that have been around for decades. Add a few to your next order and taste AJ’s blending expertise with a dark and toothy wrapper grown in the volcanic soil of Mexico’s Veracruz region.
3. Aging Room Quattro Nicaragua
Aging Room cigars were created by Rafael Nodal, a Cuban-born musician who followed a relatively circuitous route into the premium cigar industry. He worked intimately with AJ Fernandez to blend his most successful cigar to date, Aging Room Quattro Nicaragua. In 2019, the critics in Cigar Aficionado crowned it their ‘#1 Cigar of the Year’ with an impressive 96-point rating. Savor this alluring box-pressed Belicoso, drawn entirely from intense Nicaraguan tobaccos grown by AJ, with a distinctive profile of pepper, espresso bean, smoked pecan, dark cocoa powder, and wood.
4. Foundation – The Tabernacle
The premium cigar industry is full of characters, and Nick Melillo is a studious one, having launched Foundation Cigars back in 2015 after spending more than a decade working at Drew Estate as the company’s tobacco procurement head. Despite his years of experience, establishing a new cigar brand is a major challenge. Melillo has worked with several cigarmakers around the industry to produce his eclectic collection of smokes, and one of his biggest collaborators is AJ Fernandez. The Tabernacle is one of the most popular blends from Foundation. It’s blended from a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper with a San Andrés binder and Nicaraguan long-fillers from Estelí and Jalapa, as well as additional long-fillers from Honduras.
5. H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez
H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez is one of the biggest Cuban-legacy comebacks in recent years, undoubtedly because AJ’s name is on the bands and boxes. Complex notes of oak, coffee bean, nuts, and cedar layer the palate throughout a 92-rated gem that offers a refreshing departure from other famous H. Upmann cigars, like Vintage Cameroon and 1844 Reserve. AJ proved once again that his contribution is an effective way to draw new cigar lovers back to an old brand with an exciting new blend. Try one of the today’s bestselling H. Upmann cigars when you order this popular rendition from AJ.
6. Southern Draw Jacob’s Ladder
Robert and Sharon Holt, founders of Southern Draw Cigars, tapped AJ Fernandez to produce their entire brand back in 2014, and his talents have generated plenty of ratings, buzz, and street cred. One of the more popular blends is Jacob’s Ladder, a full-bodied smoke blended from a binder grown in Ecuador, Nicaraguan long-fillers, and a dark and toothy Pennsylvania Broadleaf wrapper. Lingering notes of molasses, coffee bean, and cedar impart deep spices throughout a dense and decadent profile. Fire up a Jacob’s Ladder cigar in your favorite size after dinner and find out why the brand has become a universal bestseller among AJ’s main fans.
7. Punch Diablo
Punch cigars can be found in premium smokeshops around the globe, but most of their appeal comes from a bygone era when old Cuban-legacy brands made up the majority of inventory in almost any cigar store. Punch Diablo, however, is different. This is a full-bodied, full-throttled blend put together by AJ Fernandez that pulses with intense spice and a high nicotine density. A very dark and hearty Ecuador Sumatra wrapper harbors a Connecticut Broadleaf binder with long-filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and Honduras tucked into the center. Feisty notes of hickory, pepper, and leather leave a big impression on the palate as well as the nose in every puff. Smoke Punch Diablo slowly and test your tolerance for strong cigars with this well-rounded blend from AJ Fernandez.
