Best Cigars to Smoke on the Fourth of July
I can’t imagine a better day to fire up a fine cigar than on the Fourth of July. You can trace the aroma of tobacco all the way back past the pioneering days of the Wild West to America’s early indigenous tribes and European traders. Pay tribute to 245 years of discovery, liberation, conquest, conflict, and coexistence by exercising your right to smoke a cigar. Here’s a quick list of the best cigars to smoke on the Fourth of July while you’re gazing up at a starry explosion of fireworks across the nighttime sky.
Ashton Symmetry
Not only is the band on this supreme specimen of a premium cigar a stunning combination of red, white, and blue, but Ashton is one of the only premium brands that’s been born and bred right here in America. Headquartered in historic Philadelphia, Ashton was started by Robert Levin, a veteran of the cigar industry who’s been in the business for nearly 50 years.
His extensive experience is truly evident in Ashton Symmetry, a phenomenal and complex smoke blended by celebrated cigar-maker Carlito Fuente in the Dominican Republic. A glistening reddish-brown Ecuador Habano wrapper leaf embraces an amazing interior of premium aged long-fillers from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. A luscious 94-rated profile of dried fruit, ripened figs, cinnamon, and cedar delivers a sweet and zesty finish in five classic shapes. Taste the evolution of a prestigious, top-selling brand with Ashton Symmetry.
La Aroma de Cuba
La Aroma de Cuba may have been conceived back in the 1800s in Cuba – not unlike many of the most famous cigar brands in the premium U.S. market – but today, the brand is handcrafted in Nicaragua and may be considered a beacon for all that you can achieve in America as a hardworking, talented immigrant. Legendary cigar-maker Jose ‘Pepin’ Garcia left Cuba for the States in the early 2000s following a decades-long career as a master blender.
With the support of his family, Pepin revived and reshaped his destiny as a maker of premium cigars for an American audience. Today, Pepin is responsible for dozens of the most celebrated Nicaraguan cigars ever created. Among his biggest successes as a blender is La Aroma de Cuba, a premium recipe drawn from a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper and a hearty but balanced core of Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos. Notes of brown sugar, molasses, and black pepper arrive in a collection of popular handcrafted shapes for an unrivaled value. La Aroma de Cuba is rated 93 points and represents an impressive selection for connoisseurs and novices alike.
CAO America
CAO America is an obvious choice for patriots who want to puff. The Honduran-drafted cigar is part of CAO’s World collection, a series of cigars blended to celebrate specific nations. CAO America is dutifully banded with the stars and stripes and features a complex four-country blend of Dominican, Nicaraguan, Italian, and American tobaccos beneath a unique barber-pole wrapper leaf which alternates between a Connecticut Broadleaf with a Connecticut Shade pinstripe.
Notes of chocolate, cedar, leather, and earth abound in an eye-catching cigar. The rich, medium-bodied profile is handmade in a handful of thicker ring gauges. CAO garnered a sizeable audience for the cigars in its World portfolio thanks to the colorful bands and boxes designed to identify the country commemorated in each blend.
Padrón 1964 Anniversary
In an earlier and also well-documented success story, Jose Orlando Padrón fled Cuba for the U.S. following the Castro’s revolution in the 1960s and the government’s subsequent seizure of his family’s tobacco farms. In Miami, Padrón started completely over, taking a variety of jobs and working as carpenter to get by and support his family during his first years outside of Cuba. He worked tirelessly and saved enough money to open a modest cigar factory in 1964, creating his now-iconic Padrón brand.
Padrón 1964 Anniversary debuted in 1994 to commemorate the company’s 30th anniversary and the family’s second coming as makers of premium cigars. An all-Nicaraguan profile of vintage tobaccos aged a minimum of six years is among the brand’s most sought-after blends with a rich profile of cedar, cinnamon, baking spices, cocoa, and black pepper handmade in a wide variety of soft box-pressed shapes. The cigar is available in your choice of a Natural or a Maduro wrapper for added sweetness.
San Cristobal Revelation
Every time I spin the band of a San Cristobal cigar over in my hand, I can’t help but imagine the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria landing in the Americas for the first time, delivering Christopher Columbus to an exotic and entirely alien tropical landscape. Despite my skepticism, like many others today, of Columbus’ alleged “discovery,” San Cristobal is a brand that unquestionably evokes adventure on the high seas and the exploration of a far-off hidden paradise with pristine beaches and see-through blue waters.
San Cristobal Revelation is one of the most requested. Award-winning cigar-maker Pepin Garcia drafted the blend from a milk-chocolate-hued Ecuador Sumatra wrapper leaf and a medium-bodied amalgam of premium aged Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos. A glistening profile of peppery caramels, cocoa, and wood reveals a sublime tapestry of creamy spices. Kick back in the hammock with your favorite shape or take a handful to the fireworks display. You’re bound to impress any fellow cigar lovers you bump into.
Macanudo Cafe
Macanudo Cafe is a creamy, mild cigar and among the most widely distributed brands in the world – and especially in the U.S., which is why we’re putting it on our list of cigars for your Fourth of July celebrations. Macanudo Cafe is crafted from a golden-blond Connecticut Shade wrapper leaf and mellow recipe of long-filler tobaccos grown in the Dominican Republic and Mexico.
A nutty, approachable profile of blonde roast coffee beans and brown sugar has been a first cigar for scores of novices for decades. Because Macanudo was among the first commercially successful brands made for consumers in the United States after the Cuban embargo took effect, it enjoys iconic status to this day. And, its ubiquity makes it an easy find. Virtually any and every premium cigar retailer carries some form of Macanudo, plus a wide variety of convenience stores, liquor stores, and even gas stations. When you need to pick up some last-minute premium cigars for the fireworks tonight, don’t overlook Macanudo.
