Stogie Reviews: Toraño Exodus 50 Years Blend Short Churchill
31 Jan 2011
Last year was a big one for Charlie Toraño and his family, as they renamed their company the “Toraño Family Cigar Company†and exercised their option to retake distribution from a deal with CAO. “It belongs in the family,†Charlie told us.
These days the company is getting a lot of attention about its newest creations: Master, a bundle line called Brigade, and Single Region. But the Exodus 50 Years Blend, launched in 2009, still has the cigar community talking. And, as I was told by a Toraño representative last week, it is still selling very well.
This blend is rolled in memory of the Toraño family’s 50-year exile from Cuba. It comes dressed in a Brazilian Arapiraca sun-grown wrapper with a Honduran binder and Nicaraguan filler tobaccos from Estelà and Pueblo Nuevo. The four regular production sizes—Short Churchill, Torpedo, Robusto, and Box Press—are handmade in Nicaragua, retailing for $6-8 apiece.
I picked up three Short Churchills (6 x 48) at a recent Single Region Tour event in Arlington, Virginia. I got them for about $5 each, since they were on special. This firm, slender vitola sports a moderate cold draw, pre-light notes of cocoa, and an exterior leaf as oily as it is dark.
A couple wooden matches gets the foot thoroughly toasted and lit. From there, the flavor displays a profile of black cherry, cinnamon, leather, and pepper. It’s bold, but decidedly medium-bodied and well-balanced. The thick smoke is cool—never hot or harsh—making for a smooth experience.
Despite its length, the Short Churchill’s taste doesn’t change much from light to nub. What you see at the beginning is pretty much what you get throughout, and that’s OK with me. All the while the burn is straight and the gray ash layers evenly and sturdily off the foot.
The Toraños make some excellent cigars, and the Exodus 50 Years Blend may be their finest. Don’t let all of their newest creations prevent you from trying this line if you haven’t already done so. The Short Churchill is an outstanding value and worthy of four and a half stogies out of five.
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photo credit: Stogie Guys