Cigar Review: La Flor Dominicana Cameroon Cabinet Torpedo
5 Apr 2012
La Flor Dominicana is best known for ball-busting, full-bodied smokes like the Double Ligero, Airbender, and The Digger. Still, many of La Flor’s cigars don’t fit the big and bold type-casting, inlcluding the Premium line (La Flor’s first line) and the Cameroon Cabinet, the subject of this review.
The Cameroon Cabinet blend was introduced in 2007 and has slowly expanded since. Now it includes four regular production sizes (toro, torpedo, lonsdale, and robusto) plus two limited release sizes (lancero and chisel). Originally, the Cameroon Cabinet cigars were un-banded (as recently as last year) but now many, including the torpedo, use a bronze-colored variation of the classic “LFD” band.
The Cameroon Cabinet features a pale-ish brown Cameroon wrapper with only a few veins and a slight shine. It surrounds a Dominican binder and Dominican and Nicaraguan filler tobaccos.
Once lit the Cameroon-wrapped torpedo reveals medium-bodied flavors in perfect balance. The cigar features an exquisite blend of cedar, light spice, cream, and coffee flavors.
The only fault with this cigar is in its construction. The draw is excellent and the ash holds firm, but the wrapper is very frail and each sample I smoked suffered many cracks that resulted in an uneven burns.
The fragile wrapper is, I suspect, a tradeoff for the flavors provided by the Cameroon wrapper. And while it’s a significant tradeoff, it’s well worth the payoff for the balanced, complex flavors the cigar produces.
Ultimately, while I think I slightly prefer the No. 1 size, this torpedo reminded me why I so enjoy La Flor’s Cameroon line. It’s balance and depth of flavor make it an excellent choice for a strong cup of coffee in the morning, or an after-dinner whiskey.
At $10 each ($480 for a box of 50) it’s a cigar that delivers. Despite the construction issues, the exquisite flavors of La Flor Dominicana Cameroon Cabinet Torpedo earn it four and a half stogies out of five.
[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.]
photo credit: Stogie Guys
Patrick Ashby
Co-Founder & Editor in Chief
Patrick Semmens
Co-Founder & Publisher
George Edmonson
Tampa Bureau Chief
Patrick I'm a fan of Camaroon wrappers and know their problems. Sometimes in the winter when the humidity is so low I take Camaroon wrapped cigars out of my humidor and let them sit for an hour. I think the drying of the wrapper makes them a little stronger and they crack a little less. It seems to help but could also be total BS.
I've passed by these in the shop many times, intrigued because I like Cameroon but just never picking one up for some reason or other. With a review this enthusiastic, I'm definitely going to pull the trigger.
I don't think I've ever been disappointed with a line from LFD. The Air Bender is my all time fave from LFD. I agree the draw on their smokes are always perfect. Which makes me want to consistently go back to them. I'm curious as to why the Cameroon wrapper seems to break so easily? How many did you have for your review?
I smoked three specifically for this review, but I've smoked a dozen of these in various sizes in the past year and nearly all suffered from this problem.