Name: Dominican Big Leaguer 35th Anniversary

Country: Dominican Republic

Shape: Box-Pressed

Size: (6 1/4 inches x 56)

Strength: Medium

It was my friend who chose this cigar.
“It’s a good one,” I told him after a few draws.
I smoked it until my fingers burned.

It was a good day, I remember.
We went to this nice restaurant
in Kfardebian.
There was me, my wife, my friend, and his wife.
We had a good meal —
Cold cuts, pork chops, duck magret, and fondue.
Pizza, too.
And two bottles of wine:
The first was Lebanese,
the second was French.

We laughed a good bunch,
talked a good bunch.
When they finally served the pain perdu,
it was already snowing,
and it was time for us to leave.

“It was a good one,” I told my friend
as I put the cigar in the ashtray
for it to die peacefully.
“Good stuff. Really good stuff.”

Name: Dominican Big Leaguer 2nd Generation

Country: Dominican Republic

Shape: Parejo

Size: Toro (6 5/8 inches x 52)

Strength: Medium

I paired the DBL 2nd Generation with a cappuccino, and I smoked it while reading Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich.

The book was much more satisfying than the cigar, but I enjoyed the cigar, too. It burned well and produced enough smoke to make me happy.

But I have to say that the DBL I smoked just a couple of days before I try this one was much better. I will surely smoke more Dominican Big Leaguer sticks in the coming months; however, I don’t think I’ll burn a DBL 2nd Generation stick again. It’s good but not that good. Extra Viejo sticks, on the other hand, I’ll smoke more of them for sure.

Name: La Flor Dominicana Oro Tubo No. 6 Maduro

Country: Dominican Republic

Shape: Parejo

Size: Toro (6 inches x 54)

Strength: Full

Paired with a medium-bodied Merlot, this cigar became something to talk about. It was strong and aromatic. The flavors I got from it changed and developed as I enjoyed bites of Lebanese mezze and occasional sips of arak. (It’s funny how I wanted to have wine, but I also had to have arak simply because there was Lebanese mezze on the table. I need to take it easy on the booze this year. But that’s another story.) Overall, to keep our long story short, the LFD Oro Tubo No. 6 Maduro is a smoke made for people who like strong, aromatic cigars. It’s good stuff, and I wouldn’t mind lighting one up again.