BACKGROUND: Since 1982, the Toraño family has recorded every single blend they have ever worked on in a cigar blend book. Among the blends recorded in this book are those that were released by the family together with those that were deemed to have tremendous potential, but fell short of the family's high expectations.

This book has come to symbolize the Toraño's blending expertise and creativity and is now securely stored in a safety deposit box in a bank vault.

Recently, Charlie Toraño and Bruce Lewis revisited the book and discovered an intriguing, yet unreleased blend called Liga A-008, which was first documented in the year 2000. The original Blend A-008 consisted of a shade grown Nicaraguan Colorado wrapper and full flavored filler tobaccos from Esteli and Condega. The binder was a Honduran leaf from the Jamastrán Valley. The entire blend was good, but was missing something that eluded the family until just recently.

Because they thought blend A-008 had so much potential, the Toraño family recreated he blend and worked with it. And after numerous modifications, it was discovered that the missing ingredient to the original blend was tobacco grown in a region that the Toraño family did not have access to until recently.

That region is Ometepe, Nicaragua. The addition of a second ligero binder from Ometepe brought another layer of richness and strength to the original blend, making it truly worthy of carrying the Toraño name.

The Toraño Vault A-008 is available in 4 sizes: a 6 x 50 Toro, a 6.1 x 52 Torpedo, a limited release Corona Gorda and the cigar I'm featuring today the 5-inch by 52 ring gauge Robusto.

TASTING NOTES: This cigar is impressive. It starts with blackstrap molasses, corn mash and the sweetness of bourbon. It is woody and spicy and full in flavor. The impact on the palate is huge. The flavors coat the palate and the smoke has a long and satisfying finish.

The retrohale kicks it up a couple of notches with a searing pepper spice that threatens to launch your nasal mucosa into the next county. Warning: retrohale this cigar at your own risk...

The performance has been stellar as well. The cigar exhibits an even burn line and excellent draw. The ash is slightly flaky, but nothing to write home about.

FINAL THOUGHTS: The Toraño Vault A-008 is the best new cigar from the company since the Exodus 1959 50-Years. The Vault has a wrapper that is dark and gorgeous with a sweet aroma. The cigar is medium-full in body, flavor and strength and displays flavors of wood, spice and coffee. The retrohale will burn through your nasal mucosa with black pepper spice, so be ready for nuclear fallout when retrohaling.

Though the flavors exhibited are limited in number, the cigar shows tremendous balance and therefore comes off as being complex. Whether by hook or by crook, this cigar is no doubt tasty and mouthwatering. Give yourself an early Christmas present and purchase a few of these sticks. I think you’ll be glad you did.

~Doc