La Instructora Delicado

Today’s Featured Cigar:

La Instructora Delicado 

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The Cigar:

The Delicado was blended with those who prefer a more delicate nature to cigar smoking. The fruition of this blend resulted in a USA Connecticut wrapper, Sumatra binder and combination of Dominican filler tobaccos. This cigar comes in 6 different sizes from a small corona to a beautiful and long Presidente. Each one is constructed to perfection and is held at a very high standard when created each and every cigar. The US wrapper is thin and delicate but it shines in this blend. 

The Flavors:

This blend is delicate, obviously, but there is so much flavor still to be had. The major note of sweetness comes in waves on the palate as you smoke, continuing to get deeper and deeper. This is a sensitive cigar so watch the temperature and smoke time. If you pull too hard and smoke too fast the heat will take over the flavor, so take your time and enjoy. 

The Bottle: 

Château Ducasse Bordeaux Blanc is harvested in September. Vilification and aging takes place in stainless steel cuves for at least six months. It is then bottled unfiltered for a total production of 8,500 cases. The grapes used are 60% Semillon, 40% Sauvignon Blanc. 

The Pairing: 

On the palate, this wine is luscious and mouth coating with generous passion fruit and stone, and then the finish thickens and creates a chalk and acidity sensation. It has the classic Sauvignon Blanc notes of lime and grass with a more delicate approach, but unlike classic Sauv Blancs, this wine has a mineral shine. That stone flavors pairs perfectly with the wonderful sweetness that comes in layers from the US Grown Connecticut wrapper. The experience is all very delicate but there is a lot of flavor and complexity, it just takes a little bit more attention to detail. The dry wine brings the earth and salt note that rounds out the sweet and creamy cigar. The texture created by the two is silky smooth and continues to cover the palate hours after the cigar was out. 

The Story:

Aaron Saide came across the wrapper during the process of blending the cigar at Tabacalera Palma, with the leaf catching his attention both for its color and its sweet aroma. He told halfwheel that the creation of the cigar was about achieving balance and minimizing the lesser desired qualities of USA-grown Connecticut. To achieve that, a  binder and filler from the Dominican Republic were selected, both of which are grown by Jochy Blanco and have enough age on the leaves to provide balance to the wrapper. “Jochy achieved this blend,” Saide noted.

Saide said that while the cigar is smooth and on the milder side, the smoker never has to “reach for flavor.” He noted that there is no ligero in the blend, a decision made to ensure balance among the components.

The Man:

Jochy Blanco
The Godfather of tobacco. A true hoarder of the leaf. He is one of the largest cigar producers in the Dominican Republic and currently holds the largest collection of premium tobacco leafs.

He is fourth-generation tobacco grower, second-generation cigar maker and CEO of Tabacalera Palma.

His family’s tobacco-growing legacy began with his greatgrandfather, Manuel Blanco Lozada, who emigrated from Spain to the Dominican Republic in the mid-1800s. In 1925, Jochy’s father, José Arnaldo Blanco II, founded Tabacalera Palma, making him one of the country’s earliest cigar manufacturers.

“I’ve been involved with my father’s business since I was a kid,” says Jochy. “In 1980, I began to make changes, and started making different types of cigars for exportation. Before that, everything was local market only. So we went from being a mostly North American market company, to exporting Dominican-grown tobacco and cigars worldwide.” He knew that cigar smokers wanted a higher quality product, and he had the means to do it. “What you need are good growers, good tobacco, good fermentation, and good rollers,” says Jochy, who still ferments tobacco the way his grandfather did. “All of these processes, including the quality of the land and the leaf, come down to tradition. But the main thing is the passion you put into what you do.”

Jochy also buys tobacco from farms once subcontracted by Jochy’s father, Arnaldo. Some of these growers are third generation, and Jochy continues the tradition because it’s good for the growers, the business, and the Dominican economy. Of all the independent tabaqueros in the Dominican Republic, Jochy is arguably the country’s biggest grower and buyer.