The Luis Martinez factory in Esteli, Nicaragua holds its roots in Cuba. According to the manufacturer’s website, Don Luis Martinez started making cigars in Cuba in the late 19th century before fleeing from the revolution in 1892. Rather than regurgitate the company line on these cigars, let me reproduce it here: “The brand new Luis Martinez Nicaraguan Silver Selection is a cigar born from the jet black, mineral rich soil of Central America. It is the careful blending of tobaccos from this region that give this cigar its medium body and smooth, full flavor.” Let’s see if it could live up to the advertising.
Origin: Nicaraguan
Build: Handmade with all Central American filler, Ecuadorian sungrown wrapper, and Honduran Cuban seed binder
Format: Robusto
Size: 120.6 x 15.87 mm (4 3/4″ x 50)
Price: $8 CDN
This Luis Martinez Silver Cigar was primarily intended as accompaniment for a fine list of scotches, and it ended up doing its job superbly. Lasting a little over an hour, the cigar burnt smoothly, evenly, and maintained a balanced flavor throughout, reflecting its 3 years of manufacturer’s aging. With nutty, leathery flavors, and thick creamy smoke, the cigar was nice, if a bit boring. This poor little cigar had no idea it was going to be paired with a Dallas Dhu 1981. This would be a formidable pairing for those gems at the depths of my humidor, but this “straight from the store” cigar did its best. The only real issue came at the end, when the wrapper started to go haywire. Apparently the “Ecuadorian sungrown wrapper” isn’t all its cracked out to be. Check out the pics for details. My conclusion? Not a bad little cigar for the price. And perhaps this is a bit sick, but sometimes playing with a messed up wrapper is a great way to pass the time.
