Do you think any of your projects will still be running along at full steam nearly 200 years after you pass? Somehow, that’s what Herman Upmann pulled off with his cigar company so that today we can smoke something called “Herman’s Batch.”
The year was 1844 when he arrived in Cuba from Germany. He was there to serve as the local rep of an importer/exporter back home. He quickly found the business that would make his name legendary in the tobacco industry: cigars. He purchased a factory and also served as financier for the brothers of the Leaf working on the island. A succession of family members kept his brand alive as the decades rolled past, and now we still can smoke the fine products of the H. Upmann cigar company.
To be clear, we’re not getting the Cubanos. Fortunately, the non-Cuban stogies made by the company are quite splendid.
H. Upmann Herman’s Batch cigars bring together major tobaccos from the region for a potent one-two punch. Long-fillers from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua (Condega and Estelí) form the core of a cigar that would please a smoker from any century. These are then bound in another Dominican leaf and carefully wrapped in Ecuador Habano that has been described as “strikingly oily.” What else but habano would work, here?! The man fell in love with Cuba, and we need to have that represented in the blend in one way or another.
The flavors of H. Upmann Herman’s Batch cigars are highly intriguing. This isn’t a traditional blend. Cigar Aficionado called out what makes it so special when they described it as offering a core of “candied ginger with some woodiness and a touch of hazelnut.” They also tasted “licorice and tarragon” on the finish, signaling that the blend wasn’t a boring one, by any stretch. Some reviewers surprisingly found it a bit mild on flavor, but it seems clear that there can be a lot going on in these sticks when they show the best side of their leaves.
In some strange way, this is a cigar crafted to suit the tastes of a tobaccoman from nearly two centuries ago. Blend inspiration can come from anywhere, and the man himself is as good a place to start as any.
Please browse our selection of H. Upmann Herman’s Batch cigars at your leisure.
