La Gloria Cubana

Before boutique cigars were a category, La Gloria Cubana was the boutique cigar — hand-rolled in Miami, hard to find, and heavier than the mild Dominicans everyone else was making. It is a General Cigar brand now and made at scale, but the blend has held up: Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper over a Dominican and Nicaraguan core, medium-full, with earth and leather rather than sweetness, and a spice that builds through the second half. The Wavell is the robusto and the size most people mean when they say 'LGC'. The Serie R is the bigger-ring, slightly stronger version of the same idea. Prices sit in the everyday band and the cigar is often on sale, which makes it one of the better values in full-flavored Dominicans.

A full-flavored evening cigar when you want something with history rather than a new release.