Cigar of the Week: Fonseca

When connoisseurs list their favorite Cuban cigars, Fonseca is a name which probably shows up at the end. It’s not widely produced today, although it has its fans.

When connoisseurs list their favorite Dominican-made cigars, it’s also likely that Fonseca won’t be one of the first few brands you’ll hear about. And that’s a shame.

Manuel Quesada’s Fonseca is one of the best.

The original Fonseca brand was created at the end of the 19th Century in Cuba by Ferdinand E. Fonseca, who apparently made cigars in both Cuba and the United States. It was well known as a mild-bodied brand of very high quality and unique packaging. Fonseca used to sell cigars in a metal bottle which the neck lifted off to reveal the cigars inside!

When Quesada founded his MATASA plant in 1975, he was able to obtain the U.S. trademark for Fonseca, which had been produced outside Cuba since 1962. The current blend dates from 1991 and is a showcase for quality and consistency in construction and taste.

Like its Cuban counterpart, the current Dominican blend in mild in body, but hardly devoid of flavor. There is a pleasant, lightly-caramelized taste to the blend, which features a genuine Connecticut Shade wrapper, a Mexican binder and Dominican-grown filler tobaccos.

The draw is perfect and there is just a hint of spice on the finish that develops in mid-course. It’s easy to smoke and easy to enjoy; don’t puff too hard on a Fonseca trying to get more flavor from it. It’s best to relax and appreciate its gentle and unhurried approach to quality.

There are plenty of shapes to choose from, including a spectacular cigar with a pointed head that expands all the way to the foot. The 5 1/2-inch-long Triangular finally ends with a ring gauge of 56 at the very end.

Quesada has made sure that his Fonseca line is easily accessible to smokers, pricing the 11 sizes in the line from $1 each for the 4 1/8-inch by 30-ring Mini to just $7.75 for the Triangular. If – like so many – you’re a robusto fan, the Fonseca 5-50 (5 inches by 50 ring) will set you back just $5.60 plus local sales and tobacco taxes. It’s a gift worth giving yourself to start 2008 the right way!

(Rich Perelman is editor-in-chief of CigarCyclopedia.com, offering comprehensive daily coverage of cigars, accessories, issues, people and prices at www.CigarCyclopedia.com.)

Rich Perelman

1/2/08

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