Cigar Aficionado

Cigarmaker A.J. Fernandez is shipping a new San Lotano line now with a bullish blend. Named San Lotano The Bull, three initial sizes have charged their way to United States tobacconists, with more sizes to ship later this year.

"San Lotano The Bull is a blend that I have been flirting with for quite sometime," said Fernandez. "The cigar contains filler tobacco from my own plantations in Nicaragua, blended to hit a medium- to full-bodied profile, while maintaining balance between flavor and strength."

The Bull is rolled with an Ecuadoran Sumatra leaf wrapper, as well as Nicaraguan binder and filler, both of which come from Fernandez's fields. Fernandez places this among his more full-bodied blends and characterizes the cigar as being "powerful—yet not overpowering."

Just three sizes will be available during the first release: Robusto, at 5 inches by 54 ring gauge, Toro at 6 by 54 and Torpedo at 6 1/2 by 54. They're packaged in dark boxes of ten and each cigar comes wrapped in a cedar sleeve printed with the logo of a bull's head. A 6 by 60 Gordo will be added to the line later this year, but an exact date has not been established.

Prices will range between $9.60 and $9.95. For a rating on San Lotano The Bull, see an upcoming issue of Cigar Insider.