Hammer + Sickle Double Eagle

With the boys of Hammer + Sickle located in Massachusetts just over the border from New Hampshire we get to see Eric Hanson and Erik Wentworth on a semi-regular basis. Over the last month or so we have been smoking the Double Eagle which began shipping yesterday.

Limited to just 170 boxes of boxes of 10 the Double Eagle is the perfect marriage of Nicaraguan tobacco and Honduran craftmanship. This cigar boasts full flavor, remarkable construction and produces rich bellowing smoke. The blend is composed of Nicaraguan Esteli, Condega and Jalapa from the 1999-2004 harvest period, provides the ultimate Nicaraguan puro experience.

Cigar: Hammer + Sickle Double Eagle
Size: 5.25 x 52
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Strength: Medium
Source: Hammer + Sickle

The Look: Looking at the cigar, I am reminded of a cigar called The Missle from another brand, with the foot band. There is something about this size and format that I love. So I am looking forward to lighting up the cigar that has some veins that stand out on a thick oily wrapper. The torpedo is flawlessly rolled with a nicely packed foot. The band of the cigar has the Double Eagle logo with English and Russian writing on the side.

The Notes: The cold draw of the Hammer + Sickle Double Eagle serves up notes of morning dew and a hind of cashews. The foot of Double Eagle has some sweetness to it, but the focal point earth.

Once the cigar is lit, there is an abundance of flavor right out of the gate. There is a ginger snap note that really grabs me and pulls me in from the first couple of puffs.There is a smooth creamy finish that reminds me of salt water taffy.

In the second third of the cigar the salt water taffy is the focal point with a sweet almost floral finish. There are some notes of cashew and wood as well, but the sweet taffy lingers just long enough to make me want to take a trip to the Jersey shore.

The final third of the cigar still holds on to some of its sweetness, but it becomes more earthy with elements of wood, and pistachio. The finish of the cigar is short, leaving me want to light up another one.

The Burn: A slow burning torpedo, the Double Eagle had a dark ash that held for almost half the cigar. It produced a nice volume of smoke and had a perfect drawn. The combustion line was razor-thin and straight throughout the smoke.

The Finish: Hammer + Sickle is a brand that needs more national attention. Its popular in Texas, Southeast and here in the Northeast. Their limited editions have been epic, and this follows up the highly successful Dalias. Clean, easy to identify notes make this box worthy to say the least.

Score: 93
Price: $14.19 / $125.99 Box of 10