Tobacco
Specializing in American Tobacco
Though tobacco has been cultivated in North America for thousands of years, modern American tobacco culture has its start in Jamestown Virginia in 1612. English explorer John Rolfe smuggled Spanish sweet tobacco seeds from South America to break the Spanish monopoly on tobacco. This single handedly saved Virginia and kickstarted the English settlement of America. Many American tobacco strains are still descended from this original strain.
Craft Tobacco
Tobacco has lost its place in American society and with that the American tobacco economy has decreased dramatically. Many farmers have switched to different crops, and there are few cigar or pipe manufacturers left. While it is alarming that we may be at risk of losing such an abundant cultural heritage, it leaves more opportunity than ever for appreciators of fine tobacco. There are countless rare American tobaccos that have each have unique flavor and regional history waiting to be rediscovered and given a new life in the modern world of tobacco.
Growing
Tobacco Cultivation
Tobacco has long been treated as a simple commodity crop, and it’s unique growth and terroir have gone under appreciated. Different strains of tobacco grow best under different conditions, and each plant is heavily influenced by where it is grown. As early as 1650, different heirloom cultivars began to appear due to the planting of tobacco in different climates and soil types.
Heirloom Tobacco
Each tobacco variety has its own characteristics and grows under different conditions. Understanding how to grow and work with them requires knowledge and skills that can only be learned from experience. These are some of of the varieties we have experience with.
Connecticut Broadleaf
A large, robust, and very underappreciated leaf. Grown in the deep rich glacial soils of New England, this leaf grows thick and heavy. The leaf has natural leather and cedar notes, but after a long and heavy fermentation the flavor blooms into a deep rich profile of chocolate and spice with a natural sweetness. This leaf requires specialized knowledge and skill, as its thick veins and long fermentation make it difficult to work with. The smell of Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro or Oscuro is second to none.
Connecticut Shade
Connecticut Shade is a prized tobacco that enjoys much fame in the cigar world. Today however, most shade is grown in Nicaragua or Ecuador. While still of great quality and very popular in the cigar market, nothing compares to authentic Connecticut River Valley grown Connecticut Shade. Grown in the prehistoric lakebed of glacial Lake Hitchcock, Connecticut Shade tobacco plants grow to over six feet tall in the sandy fertile soil of the Pioneer Valley. Grown under shade cloths and refreshed by minerals from the Green and White Mountain ranges, these leaves mature into a light and exceptionally thin leaf. The iconic warm tan hue of this rare leaf is accompanied by it’s unusual but iconic “haybarn” smell. While now exceedingly rare and of very high price, authentic Connecticut Shade has no parallel.
Virginia Orinoco
The first commercial variety planted in America. First planted my John Rolfe in 1612 in Jamestown Virginia, this variety quickly spread across the state and much of the country. While Virginia has long been famous for its red, yellow, and brightleaf tobacco popular in pipe and cigarette blends. Traditional Virginia Orinoco remains a rare and underappreciated heirloom variety. Grown in the highly fertile alluvial soils of Tidewater Virginia, this dark and rustic tobacco is air cured in traditional barns. Under these unique conditions, Virginia Orinoco produces a robust leaf with a spicy punch accompanied by undertones of earth and wood.
Pennsylvania Broadleaf
The backbone of the historical American cigar industry, this wide and robust leaf has remained a top choice for cigar manufacturing to this day. Grown almost exclusively in Lancaster County Pennsylvania, this heirloom tobacco remains as a reliable crop for the Amish and other local farmers. This leaf boasts a unique earthy flavor with distinct mineral notes and a notably sweet undertone reminiscent of blackstrap molasses. The leaf itself is very wide and flat with a thick dense almost elastic texture, making cigar rolling an ease as a perfect binder leaf.
Cigars
Cigar Rolling
Cigars are the favored choice for those of discerning taste who seek to enjoy robust air cured tobacco in it’s purest most natural form. The cigar is a hand rolled object carefully blended and constructed for its refined taste and enjoyment and to exhibit the qualities of the tobacco it contains. We make hand rolled cigars with our own heirloom tobacco. Our cigars are designed and blended by our master blender and hand rolled by our team. We showcase our heirloom American tobacco in our traditional and puro blends, paying homage to the tobacco industry and culture that shaped a continent.