The Dapper Cigar Co. 10rth Anniversary was announced in March of this year. I should note, that’s also when they were shipped to retailers. That’s something that Ian Reith wishes more cigar companies would do. Instead of allowing retailers to presell, he waits to announce the new blends until Dapper Cigar Co. is ready to ship. Honestly, I commend this move and share his view that more retailers need to do this.
The 10th Anniversary celebrates ten years of cigars for Dapper Cigar Co. It features and Ecuadorian Corojo wrapper over Dominican binder and fillers. In the press release, Ian notes , ‘These cigars have aged for almost exactly 1 year after they were rolled.’ They were rolled at TABACALARA LA iSLA in the Dominican Republic.
OVERVIEW
VITOLA:Â Â Toro
SIZE:Â Â 6″ x 54
ORIGIN:Â Â Dominican Republic
FACTORY:Â Â TABACALERA LA iSLA
WRAPPER:Â Â Ecuadorian Corojo
BINDER:Â Â Dominican
FILLER:Â Â Dominican
STRENGTH:Â Â Medium
SOURCE:Â Â Â
Small Batch Cigar
ENVIRONMENT
WHERE:Â Â
Lounge/Studio
WHEN:Â Â
August 12 @1pm
DRINKS:Â Â
Bottled Water
WEATHER:Â Â
Indoors
HOW MANY CIGARS SMOKED:Â Â
3
PRODUCTION
RELEASE TYPE Â Limited
ORIGINALLY RELEASE DATE Â March ’25
TOTAL PRODUCTION
Typical Box Size:Â Â Â Boxes of 10
Production Totals:Â 10,000 total cigars
VITOLA BREAKDOWN
o  Toro Grande (6″ x 54)
BAND DESIGN
The Dapper 10th Anniversary is double banded. The primary band features part of the company’s logo, “Dapper,” in gold, against a black background. It is simple, elegant, and understated. The secondary band is also gold on black, but with white accents. “10th Anniversary” is written in gold against the black background. White sits atop the gold lines.
PRE-LIGHT OBSERVATIONS
CONSTRUCTION
The Corojo wrapper is the same shade of brown a milk chocolate. Veins and seams can be found crisscrossing. The Ecuadorian wrapper is rough to the touch, like fine sandpaper; it has a bit of mottling to it, and a nice sheen of oil. The three 10th Anniversary cigars I smoked for this review all had little give when pressed between my thumb and forefinger.
AROMA
There is a slight hint of barnyard coming from the wrapper, with perhaps a whiff of cedar…it’s rather light. The foot, however, packs notes of earthy barnyard, fruit, baking spices, and freshly cracked pepper. Pepper? That’s a first, as far as I can remember. There’s also a bread or dough like quality to the aroma coming from the foot. The dichotomy between the aroma of the wrapper and the foot is quite interesting.
COLD DRAW
The cold draw holds notes of nuts, bread, and cream. There is a subtle sweetness. Ij fact, everything aboit the cold draw seems subtle. Nothing is really jumping out to me.
SMOKING EXPERIENCE
LIGHT & DRAW
Cut: Le Petit by Les Fines Lames
Fire: Vector Icon II
The initial light reveals creamy notes of pepper, baking spices, black tea, a herbaceousness, and a slight hint of caramel on the finish. Though, the sweetness of the caramel quickly gives way to tea on the long finish. It’s herbal and slightly bitter.Â
SMOKE
The smoke is so thick you could almost chew it. Creamy and plentiful it coats my palate with each draw.Â
FIRST THIRD
>> Baking Spices, Cedar, Black Pepper
As the initial light fades, the spice and pepper begin to calm down and the sweetness becomes more evident. Notes of tea, cedar, nuts, and a herbaceousness are easily detectable. Black pepper on the retrohale. Again, I find a subtle sweetness lurking in the background. A bit of butter and milk chocolate start to emerge. Salted nuts, wood, and cream join the fray. Big notes of baking spices begin to come back…cinnamon, especially. The ash appears to be compact with little to no flaking. The burn is slightly uneven, but seems to correct itself after each draw. I take no chances and deposit the ash.Â
SECOND THIRD
>> Baking Spices, Citrus, Bread
The middle third begins with baking spices, coffee, and a good amount of pepper. A hint of citrus hides beneath the other flavor notes. There is a bread note buried in there, too. The retrohale is baking spices. A nice sweetness ebbs and flows with the middle third. The burn continues to go from wonky to even, always self-correcting. The ash is a bit more on the flakey side. The smoke is still creamy and plentiful. Salty, sweet, and citris sum up the second third quite succinctly.Â
FINAL THIRD
>> Baking Spices, Butter, Coffee
The final third begins with baking spices, butter, sweet cream, lemon zest, nuts, and black pepper on the retrohale. There is a fair amount of earthiness, too: coffee, wood, and damp earth. Honey lingers on the palate. Where was this sweetness in the first two thirds? Cayenne pepper claws at the back of my throat. The ash seems much more cohesive in the final third. The burn has gotten much better, as well, but is still less than razor sharp. Two of the 10th Anniversary smoked for this review had the Ecuadorian Corojo wrapper crack. The smoke production has lessened in the final third, but it is still creamy. Espresso, charred wood, roasted peanuts, and chocolate put the finishing touches on the Dapper Cigar Co. 10th Anniversary.
RATING & FINAL THOUGHTS
FLAVOR PROGRESSION
The 10th Anniversary from Dapper Cigar Co. grabs your attention from the light. Herbal, pepper, and spice notes make sure you’re paying attention. Herbaceous notes with tea, and nuts meld well with black pepper and baking spices. The middle third continues that trend but adds a bit of citrus, then ramping up to the final third with big notes of coffee, and earth. What I find myself wanting is more sweetness and a bit more nuance.
BURN EXPERIENCE
The burn, while not egregious, was never razor sharp. No touch-ups were needed, bit the wrapper did split on two of the three cigars I smoked for this review. Is the Ecuadorian Corojo wrapper that delicate? Or, were the cigars rolled too tightly?
RATING BREAKDOWN
0.80Â / 0.80 … Craft & Aesthetic
0.50Â / 0.50 …Â Pre-Light Characteristics
0.48Â / 0.50 …Â Lighting Process
6.30Â / 7.70 …Â Smoking Experience
0.41Â / 0.50 …Â Personal Enjoyment
COMPLIMENTS & CRITIQUES
- Big, bold flavors throughout the smoking experience.
- A beautiful cigar with a gorgeous overall presentation.
- Burn was not stellar.
- Wrapper cracked on two cigars smoked for the review.
CELEBRATE WITH THE 10th ANNIVERSARY.
Despite the burn issues and the cracked wrappers, I truly did enjoy the Dapper Cigar Co’s 10th Anniversary. Throughout the smoking experience the flavors were strong, easily picked out, and all flowed together very well. The one thing missing was the sweetness. The complexity and nuance was there, but the sweetness just didn’t kick in for me until the final third. The honey and chocolate found in the final third, would have helped balance out some of the earthiness found throughout the first two thirds of the 10th Anniversary. Dapper Cigar Co. is one of the cigar brands that I love to smoke. Ian and company do a wonderful job of making interesting cigars, and the 10th Anniversary is no different.
*EDITORS NOTE: DAPPER CIGAR CO. 10th ANNIVERSARY IS AVAILABLE FROM SITE SPONSOR SMALL BATCH CIGAR.
