Espinosa 601 Blue 20th Anniversary Toro (6.75×56)

Twenty years is a long time in the cigar business — and the 601 Blue line has earned every one of them. When Erik Espinosa launched 601 Blue back in 2006, it quickly became one of the most celebrated Connecticut Broadleaf blends in the market, earning a Cigar Aficionado Top 25 finish in 2009 and building a loyal following that has never let it go. For the 20th anniversary, Espinosa and master blender Hector Alfonso Sr. went back to that same foundation — Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and filler, San Lotano Factory — and rolled it into something the line has never seen before: a 6.75×56 oval toro, a format as beefy and distinctive as the occasion it celebrates.

The oval press gives the cigar an unusual draw and burn character that works beautifully with the 601 Blue blend, concentrating the dark chocolate, espresso, leather, cinnamon, and broadleaf sweetness into a long, slow-burning smoke that does full justice to two decades of craftsmanship. A select retailer incentive release in 20-count boxes. If you see it, you already know what to do.