General Info
- Price: $18.55
- Made By: Piloto Cigars Inc.
- Factory Location: Nicaragua
- Dimensions: 6″ by 52 ring gauge
- Shape: Torpedo
- Filler: Nicaragua
- Binder: Nicaragua
- Wrapper: Nicaragua (sun-grown natural)
- Cold Draw: Cocoa Bean, Wood, Nuttiness
- First Third: Black Pepper, Sweet Cream, Cedar, Natural Tobacco, Cocoa Bean, Nuttiness, Baking Spice,Coffee
- Second Third: Baking Spice, Creaminess, Black Pepper, Coffee, Cocoa Bean
- Final Third: Cedar, Black Pepper, Cream, Nuttiness, Cocoa Bean
Appearance
The incomparable Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series cigar is a sight to behold. Masterfully constructed and nearly veinless, the cigar sports a milk-chocolate brown sun grown wrapper that, in the right light, has a reddish hue. To honor the Cuban tradition, the cigar is box pressed. The upper band rocks a maroon and gold color scheme and overlaps the lower one, which is gray, white, and gold.
Each lower band on every shape in the 1964 Anniversary Series line is individually numbered with a unique serial number, so I know that the Padrón in my hand is the real deal. Damn, Padrón knows how to make a guy feel special. It’s hard to find a more iconic double band in the entire cigar industry.
This Torpedo-shaped smoke treat is 6″ by 52 ring gauge, which is an inch shorter and slightly wider than the Torpedo-shaped Deadwood Leather Rose cigar. Holding an unlit Padrón always feels special to me, like I’m about to join in on the storied journey of the Padróns. More on that story later. For now, let’s celebrate this cigar first released in 1994 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Padrón goodness.
Taste & Draw
The Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series cigar is a medium to full strength delight with a perfect draw. With its great looking, high-performance box-pressed format, the cigar is smooth and complex from start to finish. The stogie produces vast clouds of creamy smoke with a wide range of notes. Among them, you’ll find black pepper, baking spice, cream, cocoa bean, natural tobacco, coffee, and more.
Throughout the smoke, I experience no issues with the burn line or anything else for that matter. But shouldn’t that be expected from a Padrón? I think so, and these guys seem to have it down to a science.
Every morsel of tobacco in this cigar aged for four years before finding its way into my humidor, where it continued to age. With a four-year head start like that, it’s easy to understand why this Cigar of the Year was awarded a 97 rating.
Cold Draw
Cocoa Bean, Wood, Nuttiness
Cold draws are especially exciting when you’re dealing with Cigar Aficionado’s 2021 Cigar of the Year. On top of that, they slapped an unbelievable 97 rating on the stick. With accolades like that, it’s hard not to feel like I’m about to watch an Oscar best picture winner as I clip the cap. Well, let’s start the show then, shall we?
On the cold draw, the first note to come into focus is cocoa bean. Right behind this note is a wood flavor with a slight cedar vibe, but when I pull again, it’s just wood. One more cold draw reveals nuttiness.
Since this cigar is known for its complexity, it’s worth noting that this cold draw isn’t crazy complex. My guess is, like the Padron 1926 Series No. 1 Maduro cigar and many others, the complex flavor of the blend will reveal itself as we smoke.
First Third
Black Pepper, Sweet Cream, Cedar, Natural Tobacco, Cocoa Bean, Nuttiness, Baking Spice, Coffee
Time to get this Cigar of the Year movie rolling. I spark up and quickly meet a host of flavors that were nowhere to be found in the cold draw. The first note is black pepper which is then balanced by a sweet cream thing. I keep smoking, and the wood from the cold draw is indeed now a cedar note. Working alongside this cedar is a nice natural tobacco flavor.
A little further down, and the cocoa bean from the cold draw is on the scene, as is the nuttiness. I guess we found that complexity, right? Right. The smoke is abundant and silky smooth. So far, the burn line is sharp as a knife, and the draw is about as close to perfect as possible.
Soon I’m tasting baking spice and coffee and puffing on this out-of-sight stick like a man possessed. Great cigars can do that to a person. Toward the end of this opening third, the black pepper is in pole position, but the coffee, cedar, and cocoa bean aren’t far behind.
I knew this smoke would get complex, but not this quickly. By no means am I complaining—I’m simply enjoying one hell of a ride.
Second Third
Baking Spice, Creaminess, Black Pepper, Coffee, Cocoa Bean
Now in the second third and coming in hot, I’m seeing an influx of that baking spice note, and it doesn’t seem like it’s backing down anytime soon. Directly behind it is a creaminess that’s doing a tango thing with the black pepper. I guess that’s what you’d call a balancing act. Anyway, the smoke output from the Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series cigar is still unreal. I’m having no trouble with the burn line, and the draw is still nothing short of a dream.
What’s missing from this third is the sweet part of sweet cream as well as the cedar. I did not expect the cedar to duck out, but here we are. The coffee note is now playing a game of hide and seek, and the cocoa bean is strong and steady. There’s a reason smokers have widely celebrated this cigar for nearly three decades, and I’m watching it unfold in real-time. Many enthusiasts hate on award-winning, popular sticks like this because it’s the cool thing to do, I guess. I’m not part of that camp. I’m a Padrón man through and through.
Final Third
Cedar, Black Pepper, Cream, Nuttiness, Cocoa Bean
It’s true that all good cigars must indeed come to an end, and this winner is no exception. I’m not too worried, though, as my humidor is home to a number of these anniversary sticks.
With the end now clearly in sight, that wonderful cedar note is back in the mix. If any note has remained large and in charge throughout this cigar, it’s got to be the black pepper, and it’s still going strong. The cream is here, as is the nuttiness and cocoa bean.
This entire time I’ve been wondering which cigar we reviewed had nuttiness in play, and now I remember. It was none other than the glorious Oliva Serie V Melanio cigar. Ah, so many great cigars, so little time.
Summary
The Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series is a box-pressed cigar fueled by first-rate Nicaraguan tobacco. This Nicaraguan puro is available in both natural and Maduro wrappers, and while the Maduro is a great cigar with many smokers favoring the Maduro Exclusivo, this review is all about the natural sun grown wrapper version.
A Cigar Aficionado Cigar of the Year like the E.P. Carrillo Pledge cigar, it’s safe to say that we’re dealing with greatness here. The cigar is complex yet smooth with so many notes we’ve all come to love and expect from the mighty Padrón brand. Along the way, you’ll experience rich notes like black pepper, cocoa bean, baking spice, and cedar. There is never a dull moment, and once this thing hits the ashtray, you’ll already be devising a foolproof plan as to when you can smoke the next one.
Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series Cigar Pairing Notes
- Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout
- Wolfhound Irish Whiskey
- Raisin Apollo IPA
- Egan’s Fortitude Single Malt Irish Whiskey
- Whiskey Del Bac Dorado Single Malt Whiskey
- Founders Centennial IPA
Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series Cigar History
Initially released in 1994 to mark 30 years in the cigar business, the Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series cigar is a massive hit to this day. So much so that it won Cigar Aficionado’s 2021 Cigar of the Year.
Of course, the Padrón cigar story began long before 1964. If we look back to the mid-1800s, we’ll find a young man named Damaso Padrón. He worked the tobacco fields of Cuba until he saved enough money to acquire a humble tobacco farm. His family kept putting in the hard work, and soon they purchased numerous Cuban tobacco farms.
Fast forward to 1959, when Castro and his communists won their revolution and seized power. One year later, they began the process of nationalizing the tobacco industry. Seeing the writing on the wall, the Padrón family made a run for it and ended up in Miami. In 1964 José Padrón established Padrón Cigars. He employed one roller, and they produced around 200 sticks per day.
José started incorporating Nicaraguan tobacco into his blends in 1967 to great success. In fact, he was unable to keep up with demand, so he packed up his operation and set up shop in Nicaragua and Honduras.
In the cigar world today, the name Padrón is synonymous with excellence, and there’s no reason to believe that will end anytime soon (or end at all).
