There’s a version of this episode where we just sit in the garage, light up, and have a normal night. Episode 042 was not that version. The second we pulled up the running list of the best cigars of 2026, it turned into a full-blown debate – who deserves a spot, where they rank, and whether we’re getting swept up in new-cigar excitement or making legitimate calls. Jimbo the Godfather was back after his hiatus. Aaron was in the building. Walt was holding the list hostage like only Walt can. It was exactly the kind of night that reminds you why we do this.
Table of Contents
The List Gets Three New Additions
We hadn’t formally touched the top cigar list in a few weeks, so Episode 042 turned into a bit of a catch-up session. Three cigars entered the conversation for placement, and all three made the cut.
New Dawn by Avowed Cigars — Slides Into Number Two
This one came up almost immediately. Eric had smoked the New Dawn out on the front porch over the weekend and came back with a firm opinion: this cigar belongs on the list, and it belongs near the top. After a quick group temperature check, we landed it at number two. The ChiMolly Pioneer still holds the top spot, but it’s close – someone called it a 1A/1B situation and that’s about right. The New Dawn is a cigar we keep coming back to, and that means something.
Big Iron by Definition Cigars – Lands at Number Four
This one generated the most discussion. The Big Iron is an LACC exclusive that hadn’t officially landed yet at the time of recording (still in transit from Nicaragua) so the sample size in the group is small. But the guys who smoked it were emphatic. Someone went looking for it to buy more the same night they tried it, and that kind of reaction doesn’t happen by accident. We slotted it at four, above the Suave, with the understanding that it’s a big beefy ring gauge that is not our usual wheelhouse. The fact that it still resonated the way it did says a lot.
Ashton VSG – Goes Above the Big Iron
Then came the VSG conversation, and honestly it wasn’t much of a debate. We agreed pretty quickly that the VSG might be the single cigar this group is most unanimously in love with. Someone said it on the Discord not long ago and it holds up: across all our different tastes and preferences, the Ashton VSG is one of the rare cigars that gets a thumbs up from everyone. It went above the Big Iron.
The LACC Question – Are We Playing Favorites?
We had to address it. At this point, four cigars on our list have a direct connection to LA Cigar Collective – both Gris Gris sizes, the Big Iron exclusive, and the Padre Eligido. That’s a heavy representation from one source, and we knew people would notice.
Here’s our answer: we buy their stuff ourselves. The two exclusives we were debating for the list came out of the collective subscription pack that we pay for every month. Nobody sent us those cigars to review. Nobody asked us to say anything nice about them. We found them, smoked them, went looking to buy more. If that’s not a genuine endorsement, we don’t know what is.
That said, there’s a fair counterpoint and one of us made it – could some of this excitement be about newness? We’ve been around long enough to remember when the Gurka Ghost was the greatest cigar on earth, and then it wasn’t. We remember when the Camacho Triple Maduro was untouchable, and now you pull one out of a five-pack and it’s a total grab bag. Time has a way of sorting these things out. For now, the cigars earn their spots. We’ll check back in.
The Gris Gris Lonsdale Is Coming For the List
We didn’t add it this episode, but the new Gris Gris Lonsdale is on the radar in a real way. A couple of us smoked it and came back with the same reaction – it tastes like a different cigar than the Toro. Fuller, more alive right out of the gate, without the dryness that makes the Toro a love-it-or-leave-it experience. If you liked the Toro, you need to try the Lonsdale. If the dryness of the Toro kept you at arm’s length, the Lonsdale might be your entry point into that profile.
The plan is to pick up a tube, split them around the group, smoke them together on a future episode, and make the call then. Both sizes could realistically coexist on the list – they genuinely taste different enough to justify it.
The Cigar Classics Conversation – Are They Still What They Were?
One of the better tangents of the night started with a simple question: why doesn’t everyone do what Padron does? The theory floating around is that Padron soaks their tobacco bundles before rolling rather than just misting the leaves with a spray bottle, and that the result is a cigar that burns and draws at a near-perfect rate every single time. Whether that’s exactly what’s happening, nobody knows for certain. But the consistency is undeniable. Someone smoked the Padron 3000 – not their flagship, a value-priced cigar by their standards – and said it held up to everything in their lineup.
That opened the door to a broader question about brands that used to be great and drifted. The Camacho situation came up. The theory is that mass production and corporate acquisition change things – not always on purpose, not always dramatically, but enough. Someone finally tried a properly aged original Camacho and understood why the old heads have been complaining for years. The AJ Fernandez comparison, the New World that doesn’t burn the same way anymore – there’s a pattern here. Scale has a cost.
What We’re Smoking, What We’re Buying
A few things worth flagging from the purchase roundup this episode:
The Davidoff Winston Churchill Late Hour tins were called out – someone locked in two tins at 25% off from Perfect Cigar and spent just over seventy bucks total. For that cigar in that format, that’s a genuinely good grab.
The Fuente Opus bundle from Cigar Page got a mention – you essentially paid for one Opus and got eight other cigars along for the ride. That kind of deal doesn’t come around often, and it moved fast.
The Johnny Tobacconaut by Room 101 Cigars was introduced to the rotation this episode. A 10-pack came in and the verdict is that it earns a permanent spot. Full-flavored Connecticut that sits comfortably alongside the EPC New Wave and the Oliva Connecticut Reserve. At five to six bucks a stick, it’s a no-brainer pickup if you haven’t tried it.
Box Pass Update and Discord Going Its Own Direction
The community box pass is at the halfway point. The big story this episode is that one participant took 13 of the 15 cigars, essentially doing a full refresh in one shot. Initial reaction was mixed – there’s something nice about a box that carries everyone’s fingerprints – but the variety and price range of what went back in was solid, so it worked out. Everyone has been filling out the log book, which is going to be a great thing to flip through when it’s done. Volume one.
As for the Discord – we said it this episode and we’ll say it again here. We built it, and now it’s doing its own thing. Cigar trading, recommendations, community debates. It stopped being the Smoke and Steel Discord at some point and became something bigger than that. We’re not complaining.
Quick Hits Before We Close
PCA is next week and Joe is on the ground as our man on the scene. He’s positioned well – one booth from the German cigar company we’ve been tracking and two booths from El Mago. Expect a full rundown from him. Also worth watching: Fog Box is unveiling a collaboration with artist Robert Glick at PCA. Glick designed a humidor for Pro Cigar 2024 that sold for $45,000. Whatever they’re dropping is going to be worth paying attention to.
Cigar Page Lounge is officially breaking ground. It’s going in Bethlehem, it’s new construction from the ground up, and the target is a grand opening early next year. If you’re not local, start planning. If you are local, we might all be pulling up on day one together.
And finally – the Lunatic Hysteria came out for round two. Full-bodied with a little bite at the start that mellows out beautifully in the back third. Good smoke. Aaron brought it. We’d smoke it again.
Stay in the Conversation
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