#4 2023 Cigar of the Year: Black Label Trading Co Deliverance Porcelain Robusto

SPECIFICATIONS

Wrapper: Connecticut
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan and Pennsylvania
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: Fabrica Oveja Negra
Robusto: 5 x 50
Price: $10.50

Sponsor: No
Samples Provided for Initial Review: No
Review: Black Label Trading Company Deliverance Porcelain Robusto. (3/6/23)
Appearances on Countdown (By Year/Company): 4 (2016, 2017, 2019, 2023)

The Details

The #4 2023 Cigar of the Year is the Black Label Trading Co Deliverance Porcelain Robusto. Black Label Trading Company and its sister brand Black Works Studio are two brands created by James Brown of Oveja Negra Cigars. James Brown has been known for his dark and full-bodied maduro offerings. In 2018 that would change as Brown would introduce a pair of Connecticut Shade offerings: Black Works Studio Killer Bee Connecticut and Black Label Trading Co Deliverance Porcelain. Both cigars would be hits and would both make their way into becoming regular production offerings: Porcelain would join the regular production lineup of Black Label Trading Co in 2019, and Killer Bee Connecticut would become regular production in 2022. Porcelain was originally released in a Corona Gorda size, but a Robusto was added in 2021 and it’s the cigar that lands at #4.

In addition to the Connecticut Shade wrapper, the Porcelain features Nicaraguan tobaccos for the binder and filler. The filler also incorporates tobacco from Pennsylvania. As for the Robusto size, this is a classic 5 x 50 offering. James Brown created the blend and packaging for Porcelain. Production come from Fabrica Oveja Negra in Estelí, Nicaragua.

Flavorwise, the Porcelain Robusto delivered notes of cream, cedar, citrus, bread, and pepper. Perhaps the best quality of this cigar is the smooth finish. The bitterness that sometimes emerges on a Connecticut Shade was non-existent. The flavors are medium-bodied and countered by medium strength, so the Porcelain Robusto is going to be a little bolder than an old-school Connecticut Shade cigar.

This is the fourth year that Oveja Negra Brands, the parent company of Black Label Trading Company, has placed at least one cigar on a Cigar Coop Countdown. If you are keeping score at home, Nicaragua has placed its 16th cigar on the Countdown.