The next cigar I will try as part of my cigar challenge is from the Juan Lopez cigar brand. I will be lighting up the Juan Lopez Selection No. 2.

The stats:

Length: 4 7/8″
Ring Gauge: 50
Strength: Medium – Full
Country of origin: Cuba

Background:

Juan Lopez Diaz, a Spanish businessman, founded this brand in Havana, Cuba, during the 1870s.

According to many websites, Juan Lopez cigars have always attracted a large following amongst cigar enthusiasts, particularly for the Seleccion No. 1 and, most notably, for the Seleccion No. 2 sizes.

My experience:

Considering this is a Cuban cigar, I am surprised at how little I know about this brand. I am not familiar with the brand name at all. I suspect that it is not as common as some of the other Cuban cigar brands out there.

I love the subtle attention to detail in the red and gold cigar band, especially around the embossed golden leaves and crown.

This Juan Lopez cigar did appear to have some ‘sun spots’ or ‘water spots’ (I think that’s the technical phrase for them?!) on its wrapper. 

According to this article, ‘many cigar enthusiasts believe that the spots are caused by droplets of water that develop on the wrapper after the drying process’.

Luckily this didn’t impact my experience of smoking this cigar.

Overall a decent cigar with an excellent taste and a good draw! I am not sure if I would smoke it again, though, as other Cuban cigars I favour more and feel more memorable to me somehow. But one worth trying out!

My rating: 7 out of 10

Next up… a La Corona cigar!