Last week, Boisdale of Canary Wharf hosted a fantastic evening celebrating the UK launch of the AVO Expresivo, a cigar released to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of AVO founder Avo Uvezian.

I first became aware of this new cigar while following the social media coverage from this year’s Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show in New Orleans back in April. It was therefore great to see the cigar make its way to the UK so soon after its unveiling.

Bringing together cigar enthusiasts, whisky lovers, friends and Boisdale members, the evening began with a welcome from the brilliant Ranald Macdonald, owner of Boisdale, who introduced the event before handing over to Roy Sommer from Davidoff UK.

Roy shared the story behind the new AVO release and the inspiration behind this special commemorative cigar.

A new chapter for AVO

AVO was founded by Avo Uvezian, a jazz musician whose creativity and passion for self-expression helped shape the identity of the brand.

The AVO brand later became part of the Davidoff portfolio, bringing Uvezian’s artistic vision together with Davidoff’s expertise in premium cigar craftsmanship.

As Roy explained:

“Avo was a jazz musician, and he was really about expressing himself — that’s why we call this line Expresivo.”

Unlike the traditional AVO range, the Expresivo is produced entirely in Honduras, using carefully selected Honduran and Nicaraguan tobaccos.

“It’s a lot spicier, it’s a lot fuller-bodied. We have a bit of sweetness coming in from the Jalapa tobacco from Nicaragua, but the Jamastrán tobacco from Honduras gives you a lot more depth and a lot more strength.”

The blend uses higher-priming leaves selected for their intensity and complexity. The official tasting profile highlights flavours of earth, chocolate, pepper, leather, cedar and subtle sweetness.

A cigar to savour

The Expresivo is positioned as an evening cigar — one to enjoy slowly and appreciate over time.

“It’s not one for breakfast, I would say. It’s more maybe for this time of day, or maybe after dinner.”

Available in Robusto, Toro and Churchill formats, each size offers a slightly different expression of the blend.

“Each size will have a slightly different flavour profile because of the amount of tobacco we use in the cigar.”

AVO Expresivo Robusto

Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5″ (127 mm)
Ring Gauge: 52
Wrapper: Ecuador
Binder: Honduras
Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua
Strength: Medium-Full (4/5)
Country of Manufacture: Honduras

AVO Expresivo Toro

Vitola: Toro
Length: 6″ (152 mm)
Ring Gauge: 54
Wrapper: Ecuador
Binder: Honduras
Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua
Strength: Medium-Full
Country of Manufacture: Honduras

AVO Expresivo Churchill

Vitola: Churchill
Length: 7″ (178 mm)
Ring Gauge: 48
Wrapper: Ecuador
Binder: Honduras
Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua
Strength: Medium-Full
Country of Manufacture: Honduras

The Churchill is Roy’s personal favourite, so naturally that’s now the format I’m most curious to try.

The perfect pairing with The Dalmore

The launch was complemented by an evening of whisky discovery hosted by Mateo Ortiz Lima from The Dalmore, who explored the relationship between fine single malt whisky and premium cigars.

Guests sampled a selection of The Dalmore expressions, including The Dalmore Cigar Malt, alongside the newly launched The Dalmore 17 Year Old Sherry Cask expression.

The rich, complex character of the whiskies provided a natural pairing with the Expresivo, with Roy particularly highlighting the suitability of sherry-cask-aged whisky:

“From a pairing perspective, a whiskey which is aged in sherry casks would work really well.”

The evening also featured a selection of whisky cocktails, including the refreshing Dalmore Spritz, followed by further creations designed to complement the cigar and whisky experience.

Guests were invited to explore the different expressions, discuss pairings with the hosts and take advantage of exclusive event pricing on selected bottles.

My experience

I first discovered AVO during my A–Z of Cigars challenge back in the Covid period, when I smoked the AVO Syncro Nicaragua Toro.

Sadly, I don’t think I’ve come across AVO cigars very often here in the UK. They’re a brand I tend to pick up more when I’m travelling across Europe, which made an evening like this a great opportunity to revisit the brand. I was really looking forward to trying the new cigar.

Upon entering the event, we were given the Robusto and Toro, and I smoked the Robusto first.

Looking back at my rough notes, the official tasting profile mentions earth, chocolate, pepper, leather, cedar and sweetness. My own experience was a little simpler. I found it to be a well-balanced cigar with a noticeable sweetness and some spice.

The Robusto needed a couple of relights at the beginning, but once it settled down it developed nicely and became an enjoyable smoke.

The Toro was also enjoyable, although I didn’t get quite the same impression from it as I did from the Robusto. It has definitely made me want to try the Churchill, though, to see how the longer format changes the experience and allows the blend to evolve.

I’ve said it before, but I find it difficult to give a truly detailed cigar review at an event. These evenings are about much more than the cigar in your hand. There are conversations, new people to meet, whisky to discover and an atmosphere that you simply don’t get when you’re smoking alone. Before I know it, the cigar can sometimes become secondary to the overall experience.

One of the highlights of the evening along with herfing with Sailesh & Amy, was chatting with fellow cigar smokers Paolo, Jason and Michael, who have all been following my journey. It was a real pleasure to meet in person, share a few cigars and enjoy a great evening together.

Big shout out to you if you’re reading this! 🫡

That’s what makes these events special for me: discovering new cigars, revisiting familiar ones, sharing opinions, enjoying great whisky and meeting the people who make this hobby such a fantastic community 🙏.

My rating of the AVO Robusto – 7.5 out of 10

I’ve also got to say, I think The Dalmore — is quickly becoming my favourite whisky to pair with a cigar. The cocktails we had were fantastic, especially the slushy one later in the evening. Genuinely one of the best cocktails I’ve had at a cigar event, and I was pleasantly surprised to find it had Dalmore in it too. Mateo is the man – if he hosts a cigar whisky pairing make sure you attend! 🥃🔥

Davidoff UK and The Dalmore should definitely team up and start doing cigar and whisky distillery tours for us UK cigar folk next! That would be an absolute winner 🚀.

A huge thank you to Ranald Macdonald and the Boisdale team, Roy Sommer from Davidoff UK, Mateo from The Dalmore, and everyone who joined us for such a memorable evening.

If you’re interested in future cigar events at Boisdale, it’s worth keeping an eye on their events page, which is regularly updated with details of upcoming events, including their Cigar Smoker of the Year awards.