D & R Tobacco Don Giovanni Sigaro

I purchased a pound of D&R DGS on sale at P&C for $24. What a bargain it proved to be.

Appearance wise, it looks like cigarette tobacco and is not especially fragrant, with just a hint of cigar leaf aroma. It is cut to a fine ribbon and is a mixture of mostly dark brown tobacco (probably the cigar leaf) and some golden tobacco (probably the Virginias). Since it was very dry, I added about a quarter cup of distilled water to the one pound bag and let it re-humidify for about ten days. I packed most of it away in jars to age and put a couple of ounces in a small jar to sample.

Tonight, I loaded a large, deep Stanwell briar with the DGS, packing it fairly tightly since, even after humidification, it is very "fluffy." It lit easily and burned well, requiring only one relight during a twenty minute smoke. It burned fairly fast to a gray ash, leaving no moisture in the bowl. DGS is a fairly strong tobacco, nicotine wise.

For the first third of the smoke, the flavor of the cigar leaf predominated, along with a spiciness that reminded me of perique (although the description says it contains only cigar leaf and Virginia tobacco). The flavor was that of a medium strength Dominican cigar, like a Macanudo. About half way through, the cigar flavor faded and the Virginias came to the fore, very rich tasting and fairly sweet, reminding me of McClelland 5100 Red Cake. Towards the end of the bowl, the sweetness transitioned to a plum-like flavor, again reminding me of perique but without the spiciness.

All in all, it was a most enjoyable smoke, with a lot of flavor and enough complexity to maintain one's interest. I'm very glad I purchased it and can't wait to see how good it is after six months or a year of aging. For the price, this is a great pipe tobacco. Heck, it would be a great tobacco if it cost three times as much. If you're a pipe smoker who also enjoys a good cigar occasionally, I promise you will like this.

Don Giovanni Sigaro has become my daily smoke. This cigar blend is smooth, tasty, and the taste is consistent from beginning to finish. The ash is a clean gray with no moisture at the bottom of the bowl. After smoking this blend in the same pipes for a few days, no one complained of the tobacco smelling strong. When McClelland stopped making Dominican Glory Maduro, I tried Sigaro and found it to be similar, but not as strong so I could make it my daily smoke.

This is the most cigar-like taste I've had in a pipe. Its fairly strong in taste and in nicotine and probably not something I would smoke more than once daily. The cigar leaf varieties are delicious. I detect no added flavoring. It doesn't bite me even if not hydrated. The room note will probably not endear you to others as it's basically cigar smoke (which I personally love, but most non-smokers and some smokers may not).

So far I think this is my favorite of the four D & R blends that I've tried. A tobacco this good at less than $25 per pound. Thanks Tobaccoreviews and all prior reviewers for informing me of this great baccy!