Island Prince (Hawaiian Puro) Review

[craigchilds]

Island Prince
Size: 5.75 x 50
Tobacco: Hawaiian
Price: $15

My friend brought me back this puro from his vacation in Hawaii, which appears to be the only cigar in the world made from Hawaiian tobacco. The tobacco is grown on the island of Kauai, then exported to Nicaragua to be fermented, aged, and hand-rolled into cigars. The cigars are only sold in Hawaii and through the website www.coffeetimes.com

(Side rant: What does that say about our economy? Apparently, it's more cost effective to ship the tobacco across the Pacific Ocean, make the cigars in Central America, then ship them back across the Pacific, rather than to pay American workers to do the same job!)

The company has an interesting website .

I thought the cigar itself was very good. It had a medium body, with an easy-but-not-too-loose draw. I tasted distinct pepper/spice flavors that grew more intense as I nubbed it. They paired favorably with my drink of the night, a 12-year single malt. The flavors reminded me, actually, of a cross between a CAO Black and a Hemingway.

Granted, this is a ridiculously high price point for any cigar (we're close to Graycliff, Padron Anniversary, Opus X territory here), and it probably has a lot to do with the fact that these cigars are something of a novelty due to their origin and are sold mostly to tourists. Still, I really enjoyed the one I was given, and I'll make sure to pick up some more if I ever get that dream cruise to Hawaii.

[DriftyGypsy]

Originally Posted by craigchilds

(Side rant: What does that say about our economy? Apparently, it's more cost effective to ship the tobacco across the Pacific Ocean, make the cigars in Central America, then ship them back across the Pacific, rather than to pay American workers to do the same job!)

How many Americans do you think are proficient in hand rolling cigars there are in this country, let alone Hawaii?

Originally Posted by from their website

LINKY
While it took nearly 6 months to obtain a federal permit to manufacture and sell cigars it took us only one week to conclude that this would no longer be a fun and entertaining hobby or business. Reporting, bi-monthly federal taxes, and a whopping monthly 40% Hawaii wholesale tax made it financially impossible to hand make these cigars in Hawaii. Amazingly though, these roadblocks opened up a new road to success. While looking for a solution to the problem we were introduced to a valuable contact based in Nicaragua that would be able to manufacture our premium tobacco into cigars.

[dunng]

Very cool! I'll have to keep my eyes open for these if I ever get to go back!