The HVC Seleccion No.1 Connecticut was announced at the end of February ahead of the March 2024 PCA Trade Show. At the time of the press release Reinier Lorenzo owner of HVC stated the release is a testament to their unwavering dedication to craftsmanship and quality in the world of premium cigars.
The brand follows the release of a Natural and Maduro version of the Seleccion No. 1 lines.
Cigar Review: HVC Seleccion No.1 Connecticut
Size: 6 x 54 (Toro/Poderosos)
Wrapper: Ecuador Shade
Binder: Nicaragua
Fillers: Nicaragua (Esteli & Jalapa)
Factory: Fabrica de Tabacos HVC S.A.
Release Date: April 2024
Box Count: 20
The Cigar: The HVC Seleccion No. 1 Connectiuct has one of the most beautiful golden looking Connecticut Shade wrappers out of Ecuador I have seen in a long time. There is a thin network of veins on the wrapper that features a red, gold and white band and a white footbandd. In the hand the cigar is firm to the touch with no voids of tobacco. One item of note is the wrapper is a bit thin so make sure you have a sharp cutter.
The Notes: The cold draw has a subtle vanilla and freshly baked split top bread with a touch of golden raisins. The cold draw screams mild breakfast cigar but we shall see if that is the case one it is list. The foot of the cigar sees more raisins, bread and a touch of cedar.
Once the cigar is toasted and lit there is a subtle cedar component that grows in intensity along side perfectly toasted bread and a subtle stone fruit component. The cigar is on the northern side of mild, or the southern side of medium depending how you look at the glass. The retrohale offers just enough spice to make it interesting to the full body smokers.
Moving into the second third the stone fruits are easily detectable in the background with continued bread notes and a slight vanilla on the finish. At the halfway point, the HVC Seleccion No.1 Connecticut begins to lose some of the sweetness with notes of cedar, nuts and a subtle coffee. The finish has some leather tannins and the retrohale has some rich buttery components with a subtle white pepper.
The final third brings up the cigar to full on medium in strength with notes of earth, coffee, and a subtle leathers. In the background is some vanilla with a hint of stone fruits remaining but more of an afterthought at this point. There is some lingering pepper on the finish that is intensified on the retrohale with a touch of mocha.
Conclusion: I was a little hesitant in trying this line because the HVC Hot Cake Connecticut the more I smoked it, the less it did for me. It was just too mild of cigar. The HVC Seleccion No. 1 is everything I expected from a HVC Connecticut and more. This cigar is perfect for any time of day and it has rich robust easy to identify flavors and the price point is perfect. I’m enroute to my local tobacconist to buy a box, but if you live to far from one that has these you can get them a Small Batch Cigar. Use the coupon code BARRELBURNER to save 10%.
Score: 94
Price: $10.50 (Before any local or state taxes)
