Today’s cigar constitutes the final review of 2010. It’s been a great year for cigars and I have been trying to fit about 25 cigars into my Top 15 List which I will publish on December 31st. For my last review of 2010 I picked the La Flor Dominicana Factory Press III. Over the years La Flor Dominicana has fallen on and off the radar for me and with the emergence of the Air Bender into the market LFD has become a staple of my repertoire once again. Also I got to spend some time talking to Litto Gomez and his warmth and charm has made the brand that much more attractive. Perhaps that is a little vein of me, but a person behind the cigar can make or break the company.

Sadly I wanted to review the Small Batch No. 3 but being snow bound has prevented me from getting my hands on a couple so I opted to dig deep into my humidor and review this cigar which came out in 2008 and was limited to 300 boxes of 120 cigars each.

Cigar: La Flor Dominican Factory Press III
Size: 6.25 x 58
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Dominican Republic
Strength: Full

La Flor Dominicana Factory Press III

Appearance and Construction: The Factory Press is the ultimate example in box pressed. The Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper is glistening with oils, but having a couple years age on it the wrapper does has some nicks to it. What is also noticeable is the massage technique utilized by Little Gomez where the wrapper is sprayed down and massaged making it darker by spreading the natural oils around. The result is a wrapper that looks splotchy. The LFD Factory Press III is a monster of a cigar that has a lot of tobacco compressed into a gorgeous looking package.

Flavor & Notes: The foot of the LFD Factory Press III reveals a sweetness that borders on molasses which seems to be a trait of cigars that come out of Litto Gomez’ factory. Once the cap is clipped the fluid draw serves up some cedar notes and a continued molasses like sweetness. One the cigar is lit the wood notes becomes heavier and similar to oak, with some leather. The finish is a bit dry so it is good to keep some water handy or a nice oaky single malt scotch like Oban would pair up nicely with this cigar. As we approach the second third the cigar takes on notes of warm bread, with continued oak, leather and a touch of spice. The final third of the cigar was incredibly smooth with some coffee notes, oak and warm bread with spices through the nose.

Smoking Characteristics: The cigar when lit smoked a little faster then I expected but it slowed down considerably after an inch or so. The draw as with most pressed cigars was perfect with a near perfect burn. The medium gray ash held on strong and I never lost an ash before its time. The cigar produced a nice amount of smoke but lacked any noticeable aroma.

Conclusion: The Factory Press III got better with age. When I first smoked these cigars I found them a lit bit rough but they have smoothed out considerably. The oak notes paired up perfect with some Oban and I plan to pick up some more of these the next time I am in NYC at Cigar who still has about half a box left.

Rating: 90
Price: Not sure what I paid but Cigar Inn NYC has these still, $18.99

Disclaimer: As always the typo’s and spelling mistakes have been left in this review for your amusement.

La Flor Dominicana Factory Press III