Last month I reviewed the Acid Five Robusto and admitted that this first foray into the ‘flavored’ cigar realm made me an instant believer in the ACID line by Drew Estates. I should mention that Drew Estates does not consider their ACID line to be ‘flavored’ cigars but rather infused, meaning that only the wrapper itself has been enhanced with special botanical blends in a very secret process. Of all the ACID line the ACID Five is in a league of it’s own due to the superior tobacco and having been aged for at least five years.

For people interested in the ACID line but who are leery of ‘flavored’ cigars the ACID One is a good intro to the line.

The Cigar

The ACID One is a 5 x 54 Torpedo with an incredibly rich African Cameroon wrapper and Nicaraguan filler. Among the ACID line the ACID One is unique in that it is not an aromatic cigar, meaning it has not been infused with botanicals. Instead the filler is cask cured in red wines from Chile, Italy, France and California as well as a very special sangria for three months. The sangria itself has an interesting story in that it comes from a small village in the North of Nicaragua called Lei Mei. Supposedly the sangria is a special libation prepared for their highest holidays and traditionally only made twice a year. The result is a very flavorful yet smooth smoke.

The Maker

As I’ve already stated in my previous ACID Five review Drew Estates was founded in 1995 by fraternity brothers Jonathan Sann (aka Jonathan Drew) and Marvin Samel. The pair started the business as cigar retailers in the plaza at the World Trade Center Mall in Ney York City and eventually decided to take on Lars Tetens’ brand of enhanced cigars. As the Tetens line was seen by many as inferior tobacco overly flavored and sold on hype, Sann and Samel decided to make an infused cigar line using superior tobacco and give the style the artistry Tetens lacked. Soon Drew Estates had purchased an estate the cigar capital of Esteli Nicaragua home of such renowned brands as Perdomo and CAO. Since that time they have become renowned for their superior cigar blending skills and the botanical infusions that put them head and shoulders above such competition as Lars Tetens.

My Impression

The ACID One is a nice smoke, full of flavor and yet mellow. It has an old school twisted foot that gives it a kind of local made feel. (Hey I live in Tampa Bay, US cigar central) The flavor belies little of the complex mixture of wine in which the tobacco has been cured. Instead I found a very smooth smoke that was full of tobacco flavor without any off putting wine notes. The sweetness of the Cameroon wrapper seemed to balance very well with the Nicaraguan filler, perhaps due to the cask aging process. Overall I would rate the ACID One as a very nice daily smoker. Although I smoke it most often with an ale, it probably is well suited to a port or other red wine due to its cask aging.

Price Paid

I’ve paid anywhere from about $6.50 to $7.25 a stick for ACID Ones. Typically I’ve seen them going for around $150 to $160 for a box of 24, although one site claims to be selling them for less than $130.


Recommended: Yes

Cigar Name: ACID One
Cigar Rating: Better than most
Price per cigar ($US): 7.25