In 2016, Southern Draw announced two new lines, Rose of Sharon and Jacobs Ladder. Both had a small release to beat the FDA Aug. 8, 2016 deadline. In early 2017, the Rose of Sharon which uses an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper had it's wide release and it was not until IPCPR 2017 that the Jacobs Ladder would have it's wide release.
This cigar was reviewed blind (no bands) by a panel of at least 4 reviewers. They did not know what they were smoking beforehand. The scores are an average of all the reviewers' scores with outliers removed. All of our cigars reviewed are shipped to the panelists with Boveda packs to ensure optimal smoking experience.
Jacobs Ladder is said to be the companies' stongest cigar. It uses a Pennsylvania Broadleaf wrapper and an Ecuadorian Maduro binder and fillers from Nicaragua, including ligeros from Estelí.
At Launch, it was offered in three sizes: Gordo (6 1/2 x 60) — $10.99, Robusto (5 1/2 x 54) — $9.50, and Toro (6 x 52) — $9.99. Each size is comes in 20-count boxes and the toro size was also released in a limited run of 1,000 two-count boxes priced at $25.99.
The name is in reference to the story in the book of Genesis in the Bible telling of the bond between heaven and earth that Jacob, son of Isaac, dreamed about. It's also a symbolic reference to Ethan “Jacob” Holt, son of two of the Southern Draw Cigars founders, who provides sales and technical support for the company.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5.5″
Ring Gauge: 54
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Pennsylvania Broadleaf
Binder: Ecuadorian Maduro
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: Tabacalera AJ Fernandez
Blender: Robert Holt
Number of reviewers: 5 – John I. (John I.) Stefan (Stefan) Dave W. (mdwest) Isaac M. (The Nothing) Alan(Eulogy)
Price: $9.50
Age: 6 Months
Release Date: July 2017
Contributed by: Southern Draw
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 95
“Beautiful full figured robusto. Super dark wrapper. Partially closed foot is super sexy. This looks like its going to be fun.” –John I. (John I.)
Aroma: 92
“Rich earthy aromas permeated this cigar from head to food.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
First Third
Flavor: 92
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Opens with big sweet notes of dark chocolate and espresso with a mildly peppery finish. Oh yeah. Very good stuff. Very nice burn, and it's pumping out tons of rich velvety smoke. As it warms up there's a significant amount of oil that's becoming evident. At the finish of this third, the prominent flavor is a very forward sweetness. It's a pretty solid medium in strength, and remains thoroughly enjoyable. ” –John I. (John I.)
“There is a ton of black pepper on the draw initially coating the entire tongue. There's some notes of cedar and rich leather but the level of spice over powers it a bit.” –Alan (Eulogy)
Flavor: 90
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“The second third is darker, bigger, and perhaps slightly grittier.” –Stefan (Stefan)
“The second third began as the ash fell off for a second time. Spice notes returned for a short time with primary flavors of coffee and oak. Again, as the ash built up, the flavors faded away.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Final Third
Flavor: 92
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Sweetness has backed off, and the dark roasted coffee flavor has come back to the fore. The change in flavors has come at just the right time as this was threatening to become a little dull. The strength has continued to pick up toward the finish.” –John I. (John I.)
“Still a very heavy level of pepper, but it really works with the other flavors of the cigar. Leather, cedar, and chocolate sweetness all play very well together to the end.” –Alan (Eulogy)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 93
“I never had any qualms with the draw. It seemed to be nearly perfect.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Burn: 87
“Not always even though mostly self-correcting burnline, with short ashes. At certain times it stayed lit for over 5 minutes unattended.” –Stefan (Stefan)
Construction: 93
“Really nicely made cigar. Great draw, burn was nice. Dense and heavy in the hand.” –John I. (John I.)
Overall Strength: Medium-Strong
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Experience Overall: 93
“Really impressive cigar, the initial blast of flavor was exceptional. The sweetness toward the middle became a little bit monotonous, but the deep rich flavors throughout the final were excellent.” –John I. (John I.)
“A relatively smooth, full-bodied stogie that should appeal to most smokers who have the time to puff it slowly — it lasted me for about two hours.” –Stefan (Stefan)
“Overall a pretty enjoyable smoke. I think I would probably enjoy it better in a smaller vitola. After the reveal I will probably take a look and see if this stick is offered in a corona or a robusto size. If so, I could see me picking up a 5ver and checking it out a little further.” –Dave W. (mdwest)
“I loved how this cigar looked, but it was only great for 30 seconds at a time every five minutes or so. Then it spent 4 minutes being mediocre. I won't be in a rush to grab another.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
“It's certainly on the stronger side with it's level of nicotine, but it's bold use of pepper gives it a nice spicy bite. I was surprised how quickly I finished it too; I'm not sure if I was enjoying it too fast or if it's just a quick smoke for it's size. I did find myself enjoying it for it's bold flavors though. The creamy smoke, perfect draw, and subtle flavors really stood out to me on this one.” –Alan (Eulogy)
"Really impressive cigar, the initial blast of flavor was exceptional. The sweetness toward the middle became a little bit monotonous, but the deep rich flavors throughout the final were excellent." -John I. (John I.)
