Bespoke Cigars is based out of Estonia and started by Jeremy Casdagli. They have had a presence since the early 2000’s but until recent years, the brand has mostly been found in Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Russia, and Saudi Arabia. In 2015, Bespoke Cigars came to the U.S. market and was distributed by Biggs in Chicago. Now, they are distributed by The Bespoke Company run by Vlada Stojanov and The Clayton in Chicago. Bespoke has quite a few lines, the one we are reviewing today is the Bespoke Basilica.
The Basilica line was created specifically for the Middle Eastern Market. The name Basilica is a reference to a large cannon from 13th Century owned by the Ottomans and was to be used during the siege of the city of Constantinople. There are two blends in the line, Basilica C and Basilica A. They are two very different blends and each comes in a single size. Both are made at the Kelner Boutique Factory (KBF) in the Dominican Republic run by Hendrik Kelner Jr, the son of Davidoff’s Henke Kelner. Featured in the blend is 11 year aged Bonao binder leaf, one of the leaves found in the OPUS X cigar, along with Pennsylvania broadleaf & Peru Pello D’oro. The Basilica C is said to be the milder cigar while the Basilica A is said to be fuller. You can purchase Bespoke Cigars at Small Batch and Cedar Room or chek out their website here for lists of retailers.
Quick Cigar Review: Bespoke | Basilica A
Bespoke Basilica A:
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Factory: Kelner Boutique Factory
Wrapper: Dominican Cotui
Binder: Dominican Bonao
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan, USU, Peru
Size: 6 Inches
Ring Gauge: 52
Vitola: Toro
MSRP: $16.00
Pre-light
Flat almond brown wrapper with medium veins that run the length of the cigar. Topped off with a perfect triple cap and shaggy foot below.
Scents of sweetened oak, tobacco, leather and cashew delight the nose while a cold draw reveals mustiness, pear, clove and cinnamon.
Quick Cigar Review: Bespoke | Basilica A
First Third
Relaxing various flavors of wood, leather, and slightly black peppery cream start off post light. As we move into wrapper territory from the shaggy foot, a very pleasant flavor of almond paste enters the fray while the retrohale is effortless and gives a semi peppery sensation. This is a perfect start for this complex medium bodied experience.
Second Third
Moving into the second third, leather, toast, and floral notes become the baseline flavors while a mild honey like sweetness comes in and out.
Even the aroma of the smoke is intoxicating with leather, must, and medium bodied tobacco lofting about the room.
Final Third
Quick Cigar Review: Bespoke | Basilica A
Lastly, damp wood, a moderate amount of black pepper, nuts and cream lead off the final third. A final transition to dominate leather, cream, mild black pepper, and coconut husk take over on the back half of this knuckle burner.
Overall Impressions
Amazing would be an understatement for this fine luxurious smoke. Ample amounts of complexity and well balanced medium bodied flavors were extracted and deeply appreciated as the blender really knows how to make a grade A smoke. I cannot sing praises high enough… you MUST… in fact I demand you to buy a Bespoke Basilica A and experience what this cigar has to offer… you will be forever spoiled.
Amazing would be an understatement for this fine luxurious smoke. Ample amounts of complexity and well balanced medium bodied flavors were extracted and deeply appreciated as the blender really knows how to make a grade A smoke. I cannot sing praises high enough... you MUST... in fact I demand you to buy a Bespoke Basilica A and experience what this cigar has to offer... you will be forever spoiled.
