Foundation Cigar Company: Highclere Castle Edwardian Petit Corona Cigars

Merging Old World history with New World tobacco, Highclere Castle sees Foundation Cigar Company's owner and master blender, Nicholas Melillo, partnering with Sir George Herbert, the 8th Earl of Carnarvon and current Lord of Highclere Castle. Fans of the show Downton Abbey will no doubt recognize the 5,000 acre estate, located in Hampshire, England, while the more comically inclined might remember it from Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie's Jeeves and Wooster series.

Masterfully blended by Melillo and hand rolled in Estelí, Nicaragua, Highclere Castle Cigar Company presents Highclere Castle cigars, available in two versions — Edwardian and Victorian — inspired by the look and flavor of cigars enjoyed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, when the first Earls of Carnarvon began importing cigars to Highclere Castle. The Edwardian is presented here, boasting a Connecticut Shade wrapper, Mata Fina binder from Brazil, and a filler blend of Criollo and Corojo from Jalapa and Ometepe. That blend is, then, topped off with a proprietary hybrid seed that Foundation calls "Nicadán," with the resulting profile highlighting notes of leather, pepper, and woodsy smoke, for a smooth and elegant experience that hearkens back to the smoking rooms of yesteryear.