Don’t call it KFC! Sure, the acronym fits, but Drew Estate’s Kentucky Fire Cured has rightfully earned its own identity. These uniquely smokey treats first debuted in 2013, as Drew Estate was one of the first brands to properly make use of age-old tobacco curing techniques—known as fire-curing—for the premium cigar sector. 

Harvesting American tobaccos from Kentucky and Virginia, Drew Estate then allows the tobaccos to cure in large barns in Kentucky. What sets the process apart from traditional curing is the addition of aromatic woods (such as hickory, maple and oak) being burned under the hanging tobacco. The smoke from these smoldering woods is then absorbed by the tobaccos, producing an uncanny barbecue-like characteristic in the matured tobacco. 

While the final blend is not classified, Drew Estate is said to incorporate a large percentage of American tobaccos in the Kentucky Fire Cured recipe. With just the right touch of fire-cured tobaccos at the cigar’s core (a small amount will go a long way), Kentucky Fire Cured takes on a completely unique profile, offering a medium-plus body and jolting notes of barbecue sauce, charred wood, molasses, sweet hickory, and even a touch of maple syrup. Pipe smokers will easily relate, as fire-cured tobaccos are more commonly seen among pipe tobaccos. This makes for a great bridge to the premium cigar world for pipe smokers, or a fun change of pace for the avid cigar smoker.