Today, we are reviewing the Deadwood Dominicana Buenas Noches, which is the second installment in the Deadwood Dominicana series. This cigar offers a maduro option within this aromatic blend series. Drew Estate has primarily been associated with Nicaraguan tobacco. However, things changed in 2025 when Drew Estate ventured into Dominican Republic tobacco with the introduction of the Deadwood Dominicana. At the PCA 2026 Trade Show, they unveiled two additional Dominican releases: the Buenas Noches and the Undercrown El Tigre Dominicano. As we learned just before the PCA, this is only the beginning of Drew Estate’s involvement with the Dominican Republic.
On the eve of the 2026 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, Drew Estate has announced the launch of Drew Dominicana. At the center of Drew Dominicana will be a new 73,000-square-foot factory, a customer experience component, and a tobacco farm in Villa Gonzalez, Dominican Republic, headed by Manuel Peralta. The factory isn’t open yet, but plans are to eventually move the Drew Estate Dominican blends to this new facility.
Buenas Noches and Undercrown El Tigre officially debuted at PCA 2026, but they were released early as part of Drew Estate’s early access program. These cigars were branded as Water (Buenas Noches) and Fire (El Tigre).
Now, without further ado, let’s break down the Buenas Noches Toro and see what this cigar brings to the table.
SPECIFICATIONS
Blend and Origin
As mentioned, Buenas Noches is a maduro offering. This is highlighted by a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper. The Dominican component is in the filler, where it is described as “Dominican-forward.”Buenas Noches also features a Mexican San Andres wrapper. The original Deadwood Dominicana release features a Connecticut Shade wrapper with analogous binder and filler tobaccos, but it’s unclear whether they are the exact same tobaccos. One common denominator across all Deadwood Cigars is a sweetened cap, and the tobaccos in the blend include aromatic tobaccos.
- Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
- Binder: Mexican San Andres
- Filler: Dominican-forward
- Country of Origin: Nicaragua
- Factory: La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate
Vitolas Available
Buenas Noches comes in three sizes. Each comes in ten-count boxes:
- Robusto: 5 x 54
- Toro: 6 x 50
- Gordo: 6 x 60
Appearance (*)
The Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper of the Buenas Noches Toro has a classic cocoa color. The wrapper had a slight amount of oil on its surface. On closer examination, the wrapper also showed some mottling. The wrapper surface showed visible veins and seams.
PERFORMANCE
Pre-Light Draw (*)
A straight cut was used to remove the cap of the Buenas Noches Toro. Once the cap was removed, it was time to commence with the pre-light draw. Right out of the gate, I picked up the artificial sweetness of the cap. On the samples I smoked, this artificial sweetness wasn’t as prominent as in other sweetened cap cigars, but it was still there. At the same time, I picked up a bold cocoa note. Overall, for a sweet-cap cigar, I was satisfied with this pre-light draw. At this point, it was time to remove the footer band of the Buenas Noches Toro and head into the smoking phase.
Tasting Notes
The Buenas Noches Toro opened with notes of cocoa, coffee, natural tobacco, and some artificial sweetness. Like the pre-light draw, the artificial sweetness was there, but not as overpowering as I would expect. Early on, the cocoa and coffee notes moved into the forefront. Sometimes I describe cocoa and coffee fused together as “mocha,” but here the two notes were separate and distinct. Meanwhile, the natural tobacco and artificial sweetness sealed in the background. A slight mixed-pepper note also sat in the background. The retrohale also carried the mixed-pepper note, with small layers of bittersweet cocoa.
During the second third of the Buenas Noches Toro, the coffee and cocoa remained primary. The coffee and cocoa alternated in intensity. Meanwhile, the natural tobacco, artificial sweetness, and pepper remained secondary.
By the final third, the coffee notes took over as the sole primary note. The cocoa settled in the background with the natural tobacco, artificial sweetness, and pepper. There was a little more pepper spice here, but it was not overwhelming. This is the way the Buenas Noches Toro came to a close. The resulting nub was soft to the touch and cool in temperature.
Burn
Overall, the burn on each sample of the Buenas Noches Toro performed very well. This cigar maintained a straight burn path and had a relatively straight burn line. The burn didn’t meander, and it needed minimal touchups. The resulting ash was light gray. This wasn’t an overly firm ash, but it wasn’t loose nor flaky either.
Draw
Normally I like a little resistance on my draw. I smoked four samples of the Buenas Noches Toro. Two of the samples had that touch of resistance. The other two had a resistance level greater than I prefer. On the two samples of the Buenas Noches Toro with the tighter draw, I never needed a re-light.
Strength and Body
The Buenas Noches started out with mild to medium strength and medium-bodied flavors. Over time, the intensity increased gradually. By the second half, the Buenas Noches moved into medium strength territory. While the Buenas Noches had more body in the second half, the cigar still stayed in the medium range of the spectrum.
When it came to strength versus body, the body maintained a slight edge throughout the smoking experience.
BANDING AND PACKAGING NOTES (*)
I will admit, I am a classic packaging guy. In general, this style of packaging isn’t in my wheelhouse, but I still have to give a lot of credit to Drew Estate. From the red and white colors to the caricature image of the Deadwood Dominicana girl, it’s a nice presentation. It contrasts really well against the dark wrapper. Like I said, not in my wheelhouse, but well done.
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Final Thoughts
In terms of aromatic, sweet-tipped cigars, the Buenas Noches Toro is actually one of the better ones out there. On Cigar Coop, I score these types of cigars exactly the same as traditional scores. Typically, these cigars lose points for complexity and balance – and the Buenas Noches is no exception. The good news is the residual artificial sweetness wasn’t as intense as in other cigars. On top of that, there are some really good underlying flavors with this cigar. In the end, if you want an aromatic, sweet-tipped cigar, I’m going to recommend the Buenas Noches Toro. It’s one that I would buy and smoke again.
Summary
- Key Flavors: Cocoa, Coffee, Natural Tobacco, Pepper, Artificial Sweetness
- Burn: Excellent
- Draw: Very Good
- Complexity: Medium Minus
- Strength: Mild to Medium (1st Half), Medium (2nd Half
- Body: Medium
- Finish: Good
Rating
Value: Buy One
Score: 87
REFERENCES
Photo Credits: Cigar Coop
(*) Indicates this is not factored into the score or value rating
