West Tampa Tobacco White Toro

West Tampa Tobacco Co. launched in 2022 under Rick Rodriguez, former CAO blender, and Gus Martinez. The name honors West Tampa, where Rick’s Cuban grandparents settled as rollers in the 1950s after leaving Havana. White was one of two debut regular production lines, shipping in June 2022 from Garmendia Cigar Co. in Estelí, Nicaragua. The White is the lighter Habano of that opening pair, an Ecuadorian wrapper over Nicaraguan tobaccos, boxed with the family story on the lid:

“The seed for West Tampa Tobacco Company was planted in 1953, when Rick Rodriguez’s grandparents, both highly respected master cigar rollers, heeded the call of the U.S. They left behind the glamour of Havana for U.S. shores, seeking to capitalize on the booming cigar business of West Tampa, Florida.

The Rodríguezes made the U.S. their home and worked hard to provide for their family, never giving up on their craft, even when times were tough. Their love of tobacco skipped a generation, gathering momentum when it was awakened in their beloved grandson Rick. Growing up in West Tampa, in the shadow of the once-bustling cigar factories, taught Rick the value of hard work and instilled in him grit and determination.

His grandparents’ stories of Havana and Cuban cigars in their heyday were never far from Rick’s mind. So, when the opportunity to work in the cigar business knocked, Rick was quick to answer. He soon found himself studying at the right hand of industry legends, most notably Benji Menendez who freely transferred his knowledge to Rick. Decades later, Rick has been recognized as a cigar master in his own right.

Always striving for more, Rick has taken a bold step to establish West Tampa Tobacco Company, to simply offer the finest handcrafted cigars, created with hard work, gratitude and a profound respect for tradition.”

Stogie At A Glance

Review

First Third

Creamy with a kick of spice and sweetness to start. The sweetness lingers on the finish and is more present than on most cigars when people talk about sweetness, unless you are talking about a wagashi or something of the like. There is a palpable sweetness on the palate along with almost an eggnog, creamy nutmeg and coffee. Very enjoyable start. The creamy sweetness continues, with some nutmeg and other spices, along with a little bit of pepper on the finish, more of a black pepper. Some cedar is coming through, along with an earthy pepper on the finish. Creamy cedar notes with some sweetness continue to come through with an earthy pepper on the finish, maybe a slight nutty coffee note as well on the finish.

Second third

The sweetness has died down so more of a natural tobacco flavor has overtaken it. Smoke is still thick. There are some creamy notes. Cedar is the main note along with a light pepper on the finish. Sweetness is starting to come back a little bit at the halfway point of the second third. The coffee note is getting stronger, and another note shows up that is almost semi fruit like. That fruity note is dried banana, interesting, and it goes with the cream from earlier. Some coffee coming out as well with a slight but growing pepper on the finish.

Final third

Slight vanilla note coming through. Some cedar is coming back. Had to do a little touch up. Strength went from mild to medium. Some more pepper on the palate and finish. Earthy coffee notes nearing the end, pepper on the palate and on the finish. A little sweetness comes back briefly, but it is faint. Leather and cedar notes coming out with a peppery finish. The cigar is heating up a little, but nothing out of the ordinary. More leather; it is now overtaking the cedar. Still some black coffee in there with some pepper on the finish. The black coffee note is picking up with an earthy pepper note as well. Pepper on the finish, long finish.Very humid outside, and the cigar is still holding up well, with lots of smoke throughout the entire experience. Would like to try this again without the humidity issues outside because the first third was great, and the second was enjoyable as well, but the humidity was tough on the cigar at the end. Great experience.

score

90/100