Length: 6 3/4"
Ring Gauge: 52
Strength: Medium to Full
Packaging: Box of 12
Vitola: Perfecto
Smoking Time: 60 Minutes
Wrapper: Habano Ecuador 7th Priming
Binder: Brazilian Mata Fina
Filler: Undisclosed
LIMITED EDITION - ONLY 500 BOXES WORLDWIDE | 14 Boxes in the UK
FOUNDATION CIGARS
In 2014 Nick Melillo faced a stark choice - He could well have stayed on as Executive Vice President of International Operations and Head Blender of Drew Estate (a role he had held since 2003), or he could seize the chance to finally use his 20 years of hard-earned experience and his access to the highest quality cigar tobacco to make his own cigars – the cigars of his dreams!
The choice was easy, and in 2015 Foundation Cigar Company was born, all for the love of the leaf.
Nick’s cigar journey started in high school, on Saturdays he would go for a smoke with his grandfather and brother at their local shop in New Haven, Connecticut. After memorising all details of every cigar in the humidor; Nick persuaded them to give him a weekend job.
Nick’s passion for working with cigars was immediately apparent, but following four years at Calabash Shoppe, the wide world was calling, and Nick took off to travel the globe. Following a lengthy global trip remarkably reminiscent of Raiders Of The Lost Ark, it was in 2003 that Nick received a call from Jonathan Drew...
Jonathan needed someone who knew and loved cigars and was willing to move to Nicaragua to oversee the setup and operations of his new cigar company - Drew Estate. Nick jumped on board and immediately started blending cigars and fermenting tobacco; cigars and tobacco that completely changed the cigar industry in the early 21st Century.
In 2015 Melillo branched out on his own, finally forming the Foundation Cigar Company.
Famously and without being prompted, paid or promoted, the cigars are now regularly being championed as the best cigars available by Joe Rogan (the world’s most popular podcaster) and winning awards and ratings such as #1 Best Buy (Cigar Afficionado), Cigar Of The Year (Cigar Snob) and #3 in Cigar Afficionado’s top 25 2019.
But what is at the heart of Foundation Cigar Company is the cigar smoker themselves – that smoke-filled moment of pure presence, that quietly thunderous connection to ancient heritage, modern science, and genuine passion for the leaf. This is something that Melillo and Foundation Cigar Company will provide endlessly to any who will sit and take audience. All for the love of the leaf.
HIGHCLERE CASTLE SENETJER
One hundred years ago, Lord Carnarvon left Highclere Castle for the ancient sands of Egypt. He, along with archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the tomb of King Tutankhamun, hidden for 3000 years.
Foundation Cigars crafted this cigar for the Highclere Castle Cigar line to pay homage to archaeology’s greatest discovery. With their secret blend, they have endeavoured to capture the spirit of ancient incense - “Senetjer” is the ancient Egyptian word for incense or “that which makes holy”.
The box design is an exact replica of a storage box from the tomb itself. This cigar embodies life at Highclere in the era of the 5th Earl of Carnarvon, his love for cigars, and his passion for ancient Egypt.