Flor de las Antillas San Andres Toro

Covered in exceedingly dark brown, almost black, wrappers that are sandpaper rough to the touch, the three Flor de las Antillas San Andres Toros all feature plenty of overt veins, but very little visible oil. If there is a box-press, it is not very noticeable, and all three cigars are surprisingly light when I hold my hand. Physical inspections reveal that the first and second cigars each have a massive soft spot located just under the main bands. Aside from that, the first and last cigars are almost as hard as rocks when squeezed, while the second cigar is extremely spongy. Aromas from the wrappers of all three cigars are dominated by a similar, slightly sour earth note, followed by leather, generic woodiness, black pepper, coffee beans and barnyard. Scents from the feet are very different, with the first cigar having a strong almond note, the second cigar featuring a massive raisin sweetness and the third cigar dominated by a combination of cocoa nibs; regardless, all three cigars also feature similar notes of creamy cedar, dry earth, espresso, sawdust, chalk and light ammonia. Cold draws are very much in line with each other, featuring powdery cocoa nibs, sweet cedar, dry hay, terroir, charred meat, coffee beans, and a hint of very light nutmeg.

Each of the three cigars starts out surprisingly light, with virtually no spice or pepper and a slightly bitter dark chocolate note. Very shortly after lighting the cigars, distinct flavors of powdery cocoa nibs and creamy almonds take over the profile, followed by secondary notes of bitter espresso, cedar, barnyard, plain oatmeal, tree bark and light cinnamon. The second cigar features a light citrus peel note on the finish, while the other two cigars have a somewhat less interesting earth flavor. A combination of light black pepper and raisin sweetness dominates the retrohale of all three cigars, but it is easily strongest in the last cigar. Flavor ends the first third at full, the body hits a point just under the medium mark, and the strength crosses into solid medium territory. Other than a slightly wavy burn line on the final cigar, there are no issues with the construction so far.

During the second third, the amount of spice on my tongue picks up noticeably for the first and last cigars, while the second cigar continues at about the same level as the first third. Main flavors of dark chocolate and coffee beans emerge—more coffee beans than dark chocolate for the second cigar—along with additional flavors of cocoa nibs, toasted bread, cinnamon, chalk, earth, cedar, leather tack and dry hay. The retrohale features slightly more black pepper and significantly more raisin sweetness, and while the citrus peel note is now present on the finish on all three cigars, the second cigar has the most. Flavor remains at full, the strength increases slightly to land at a point just over medium, and the body increases enough to hit a solid medium. Unfortunately, the first and second cigars each require two touch-ups with my lighter to stay lit, but the draw resistance and smoke production continue to give me no problems at all.

The final third sees a new combination of toasted bread and gritty earth on top of the profiles, but there is also quite a bit of the powdery cocoa nibs from the first third present, along with coffee beans, cinnamon, cedar, barnyard, pencil lead and granola. As the final third burns down, the amount of spice on my tongue continues to increase, and while it does have a slight impact on the overall balance, it never becomes overwhelming. Unfortunately, on the finish of the first and last cigars, the citrus peel note has been replaced by a more generic espresso flavo, but it remains firmly in place on the second cigar. Flavor ends at full, the body ends at a solid medium, and the strength makes it to medium-plus. The burn lines continue to wander a bit, but none of the cigars become problematic enough to need attention from my lighter, while the smoke production remains high and the draws continue to give excellent resistance.

Final Notes

• A TAA representative told halfwheel that the Flor de las Antillas San Andres cigars are not part of the TAA’s Exclusive Series Program, but were offered exclusively to TAA retailers for the immediate future. The representative went on to say that while not confirmed, it is expected that the line will be offered to all retailers at the 2026 PCA Convention & Trade Show, which happens April 17-20 in New Orleans.
• My Father has used the TAA retailers—a group of around 80 retailers in the U.S.—as a soft launch for a future regular production line before. In 2023, the company released the Don Pepin — Vintage Edition line to TAA members before adding two sizes and making the line available to all retailers in 2024.
• The name Flor de las Antillas is a nod to the island of Cuba, which is sometimes known as the flower of the Antilles, i.e. the Antilles Islands, which are part of the West Indies located in the Caribbean Sea, and also include Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.
• Both spice and pepper amounts ramp up noticeably in the final third, but neither note comes close to being overwhelming.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.

• These cigars are listed as being 6 x 54 vitolas. Above are the measurements we took when we measured them. The weight difference was very noticeable between the second cigar—the lightest by far—and the first cigar, which was the heaviest by a small amount.
• The final smoking time averaged out to two hours and six minutes for all three cigars.
• If you would like to purchase any of the Flor de las Antillas San Andres Toro cigars, site sponsors Atlantic Cigar Co. and Cigars Direct sell them on their respective websites.

Brooks Whittington

I have worn many hats in my life up to this point: I started out as a photojournalist for the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, then transitioned to photographing weddings—both internationally and in the U.S.—for more than a decade. After realizing that there was a need for a cigar website containing better photographs and more in-depth information about each release, I founded my first cigar blog, SmokingStogie, in 2008. SmokingStogie quickly became one of the more influential cigar blogs on the internet, known for reviewing preproduction, prerelease, rare, extremely hard-to-find and expensive cigars, and it was one of the predecessors to halfwheel, which I co-founded.