Bourbon seems to be the hot thing for the last while here, nearly overtaking the craft beer craze. So of course people started shoving leaves into barrels and aging them (that’s actually been happening for a while but I digress) it can, however, be tough to find one that actually tastes good. In comes AJ Fernandez to take care of that with a partnership between General Cigars and Rabbit Hole Distillery. In 2016 binder leaves were placed by AJ in Rabbit Hole whiskey barrels using a specific aging method and from there Diesel Whiskey Row came to life.

Diving into this thing the odor from the body is floral with lite notes of leather and oak. From the foot the smell is the same. The look of the cigar is attractive with a milk chocolate wrapper covering it. There is a light oily sheen to it and very few noticeable veins. Seams are tight and not remarkable but blend in with the body, the cigar feels full even firm to the touch. The cap is cut with no issues and it lights easily and evenly.

The first half brings flavors of rich tobacco with a slight bitter dark chocolate and spice on the finish. The burn continues to be sharp while the ash holds for about 1/2 inch at a time before falling. It produces plenty of medium weight, pleasant smelling, smoke. As the cigar progresses the spice dissipates.

The second half is more mellow with sweetness and bread flavors. This remains until nearly at the end where the spiciness does return. For the duration the cigar has burned properly and required no touching up of any kind.

While this is a barrel aged cigar it didn’t have that overwhelming flavor of being barrel aged and to me thats a good thing. Usually those flavors can over power the taste of the tobacco which is a disservice to it. The overall intensity is mild to medium which makes this cigar perfect to smoke at any time of the day. It also makes it accessible to all smokers regardless of palette. My recommendation is, if you see these in a shop pick some up