BLACKENED M81 by Drew Estate

There are certain forces in the creative space that simply exude innovation. Take Drew Estate from the world of premium cigars or Metallica in the metal genre, for example; the coming together of such brands feels destined. This is exactly the case with the Blackened Cigars “M81” by Drew Estate cigar project, combining the talents of Jonathan Drew (Drew Estate), James Hetfield (Metallica), and Rob Dietrich (BLACKENED American Whiskey).

The Blackened Cigars “M81” by Drew Estate cigar began with a former collaboration between Metallica and Sweet Amber Distilling Co., where a bizarrely creative technique was implemented to produce the Blackened American Whiskey. Essentially, blend of whiskeys are finished in brandy casks with the help of Metallica's metal. What sets it apart is that the band members of Metallica custom curate a playlist of their own music and blast the barrels with low-frequency sound waves, forcing the whiskey to penetrate deeper into the barrel.

With the Blackened Cigars “M81” by Drew Estate cigar, the trio of cigarmaker, musician, and distiller came together to find the proper cigar pairing for such a unique spirit. "After two years of enjoying and sampling cigars together, the group decided on the exact flavor profile that would become BLACKENED Cigars “M81” by Drew Estate." The cigar is crafted from a thick and oily Mexican San Andrés maduro wrapper, a Connecticut River Valley Broadleaf maduro binder, and fillers of Nicaragua and Pennsylvania Broadleaf maduro (said to be the boldest selection of Broadleaf ligero in DE's arsenal). This three-part maduro recipe truly brings something new within Drew Estate's impressive portfolio, offering a medium-full intensity and maduro-centric flavors of smoky hickory, rich leather, black pepper, toasted oak, and chewy chocolate.