Jonathan Drew is always thinking of ways to think outside the box(or in this case, the cigar box), and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the now world famous Acid brand, he has teamed up with an unusual crew of artists to bring you ACID Kuba Arte Water Towers. That’s right, these ultra-premium sticks don’t come in just any old box, they are presented in 20-capacity air tight water tower replicas, each covered in custom graffiti done by some of the world’s most famous graffiti artists. Each artist was hand-picked by Jonathan Drew to come up with some crazy design work, each demonstrating his or her own personal style. The idea is based on Drew’s passion for the city where it all started for him and his beloved ACID brand, Brooklyn, New York. Each water tower in the lineup is named after each of the five artists involved in the project: Chino, Doc, Keo, Vers, and “Queen” Andrea. As for the cigar itself, Kuba Arte is a 5 13/16” x 54 torpedo made in Nicaragua at the famed La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate using Nicaraguan fillers, an Indonesian binder, and a Broadleaf Maduro wrapper. The cap is sweetened to make things even more interesting.
ACID Kuba Arte is somewhat of a different cigar from its other ACID
relatives. While still infused, the flavors resulting from the process
are quite subtle. In essence, there is enough infused flavor to tell
it’s an ACID
cigar, but the natural tobacco flavor shines through with bold
presence. Kuba Arte starts off with bursts of coffee and cream. Sweet
notes dominate the profile, along with hints of tea, chocolate, and
sugary cereal. The bold maduro flavor of the Broadleaf wrapper stays
present, however, with a deep earthy note lingering throughout the
experience. The familiar taste of nutty dark chocolate rounds out the
very busy bouquet, and the finish is very heavy and thick.
Medium-bodied, well-balanced, and almost overwhelmingly complex, Kuba
Arte is one of the most phenomenal releases in the ACID portfolio to
date.
Drew Estate really hit the nail on the head with this one. Then
again, one would only expect someone like Jonathan Drew to go all-out
and then some to celebrate an anniversary like this one. The unusual,
yet functional packaging, the brilliant theme behind the project, and
the amazing cigars themselves make for one awesome presentation. ACID
Kuba Arte pairs well with coffee, but a coffee stout would probably be
even better. Kuba Arte is almost like the ACID line collided with Larutan
and made some type of Drew Estate Frankenstein. No matter how you put
it, and whether or not you are one of the millions of long-time fans of
ACID cigars, ACID Kuba Arte is a stick worth trying, and the
highly-collectible water towers make amazing conversation pieces for any
Man Cave or game room. Celebrate the anniversary of a legendary brand
with ACID Kuba Arte!
Featured artist:
QUEEN ANDREA: A NYC-based fine artist, graffiti artist,
typographer and graphic designer & part of a newer generation of
early 1990’s graffiti writers. Queen Andrea finds her creative
inspiration in the diversity & crazy energy of city life and
especially graffiti. Out in the streets Queen Andrea has developed a
reputation for her oversized typography murals, influenced by an endless
appreciation of typography, as well as themes of urban life, hip hop
lyrics & empowerment