King Edward The Seventh

There is something to be said for any product that lasts for a century in the cigar market. Seldom do brands last for this long and still maintain the high quality, original flavor that fills their customers with nostalgia. Well, there is one such product in the stogie world, King Edwards Cigars. If you have never had any of the King Edward cigars or cigarillos, then you can by no means call yourself an aficionado. The King Edward brand has been around for a century and still flies off the shelves. So, how did they get here?

History of King Edward Brand

King Edward VII took the reign from Queen Victoria in 1901. Even as he is remembered for being the king, his decision to lift the ban on smoking shall forever accompany his name in history. His immortal words, “Gentlemen, you may smoke” ring fresh in the minds of cigar lovers across the world. King Edward VII was a legendary tobacco lover. He supported a 12-cigar and 20-cigarette a day habit for most of his adult life. Swisher International Group began to develop and finally released a cigar brand named after their beloved King Edward VII in 1918. The King Edward VII Imperial Cigars and King Edward VII Invincible Cigars took the market by storm. English natives, to this day, prefer the King Edwards Cigars which speaks to the quality considering all the Cuban cigars available in their market.

Development of the brand through the years

Swisher International made premium handmade cigars for decades. The King Edward Imperials and Invincibles were the most popular cigars of the 19th century. Swisher introduced machine-made cigars in the 1920s. Machines changed the game for cigar makers. Production became faster and easier, and Swisher International was able to lower the prices of cigars during the Great Depression. Later, with the introduction of Swisher Sweets little cigars came King Edward filtered little cigars as well. They are affordable and an excellent smoke for when you are on the move or don’t have enough time for a full-blown stogie. To date, King Edward cigars, both regular size and cigarillos are well-loved across the cigar world. Swisher International Group still enjoys a 46 percent market share for cigarillos and a 26 percent market share for handmade cigars.

Swisher International Group

Swisher International Group has enjoyed being a cigar conglomerate for close to 150 years. They have been manufacturing King Edward brand of cigars for over a century. Swisher International owns the largest cigar factory in the world in Jacksonville, Florida that churns out 7.6 million cigars a day. They use all-natural tobacco leaf fillers, homogenized tobacco leaf binders, and homogenized tobacco wrappers.

King Edwards Cigar Flavor Profiles

King Edwards cigars come in three flavors; natural, cherry and menthol

The Natural

The King Edwards natural flavor captures all that we love about cigars. You get to enjoy the natural taste and aroma of tobacco and a natural wrapper. From the onset, you can smell the dry barnyard or hay aroma on the wrapper. The first draw and consequent draws deliver authentic cigar flavor of dry tobacco, slightly sweet tones from the natural wrapper and the mild strength that is synonymous with King Edwards cigars.

The Cherry

The Cherry flavored King Edward cigars are an absolute delight. The aroma of sweet fruity cherry is evident from the wrapper. Even though you will not taste much from the cold draw, the flavor will be dominant from the first draw once you light your cigar. From my experience, this cherry flavored cigar is more of a sweet snack than it is a cigar. The cherry zest is so dominant that you may forget that you are actually smoking a cigar. There are tobacco notes in the background and a slight cocoa notes in the retrohale. There is no harshness or bitterness, and the strength is mild. This is basically a delicious cigar in a little fun-size.

The Menthol

The wrapper gives off a soft menthol aroma. King Edward cigars are mild in strength. The menthol presence in the flavor is pretty robust from the first draw. There is a basic cigar taste in the background with subtle cocoa notes. The strength stays mild in the cigar-scale but a bit stronger than a cigarette. Even though I am not a big menthol fan, I liked that the retrohale is not at all harsh on the palate. The smoke is smooth with all the qualities of a full-size cigar. The draw is excellent, the burn is relatively slow, and the smoke output is excellent.

Where can King Edwards cigars be found?

King Edwards cigars have a pretty extensive market. Consequently, most online shops carry them. They are also readily available in most cigar shops primarily in the US. I like to shop online and occasionally you may find either one or the other is out of stock, but a visit to another store or online shop will get you exactly what you need.