27 February 2023
M81: Mr. James Hatfield from Metallica with his own cigar line.
Rumors that have been circulating blogs and specialized publications of the cigar industry for months received their expected Rock'n'roll conclusion in the fall of 2022. Mr. James Hetfield, the leader of one of the greatest heavy metal and rock bands (Metallica), has launched his own line of cigars: Blackened Cigars "M81".
The project is a continuation of the idea implemented in 2018 by Hatfield and Metallica to produce their own high-quality brand of whiskey - BLACKENED®.
BLACKENED® was created with the support of Dave Pickerell - Maker's Mark master blender. After Dave Pickerell passed away in 2018, he was replaced by Rob Dietrich in the realization of BLACKENED®. At the same time Rob shared with James Hatfield a common passion for the vast world of cigars and later he introduced James to a meeting at Drew Estate Cigar Company to collaborate on the realization of the M81. The work takes about two years of selecting different types of tobacco to achieve the signature blend that James desires. The box of the M81 Cigars is engraved with the names of Hetfield Dietrich & Drew to emphasize their collaboration.
Blackened Cigars M81 is a combination of the name of Metallica's own music label, the first letter of the band's name, as well as its year of creation (1981). Mexican San Andrés maduro wrapper leaf, Broadleaf binder from the Connecticut River Valley region was used to make the cigar, and two types of maduro leaf from Nicaragua were used for filler. A band like Metallica would hardly afford anything other than "heavy" production, right!?!
The M81 is available in four sizes:
- Blackened Cigars "M81" by Drew Estate Corona Doble (7 x 50).
- Blackened Cigars "M81" by Drew Estate Toro (6 x 52).
- Blackened Cigars "M81" by Drew Estate Robusto (5 x 50).
- Blackened Cigars "M81" by Drew Estate Corona (5 x 43).
The appearance of Blackened Cigars M81 is another excellent example of the collaboration of rock music with the vast world of tobacco. It remains to be seen how the Bulgarian importers will react to the possibility of presenting the M81. Rock on!!!
(Photos and materials from cigar.com used)
