Caldwell Lost & Found Pepper Cream Soda (Green Band)

Smoked: Caldwell Lost & Found Pepper Cream Soda

Smoked at: West Chester, Ohio

Caldwell Lost & Found Pepper Cream Soda lives up it’s name…and reputation. It took a few years to find this L & F until finally tracking some down in 2023 wondering all that time if all the hype matched just how good it was. It did not disappoint.

It’s a medium body, med-mild strength stick. When I say med-mild strength, it may as well be mild in strength - like no nic buzz at all down to the nub of the corona.

The ash on the Pepper Cream Soda even borrows from its name. The ash is solid salt and pepper looking. It held on tight to an inch and a half. The construction is sublime. My only minor issue was that the draw was a little tight, but the smoke output was more than adequate, and the burn line was very even. Only two minor, short touchups and a nice cold draw start to finish.

The flavors jump out on the first few puffs - pepper, cream, oak, tea, coffee, chocolate and that unmistakable Lost & Found well aged tobacco taste providing vegetal, mineral notes. There is a hint of spice. My palate is not that attuned to precise spices. So I’m guessing – allspice. graham crackers, or cinnamon – or a combination of all three. The only thing missing from the flavor matching the name of the cigar is….NO SODA. Is there a way to grow carbonated, sweet tobacco for the soda? Now there is a note of something akin to seltzer and saltines in there. Maybe that’s the soda.

The retrohale is heavy on the pepper, but there is leather and those herbal, mineral notes (slate, chalk) from the aged tobacco in there as well.

Pepper Cream Soda is an excellent stick - an hour and change of a very enjoyable smoke.