Room 101 Farce Original

As some (well-informed) aficionados might guess, the term HBN has a meaning that cannot legally be used in Germany due to a specific agreement between a Caribbean island and the German government. However, in the U.S., these cigars are sold under that “naughty” forbidden name. So much for that tiresome topic! Behind the Room 101 cigar brand is American Matt Booth. Room 101 was originally founded as a jewelry company in 2003. From 2009 to 2016, he had his cigars produced first by Camacho and later, after Christian Eiroa sold the company to a Swiss corporation, by Oettinger/Davidoff. Matt did not renew his production contract at the beginning of 2017 and temporarily announced his exit from the cigar industry. Temporarily—because many already suspected he would eventually resurface.

The Return of Matt Booth: A New Era for Room 101 HBN Cigars

Just six months later, he was back through a collaboration with Robert Caldwell (Tabacalera Ventura) and A.J. Fernandez. This first edition was released under the name Hit & Run Cigars and quickly gained popularity again. Since 2019, he’s been working solo once more, with this line also being produced at Tabacalera William Ventura. Many Robert Caldwell cigars are made there too—certainly not cheap, but consistently excellent! In the meantime, things have shifted again: in 2022, Matt sold his cigar brand to the tobacco giant Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG). Since then, he’s been serving as Creative Director for cigar product development.

Room 101 and the Mysterious HBN Series: A Unique Flavor Composition

The wrapper used here is a Sungrown from Ecuador, layered over an Indonesian binder. The filler blend consists of tobaccos from the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Pennsylvania. This series is the second regular line Matt has launched since his comeback, alongside the Room 101 Farce Connecticut. This HBN version is more full-bodied than its lighter “sister line.” In the official description, Matt notes vanilla, cinnamon, clove, leather, and coffee—so, good luck trying to pick all that out! And by the way, if you can’t, maybe you’re just not a “real” aficionado... ;-)