Lanceros Collection by Don Pepín García

Today, Lancero50 comes to an end. (It comes to an end on time, something I consider a huge accomplishment.) I figured there was really no other way to close this out than to review all of the Lanceros Collection by Don Pepín Garcia, also known as the Pepín Lancero Sampler or Pepín Holiday Lancero Sampler. The limited edition sampler featured five different Lanceros, of which only two have been offered in a Lancero format outside the sampler. Details and pictures after the jump.

These had been long rumored to be released, so there was a sort of sigh of relief when these hit shelves in December of 2007. There are said to be only 1,000 of these ever made, making some of these cigars rather limited releases. The cigars were all made at the now defunct Tabacalera Cubanas S.A. in Nicaragua, the first factory that Pepín used in Nicaragua. Each cigar was the same size, 6 7/8 x 42 with a pigtail. MSRP for the ten cigars (five different blends, two of each) was $110, although most sold somewhere around $90.

The Cigars:

• Don Pepín García (Blue Label) — The only cigar to be offered as a regular production Lancero, just in a different size. The Fundadores is the regular production “Blue Label” Lancero, but it measures a traditional 7 1/2 x 38. The cigar (6 7/8 x 42) was however released in two other batches for Puff n’ Stuff of Decatur, GA. There were a total of 250 boxes of the Blue Labels for Puff n’ Stuff made, although 50 of the 2008 batch were sent back for draw problems. (Presumably these are the same cigars, but that’s not been confirmed.)
• Don Pepín García Series JJ — Never offered outside of the sampler in Lancero format.
• El Centurion — The official word is that there were only 50,000 cigars released. However, 850 boxes of the original three sizes were released, which adds up to 51,000. Then add the 2,000 Lanceros made, and it turns out there were 53,000 El Centurions made. Pepín has said to use a modified El Centurion blend when rolling at events, and he has been known to roll Lanceros.
• Don Pepín García Cuban Classic — The only other size to be released elsewhere, although like the Blue Label, it had different dimensions. Victor Vitale of The Cigar Agency had 100 (one-hundred) boxes of 50 (fifty) made for him back in 2008. The cigars were 7 x 39s, and some boxes were still available as of late last year.
• Don Pepín García Series JJ Maduro — Never offered outside of the sampler in Lancero format.

Anyways, reviews will be out every two hours from now, enjoy.

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. I previously co-founded and published TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry for more than a decade, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. In addition, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff here at halfwheel. I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.