Alfonso Gran Selección Begins Shipping

Over the last year or so, Selected Tobacco S.A. has been releasing new lines that it says are aged in rooms lined with French oak, a nod to the wine world. Earlier this week, the company began shipping its newest blend that was aged with French oak.

It’s the Alfonso Gran Selección, which the company is explicitly describing as a sequel to the Alfonso Extra Añejo. Blend-wise, the Gran Selección uses an Ecuadorian habano wrapper over a Peruvian binder and fillers from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. The company has said that this should be a darker flavor profile compared to the Extra Añejo.

Like the Alfonso Extra Añejo and Byron 1850, this line was aged for a total of five years. Part of that process is done in rooms lined with Spanish cedar, where the humidity is increased and decreased throughout the process. The final part of the aging process is done in rooms lined with French oak, which the company says was inspired by winemaking. As with the other Selected Tobacco S.A. products, the cigars are made at Tabacos de Costa Rica in Costa Rica.

The Alfonso Gran Selección is debuting in five sizes:

• Alfonso Gran Selección Estelares (5 1/2 x 54) — $42 (Box of 25, $1,050)
• Alfonso Gran Selección Exclusivos (6 x 54) — $47 (Box of 25, $1,175)
• Alfonso Gran Selección Enormes (6 1/2 x 60) — $50 (Box of 25, $1,250)
• Alfonso Gran Selección Preciosos (7 1/2 x 40) — $42 (Box of 25, $1,050)
• Alfonso Gran Selección Grandiosos (8 x 50) — $50 (Box of 25, $1,250)

For 2023 and 2024, production will be limited to 200 boxes of 25 cigars per size per year. Selected Tobacco S.A. increased the production numbers for future years, but those cigars are still aging.

“Our experimentation with French Oak aging has lead to amazing cigars ” said Nelson Alfonso, owner of Selected Tobacco, in a press release when the cigars were announced. “The Alfonso Gran Selección is the next great example of our dedication to patience and exploration.”