Next month, Davidoff will release its annual Zodiac Series cigar, which will celebrate the next year on the Chinese zodiac calendar: the year of the rabbit.
The Davidoff Year of the Rabbit is a 5 15/16 x 54 double perfecto that uses an Ecuadorian hybrid 238 wrapper over a Mexican San Andrés negro binder and five fillers. Four of them are from the Dominican Republic—piloto seco, San Vicente ligero, San Vicente seco and Yamasá viso—and the fifth is seco from Estelí, Nicaragua. Davidoff says the average age of the filler tobacco is four and a half years.
As a nod to the rabbit, each cigar features a small pigtail, a rare feature for a perfecto.
The MSRP is set at $50 per cigar, the most expensive Zodiac Series to date, and there will be 6,500 boxes of 10 cigars offered to the U.S. market.
Note: The following shows the various Davidoff Zodiac Series releases over the years. Some of these cigars may have been released after this post was published. The list was last updated on Feb. 9, 2024.
- Davidoff Cuvée Selection 2012 Year of the Dragon (6 x 52) — $35 (Bundle of 10, $350) — Undisclosed
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2013 Year of the Snake (7 x 48) — $29.90 (Box of 8, $239.20) — 4,500 Boxes of 8 Cigars (36,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2014 Year of the Horse (6 x 60) — $31 (Box of 9, $279) — 5,000 Boxes of 9 Cigars (45,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2015 Year of the Sheep (6 1/2 x 54) — $35 (Box of 8, $280) — 3,000 Boxes of 8 Cigars (24,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2016 Year of the Monkey (6 1/2 x 50) — $34 (Box of 10, $340) — 3,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (30,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2017 Year of the Rooster (6 3/4 x 50) — $40 (Box of 10, $400) — 8,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (80,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2018 Year of the Dog (7 x 50) — $39 (Box of 10, $390) — 4,500 Boxes of 10 Cigars (45,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2019 Year of the Pig (6 x 56) — $39 (Box of 10, $390) — 9,300 Boxes of 10 Cigars (93,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2020 Year of the Rat (6 x 52) — $39 (Box of 10, $390) — 10,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (100,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2021 Year of the Ox (6 x 60) — $40 (Box of 10, $400) — 13,500 Boxes of 10 Cigars (135,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2022 Year of the Tiger (5 x 52) — $42 (Box of 10, $420) — 17,350 Boxes of 10 Cigars (173,500 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2022 Year of the Tiger Toro — $397 (Humidor of 88, $35,000) — 24 Humidors of 88 Cigars (2,112 Total Cigars)*
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2023 Year of the Rabbit (5 15/16 x 54) — $50 (Box of 10, $500) — 19,200 Boxes of 10 Cigars (192,000 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2023 Year of the Rabbit Flagship Edition (6 x 56) — $72 (Box of 24, $1,728) — 600 Boxes of 24 Cigars (14,400 Total Cigars)
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2024 Year of the Dragon (7 1/2 x 50) — $59 (Box of 10, $590) — TBA
- Davidoff Limited Edition 2024 Year of the Dragon Flagship Edition (6 x 56) — $89 (Box of 24, $2,136) — 600 Boxes of 24 Cigars (14,400 Total Cigars)
*Not pictured.
Since 2011, Davidoff has released a cigar to celebrate the upcoming Chinese New Year and the accompanying symbol on the Chinese zodiac calendar. While that cigar—the Year of the Dragon—was the debut release, the series started in earnest the following year. For example, the Year of the Dragon cigar was released in select Asian markets and did not use the signature gold on red color scheme that every other release has used. In Chinese culture, the color red symbolizes good fortune while the color gold symbolizes wealth. Starting in 2012, Davidoff made the Zodiac Series a global release that arrives on shelves in the U.S. each November.
Davidoff says this year’s box has two subtle rabbit themes. First, the pattern on the lacquered exterior of the box is made to mimic the calm hops that a rabbit makes. Second, the unique layout of the cigars inside is designed to look like a rabbit’s warren, the connecting burrows that rabbits dig underground.
Accompanying the release are four Year of the Rabbit-themed accessories. Davidoff is releasing a large porcelain ashtray, which features the rabbit logo in the center. It can hold two cigars and Davidoff says the cigar notches are angled in a manner that means the cigars will not touch each other. Artoria makes the ashtrays in France and each piece is hand-numbered out of 450 though only 150 ashtrays are being sold in the U.S.
The MSRP is $415.
Davidoff has also created a special version of its Davidoff Double Blade Cutter, a double guillotine cutter. The German-made cutter is made of palladium and can cut cigars up to 56 ring gauge. The MSRP is set at $425 and it’s limited to 370 pieces, 80 of which will be sold in the U.S.
While there will not be Year of the Rabbit pipe tobacco in the U.S., Davidoff will offer American stores a briarwood pipe that uses silver accents and has the Year of the Rabbit pattern. It’s made in Italy and features a 9mm draught hole. Only 80 Year of the Rabbit Pipes will be sold in the U.S., each with an MSRP of $1,180.
There is Year of the Rabbit pipe tobacco, but it’s not being sold in the U.S.
Finally, there is a Year of the Rabbit Masterpiece Humidor. Davidoff has not yet released details about this humidor, but it appears to come with a different vitola of the Davidoff Limited Edition 2023 Year of the Rabbit.
Update — Added info that there is Davidoff Year of the Rabbit pipe tobacco.
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.
