Don Pepin – Vintage Edition Toro

For its contribution to the Tobacconists’ Association of America’s (TAA) Exclusive Series Program this year, My Father Cigars released a new line with a vintage feel that would kick off an ongoing celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Don Pepín García brand.

The line, called the Don Pepin – Vintage Edition, is a Nicaraguan puro that uses a corojo 99 leaf for the wrapper. It debuted in three sizes.

The cigars come wearing a band that has a vintage feel, as it dates back to one of the earliest bands ever known to be on a Don Pepín García cigar. It’s a noted departure from the design of the current Don Pepín García offerings, which includes the blue-banded Original line, as well as the black-banded Cuban Classic, the white-banded Serie JJ, and the recently updated Don Pepín García Vegas Cubanas line, which wears green bands.

The TAA is a fairly small group of some of the country’s top tobacconists, about 80 retailers, as well as 40 or so manufacturers. The association gathers annually to discuss issues facing the industry and retailers, as well as to have its annual trade show, a unique event that works on a group buying format in order to secure exclusive deals for these generally high-volume merchants.

As part of the TAA’s buying events, a number of manufacturers will create new cigars for the group, or in the case of the Don Pepin – Vintage Edition, the company gave TAA members first crack at the line. Janny García, vice-president of My Father Cigars, told halfwheel that the initial production was completely sold out but that the company has plans to release the line on a more widespread basis in the future.

• Cigar Reviewed: Don Pepin - Vintage Edition Toro
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Nicaragua (Corojo 99)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Length: 6 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 52
• Vitola: Toro
• MSRP: $14 (Box of 10, $140)
• Release Date: May 2023
• Number of Cigars Released: Undisclosed
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

No matter how many times I look at this cigar, my eyes always get drawn to the band first, which I really like for its color combination, simplicity and clean and clear design, not to mention that it has a definite throwback feel to it. As soon as I take the cigar out of the cellophane, I notice that the wrapper has a bit of oiliness to it, not quite glossy or dripping, but there’s an immediate feeling of oiliness as soon as my fingers touch the cigar. The cigar has an interesting density, showing a firm core and spongier outer layers on some of the cigars, though that does vary among the three selected for this review. The foot has a very interesting aroma that gets my mind racing to identify the new aromas, resulting in a list that includes clothes in an old cedar chest, bran muffins, lemon-lime soda, a bit of pepper, and then some freshly made frosting, all with a nose-cooling sensation. The cold draw is smooth, maybe a touch firm, with a creamy flavor that is more simple, subdued and familiar than what the aroma offered.

The Don Pepin — Vintage Edition Toro has a very agreeable start, with toast, light pepper and damp cedar all wrapped in creaminess for the taste buds, while retrohales are both more pepper-forward and more intense in that component than what hits the palate. The wood and pepper combination gets my mind thinking about habano tobacco, but then the combination deviates just enough to make me realize it’s not a habano wrapper but a corojo 99 leaf. After the first clump of ash drops, I find a thick creaminess developing in the profile, first thickening up the body of the smoke and then joining the flavor with a touch of vanilla. While it’s an enjoyable change, It’s a quick one as the pepper comes back quickly, not quite with a vengeance but certainly on a mission. The conclusion of this section comes at about the pace I would expect without much else in the way of change. The blend hits the ground running, finds its step early and doesn’t deviate. Flavor is medium-full, body is medium-plus and strength is mild. Construction is fantastic across the board and across all three cigars.

There’s an interesting shift of the flavor as the Don Pepin – Vintage Edition Toro gets into its second third that I can’t quite identify, other than it reminds me a bit of lemon-lime soda for a few puffs. It’s not consistent in intensity, but it does consistently show up at spots, reminding me of a Sprite that has been left out and warmed up to at least room temperature if not a bit warmer than that. The challenge for that flavor is that it can find itself in a battle with the wood and black pepper, and the more the pepper is challenged for the lead role, the more it turns up the intensity, particularly in retrohales. The smoke also picks up an attribute that makes it sting my eyes on occasion. Yet for all this vibrant, senses-seeking pepper, there’s no nicotine strength. As the second third comes to a close, the flavor dries out a bit more, now feeling like it’s removing moisture from my mouth on the finish of each puff. Construction is generally very good, with a slightly firm draw, even burn line and good smoke production. Flavor is medium-full if not outright full, body is medium-plus and strength is still shy of medium.

The final third starts by seeing the pepper and bright wood flavors largely leave the profile, revealing a creamy undertone that is understandably overshadowed when those bigger flavors are present. It’s a bit of a dangerous flavor sensation because it seems to call for a retrohale, and when I do that, I’m greeted by the pepper and wood that I thought was on a break. While the Don Pepin — Vintage Edition Toro doesn’t make a massive pivot in the final section, a minor one makes the pepper a bit sharper, leading to the sense of palate fatigue as the profile has stayed largely on the same track that it established in those first puffs. Combustion becomes an issue in this section for the first cigar, while the puffs feel just a bit more labored in another and each draw feels like it’s working through a more tightly bunched section of tobacco. That said, the burn line and smoke production remain very good. Flavor finishes medium-full, body is medium-full and strength is just getting into medium territory.

Final Notes:

• My Father Cigars has previously celebrated both the 10th and 15th anniversaries of the Don Pepín García line by way of limited edition releases.
• The 2023 group of TAA Exclusive Series Program includes cigars from Villiger, Kristoff, Plasencia, Tatuaje, Quesada, C.L.E., Miami Cigar & Co., Ferio Tego, Joya de Nicaragua, Espinosa, E.P. Carrillo, La Palina, General Cigar Co., Forged Cigar Co., My Father, J.C. Newman, Rocky Patel and Crowned Heads, as well as a XIKAR cutter from Quality Importers Trading Co.
• As for when the Don Pepin – Vintage Edition will get a wider release, a firm date has not yet been confirmed to me, though I have heard some chatter that it won’t be this year.
• I can’t say that I recall ever seeing these bands on a Don Pepín García release, though if it dates back to the earliest days of the brand, it would mean that they also date back to my earliest cigar smoking days.
• My Father had one of the more impressive showings at the 2023 PCA Convention & Trade Show that I saw; if you missed it, you can see my coverage of their booth here.
• At the 2023 PCA Convention & Trade Show, the company rolled out a new booth as well as some high-end limited editions that further celebrate 20 years of the Don Pepin Garcia line.
• While the Don Pepin – Vintage Edition is definitely full-flavored, I wouldn’t say it was full in strength. The final third has some nicotine to it, and I’m sure if I smoked two of them back-to-back, I would have picked up enough to have me thinking about having some white sugar, but one didn’t hit me that hard.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• Final smoking time was two hours and 45 minutes on average.
• Site sponsor Corona Cigar Co. carries the Don Pepin — Vintage Edition Toro, but is out of stock as of publication time.