Espinosa Releasing 601 La Bomba Warhead VIII at PCA 2022

The eighth installment in Espinosa Premium Cigars’ 601 La Bomba Warhead series will make its debut at the 2022 PCA Convention & Trade Show, which happens July 8 – 12 in Las Vegas.

The 601 La Bomba Warhead VIII is a 6 x 60 box pressed gordo that uses a Nicaraguan broadleaf wrapper, along with a Nicaraguan binder and filler. It comes with a price of $11 per cigar, and is offered in 10-count boxes with an MSRP of $110.

“This is the release that I am asked about every year, there are so many customers that can’t wait for its launch so they can add it to their collection,” said Erik Espinosa via a press release. “I am truly amazed at its success year in and year out.”

This year’s release is limited to 2,500 boxes of 10 cigars, making for a total of 25,000 cigars. They are being produced by AJ Fernandez’s San Lotano factory in Ocotal, Nicaragua.

The 601 La Bomba Warhead line debuted in 2013 when it was launched as a stronger version of an already strong line of cigars, the 601 La Bomba. Beyond that, it draws on World War II imagery, most notably with the band being in the shape of a bomb. The band also features art and aircraft graffiti of the era, in particular a shark face that is a reference to the Flying Tigers, the 1st American Volunteer Group, which painted the shark face on their aircraft.

When Espinosa Premium Cigars unveiled the line at the 2013 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show, the company brought in a decommissioned bomb and invited attendees who are active duty military and veterans to sign, with it going on to be displayed at the company’s offices in Hialeah, Fla.

While the company hasn’t released a new installment every year since then, it has done so more times than it has not:

• 601 La Bomba Warhead (6 1/2 x 54) — 2013 — 2,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (20,000 Total Cigars) — $10.50 (Box of 10, $105.00)
• 601 La Bomba Warhead II (5 1/2 x 56) — 2014 — 2,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (20,000 Total Cigars) — $10.95 (Box of 10, $109.50)
• 601 La Bomba Warhead III (7 1/2 x 38) — 2016 — 500 Boxes of 10 Cigars (5,000 Total Cigars) — $10.95 (Box of 10, $109.50)
• 601 La Bomba Warhead IV (6 x 48) — 2018 — 1,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (10,000 Total Cigars) —  $10.99 (Box of 10, $109.90)
• 601 La Bomba Warhead V (6 x 52) — 2019— 1,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (10,000 Total Cigars) — $10 (Box of 10, $100)
• 601 La Bomba Warhead VI (5 x 58) — 2020 — 1,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (10,000 Total Cigars) — $10 (Box of 10, $100)
• 601 La Bomba Warhead VII (7 x 50) — 2021 — 2,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (20,000 Total Cigars) — $10 (Box of 10, $100)
• 601 La Bomba Warhead VIII (6 x 60) — 2022 — 2,500 Boxes of 10 Cigars (25,000 Total Cigars) — $11 (Box of 10, $110)

The most recent release, the 601 La Bomba Warhead VII, was also a Nicaraguan puro that used a broadleaf wrapper. It placed #16 on halfwheel’s Top 25 Cigars of 2021.

The 601 La Bomba Warhead VIII is scheduled to begin shipping in August.