PCA 2023: La Palina

While it’s interesting and even fun to see new booths at the PCA Convention & Trade Show, there is something about walking into a familiar booth that makes my day easier. It’s even better when the booth itself looks good and is functional, which is why I’ve really come to like the La Palina booth. From what I can tell, the basic design has been the same since 2016, and not only do I dig the design, I know where to find the new products and it’s generally quite easy to get the photos and info I need.

As for the booth, it is largely the same as in recent years in terms of a wood-themed look with a coffee (and other beverages) bar in the middle of the space, with seating areas on both sides while the new products are displayed in windows that face both the interior of the booth as well as the aisles outside the booth. But what keeps catching me off-guard is how big it is, as this year’s measured 50′ x 20′, giving it an impressive spaciousness. Looking back at some previous years, it does look bigger, and the fact that it wasn’t up against a wall seems to have added to it feeling bigger.

As for what was in those windows, a new line debuts, an existing line gets a new packaging format and some branded lighters, some favorites from another line returns, and one of the company’s core lines gets a new size. And yes, that is a pile of shoes, more on those in a moment.

La Palina 1948

La Palina enlisted Oliva Cigar Co. for the production of this new line, with the binder and filler coming from Oliva’s farms as well. The line celebrates the 75th birthday of Bill Paley, La Palina’s chairman, which occurred in March.

All four of the sizes are box-pressed, and the Diadema vitola is limited to retailers who attend the 2023 PCA Convention & Trade Show. It’s also the most limited of the bunch, with just 500 boxes produced, while the other sizes are limited productions that will get annual releases. All of them sport imagery of Estelí, Nicaragua and Manhattan, New York in 1948, as well as image of Paley when he was in the military serving in Vietnam. The cigars are rolled, with shipping expected to begin in September.

• Wrapper: Ecuador (Sumatra)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua

• La Palina 1948 Churchill (7 x 52) — $25 (Box of 10, $250) — Regular Production
• La Palina 1948 Toro (6 x 52) — $24 (Box of 10, $240) — Regular Production
• La Palina 1948 Robusto (5 x 52) — $22 (Box of 10, $220) — Regular Production
• La Palina 1948 Diadema (6 x 46) — $23 (Box of 10, $230) — 500 Boxes of 10 Cigars (5,000 Total Cigars)

Production: See above

Release Date: September 2023

La Palina Goldie Prominente Series 3 and Laguito No. 5 Series 2

These two sizes return for another release, and as indicated by their names, it is the second time for the Laguito No. 5 and the third time for the Prominente. The Laguito No. 5 is a 5 5/8 x 54 robusto extra that debuted in May 2013 as the second vitola in the Goldie line, while the La Goldie Prominente measures 6 1/2 x 48 and debuted in 2021 as an exclusive for retailers attending the trade show, which is has remained in the years since. The line is still produced at El Titan de Bronze in Miami.

• Wrapper: Ecuador (Habano)
• Binder: Ecuador
• Filler: Dominican Republic and Nicaragua

• La Palina Goldie Laguito No. 5 Series 2 (5 5/8 x 54) — $24 (Box of 10, $240) — 1,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars
• La Palina Goldie Prominente Series 3 (6 1/2 x 48) — $25 (Box of 10, $250) — 500 Boxes of 10 Cigars

Production: See Above

Release Date: Late Summer 2023

La Palina KB Series – New Packaging

La Palina is moving the cigars in its KB Series—also known as Kill Bill—from 30-count boxes to 20-count boxes to support brick-and-mortar retailers by making the cost of buying a box more palatable for consumers. Nothing about the blend or single-cigar pricing changes.

• Wrapper: Honduras (Corojo)
• Binder: Honduras (Double Criollo)
• Filler: Nicaragua (Corojo & Criollo)

• La Palina KB Series Part One (4 1/4 x 40) — $8 (Box of 20, $160)
• La Palina KB Series Part Two (6 x 40) — $9 (Box of 20, $180)
• La Palina KB Series Part Three (5 x 52) — $10.25 (Box of 20, $205)
• La Palina KB Series Part Four (6 x 54) — $11.50 (Box of 20, $230)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: July 2023

See the photo above.

La Palina KB Series Accessories

The company is also adding some new KB Series lighters and cutters; the first three designs of lighters were on display, while two more limited edition versions are in the works but aren’t due out until October. They are triple-flame torches that took nine coats of lacquer to achieve the final design.

• La Palina KB Series Lighters — $150

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: July 2023

La Palina KB Series Sneakers

While not for sale, La Palina had a limited run of customized Nike Air Force Ones that feature the Kill Bill design motif available as an incentive to retailers for purchasing the KB Series. The shoes were being designed and painted in the La Palina booth during the show by a pair of shoe artists, with less than 100 pairs available during the show and with five designs available.

La Palina Mr. Sam Double Corona

The Mr. Sam line gains a new Double Corona vitola, the fifth size in the line along with a corona, lancero, robusto and toro. A medium to full-bodied profile, the cigar is named for the original founder of La Palina, Sam Paley, and produced by El Titan de Bronze in Miami.

• Wrapper: Ecuador (Habano)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua

• La Palina Mr. Sam Double Corona (7 5/8 x 49) — $17 (Box of 20, $340)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: July 2023

Update (Nov. 1, 2023) — The La Palina Goldie Prominente Series 3’s MSRP was increased to $25 per cigar. It was originally announced as $24 per cigar.