PCA 2023: Rebellion Cigars

Husband and wife Shaun and Mandi Wilkinson were tired of their corporate gigs and decided to take a passion for cigars and turn it into a business. Unfortunately for them, that decision was made leading into the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused a slight hiccup in their launch plans. Instead of debuting in the U.S. market as planned, they initially launched Rebellion Cigars in the U.K. in October 2020.

Once restrictions were eased and they could proceed as intended, they started selling their cigars Stateside in February of 2023 and set PCA 2023 in their sights. First-time exhibitors don’t always get the best booth location, but the Wilkinsons lucked out that even though they were in the back, they were right next to the food court. This meant plenty of foot traffic in their general direction.

The other thing they had going for them was some bright pink branding and shirts, which was exactly what they were going for. Shaun noted that the decision to brand everything pink was two-fold. First, pink is his favorite color, but second — and perhaps more important — that pink theme “stands out among a sea of brown and black.” The booth itself wasn’t overly elaborate, but plenty of branding, a large display of their full range of cigars, and the aforementioned pink helped create what all first-time exhibitors should set out to accomplish: Get noticed and showcase your cigars.

Rebellion Country Range 5 O’Clock Somewhere

The decision was made to split the company’s lines into two themes, with the Country Range having blends named after Mandi’s favorite country songs. While the regular production lines were released in February of this year, the gordo sizes are debuting at PCA.

• Wrapper: Undisclosed (Habano)
• Binder: Undisclosed (Connecticut)
• Filler: Honduras & Nicaragua

• 5 O’Clock Somewhere Gordo — $12.80 (Bundle of 20, $256)
• 5 O’Clock Somewhere Robusto — $10 (Bundle of 20, $200)
• 5 O’Clock Somewhere Toro — $11 (Bundle of 20, $220)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: February 2023

Rebellion Country Range Ring of Fire

Of note, when the company launched, all the cigars came in boxes, but after seeing their boxes discarded in piles at stores, the decision was made to save the money required to produce boxes, bundle the cigars, and shift over to display boxes for retail locations.

• Wrapper: Undisclosed (Maduro)
• Binder: Undisclosed (Connecticut)
• Filler: Honduras & Nicaragua

• Ring of Fire Gordo — $12.80 (Bundle of 20, $256)
• Ring of Fire Robusto — $10 (Bundle of 20, $200)
• Ring of Fire Toro — $11 (Bundle of 20, $220)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: February 2023

(Not Pictured)

Rebellion Country Range Redneck Woman

• Wrapper: Undisclosed (Connecticut)
• Binder: Undisclosed (Habano)
• Filler: Nicaragua

• Redneck Woman Gordo — $12.80 (Bundle of 20, $256)
• Redneck Woman Robusto — $10 (Bundle of 20, $200)
• Redneck Woman Toro — $11 (Bundle of 20, $220)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: February 2023

(Not Pictured)

Rebellion Rockstar Range Ace of Spades

The other theme is the Rockstar Range, which features blend names inspired by Shaun’s favorite rock songs.

• Wrapper: Undisclosed (Maduro)
• Binder: Indonesia
• Filler: Nicaragua

• Ace of Spades Gordo — $12.80 (Bundle of 20, $256)
• Ace of Spades Robusto — $10 (Bundle of 20, $200)
• Ace of Spades Toro — $11 (Bundle of 20, $220)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: February 2023

Rebellion Rockstar Range Paradise City

• Wrapper: Undisclosed (Connecticut)
• Binder: Indonesia
• Filler: Nicaragua

• Paradise City Gordo — $12.80 (Bundle of 20, $256)
• Paradise City Robusto — $10 (Bundle of 20, $200)
• Paradise City Toro — $11 (Bundle of 20, $220)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: February 2023

 

Rebellion Rockstar Range You Shook Me All Night Long

• Wrapper: Undisclosed (Habano)
• Binder: Indonesia
• Filler: Nicaragua

• You Shook Me All Night Long Gordo — $12.80 (Bundle of 20, $256)
• You Shook Me All Night Long Robusto — $10 (Bundle of 20, $200)
• You Shook Me All Night Long Toro — $11 (Bundle of 20, $220)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: February 2023

(Not Pictured)

Sweet Child O Mine Limited Edition

The Sweet Child O Mine is the first limited edition release on the list. It was first released in just the Robusto size, but it is noted the Gordo and Toro will be “coming soon” with no specific ship date.

• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Dominican Republic (Piloto Cubano)
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Olor)

• Sweet Child O Mine Limited Edition Gordo — $14.80 (Bundle of 20, $296)
• Sweet Child O Mine Limited Edition Robusto — $11.50 (Bundle of 20, $230)
• Sweet Child O Mine Limited Edition Toro — $12.50 (Bundle of 20, $250)

Production: Not Disclosed

Release Date: February 2023*

*Ship date for Robusto only

(Not Pictured)

Voodoo Child Limited Edition

Voodoo Child is the other limited edition; however, this LE currently only has a Robusto size, with no other sizes announced for release yet. Having said that, since every blend features a Gordo, Robusto and Toro, I wouldn’t be surprised to see those coming down the line at some point.

• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Dominican Republic (Negrito)
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Criollo 98)

• Voodoo Child Limited Edition Robusto — $11 (Bundle of 20, $220)

Production: Not Disclosed

Release Date: February 2023