Perez-Carrillo La Historia Regalias d’Celia

At the 2015 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show, E.P. Carrillo showed off a variety of new cigars: a new Edición Limitada, a trio of limited editions known as Ernesto’s Humidor No. 1, a new Selección Oscuro line and new sizes for the New Wave Reserva and E.P. Carrillo Cabinet line. There was also a single extension added to the La Historia line.

Known as the Regalias d’Celia, the new vitola is a box-pressed 5 7/8 x 58 belicoso. It’s priced at $9.50 per cigar and becomes the fourth size for the line which was introduced last year. Like the rest of the line, it uses a Mexican San Andrés wrapper, Ecuadorian sumatra binder and Nicaraguan fillers.

It began shipping in August alongside some of the other regular production items that debuted at the July trade show.

• Cigar Reviewed: Perez-Carrillo La Historia Regalias d’Celia
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Tabacalera La Alianza S.A.
• Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés
• Binder: Ecuadorian Sumatra
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Size: 5 7/8 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 58
• Vitola: Gran Belicoso
• MSRP: $9.50 (Boxes of 10, $95)
• Release Date: Aug. 15, 2015
• Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
• Number of Cigars Smoked for Review: 3

It’s a bizarre shape, highlighted by the box-pressed nature. On one hand, I’m glad the 58-ring gauge is tapered, on the other hand, I wonder what was wrong with a more normal approach to the belicoso. Aroma from the wrapper smells a bit like a walk through Home Depot with sawdust and a touch of paint very prominent. The paint smell remains a light presence from the foot, but now it’s joined by some cocoa and hickory with a rather woody profile overall. Unfortunately, I pick up a bit of paint on cold draws of two of the cigars smoked. It’s joined by a roasted nuttiness, caramel hickory and some anise. Despite the paint, it’s actually a very good mixture of flavors.

While the cold draw is a bit open, my largest concern is on whether or not the paint would carry over. The good news is, it doesn’t. Also good is how the Regalias d’Celia starts: roasted cranberries, orange peel sweet cedar, some nuttiness and a bit of pepper. The smoke production is absurd with smoke pouring from the foot of the E.P. Carrillo with almost no restraint. There’s cedar, graham cracker, toastiness and vanilla in the mouth with hickory, spices and to a lesser extent some vegetal flavors in the nose. As great as the smoke production is, one half of the cigar isn’t burning correctly.

The sweeter side of the La Historia sticks around until just around the halfway mark and then things change, a lot. A big earthiness overtakes much of the profile joined by leather, the aforementioned vegetal flavor and some sourness. While there’s a generic sweetness on the tongue, it’s largely overwhelmed by the other flavor. Each cigar I smoke requires a touch-up in the middle portion of the cigar, although the photograph sampled now doubt exhibited the most problematic burn. Smoke production is still very good, picking up once both sides of the cigar are lit. Flavor is full, body is medium-full and strength is medium-full.

I have to make another touch-up on each of the cigars as the final third starts. This all comes despite great smoke production from the Perez-Carrillo and with one sample being dry-boxed. Those touch-ups seem to add more harshness, which is unfortunate. There’s actually enjoyable flavors: floral, some candy sweetness and hickory, but it’s completely overwhelmed by the aforementioned harshness.

Final Notes

• Patrick Lagreid mentioned this in a recent review, but E.P. Carrillo now has 13 regular production lines. That’s a lot, too many for me to keep track of and many of those lines have over a half dozen sizes.
• Despite being nearly six-inches long, there’s not a ton of wrapper present due to the amount of bands. A main band and a foot band or a secondary band is fine, but all three together is a bit much.
• Furthermore, two of the cigars were damaged when the band was taken off.
• The boxes for the La Historia are beautiful, but not the most retail-friendly due to their extremely wide profile.
• Strength was medium-full.
• Cigars for this review were given to halfwheel by E.P Carrillo at the 2015 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show.
• Final smoking time was one hour and 55 minutes on average.
• Site sponsors Atlantic Cigar Co. and JR Cigar.