Don Pepin JJ Series (White Label) Lancero
Apr 26, 2009 Cigar
Don (Jose) Pepin Garcia is arguably making the best cigars on the market. His secret family recipe for blending and fermentation has been handed down generation to generation since his family’s beginnings in old Cuba. Today Pepin is using this time honored process to make cigars which many aficionados consider to very reminiscent of the best Cuban cigars available today.
The Don Pepin Series JJ is the top shelf blend made at Pepin’s El Rey de Los Habanos factory in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami. Each Series JJ is rolled using only the top tobacco available at the factory. The blend is very full bodied and full flavored with a spicy aroma that is well balanced with notes of leather on the palate and a long finish. The Series JJ, also known as the White Label, is a blend of talent and tobacco. Don Pepin and his son, Jaime, created this full-bodied Nicaraguan puro featuring a Corojo wrapper, a Criollo binder and a mixture of Corojo and Criollo filler tobaccos. Deep and rich with a spicy aroma and notes of leather on the palate, these cigars are manufactured in limited quantities. This lancero was part of a Don Pepin Lancero Sampler box that was made available about a year ago. It is still available in limited quantities.
And now, on to the review.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 7.5 x 40 (Lancero)
Origin: Miami
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION -
The Series JJ Lancero had about a year of age on it before I lit it up this week. The wrapper is a chocolate brown with a rough bumpy appearance. There is a toothy feel to it and you can actually see some small dimples throughout the wrapper. The lancero is finished with a nice triple cap and pigtail. All in all a nice looking cigar.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS -
I used my punch cut on this and immediately discovered it had a tight draw. While not uncommon for some lanceros, still disappointing. I went to my Xikar to take a little more off the head. It helped the draw slightly, but it was still to firm for my liking. the cold draw had a spice to it and a faint flavor of charred wood. It lit evenly and burned very nicely throughout. No touch ups required. The ash was very white and remained firm. A very nice burn despite the draw problems. Because of the firm draw, the volume of smoke was not what it should have been. I had to pull hard to get a decent amount of smoke and that definitely detracted from the overall enjoyment. Smoke was white/gray and was fairly dense.
FLAVOR -
The flavors coming off the Don Pepin JJ Series Lancero were typical Pepin profile. It started with a sweet spice. The spice was just enough to leave a tingle in the back of the throat. I also picked up a green herb flavor on the first third. Around the midway point the spice gave way to some cream coffee flavors. While the smoke was a solid medium to full body, the body definitely started out strong and diminished as I went on. I also picked up a little red pepper on the finish.
OVERALL IMPRESSION -
Overall this was a good smoke. Having smoked many of Don Pepin’s projects, I wasn’t overwhelmed with the JJ lancero. Considering how difficult it is to find, I doubt I would seek it out again. Again, a good smoke, but considering the man making it, he’s got a lot better out there to choose from.
TOTAL SCORE – 84
