Don Pepin Garcia Serie JJ Staff Review
Premium cigarmakers blend cigars with dozens of different wrapper leaves, and Rosado, which means “rose-colored,” is the wrapper leaf you’ll find on Don Pepin Garcia Serie JJ cigars. I’m smoking a 5.75-by-52 Belicoso for today’s review. Don Pepin Garcia cigars are named for José ‘Pepin’ Garcia, the master cigarmaker behind the My Father portfolio and other prominent Nicaraguan brands, including La Aroma de Cuba, San Cristobal, and Tatuaje.
Before there were My Father cigars, Pepin Garcia and his son, Jaime, were making the Don Pepin Garcia (DPG) brand in a small factory in Miami in the early 2000s, having recently immigrated from Cuba, where Pepin was raised around tobacco and had become a master of his trade. “JJ” in DPG Serie JJ stands for “José” and “Jaime.” Don Pepin Garcia Original is the most popular blend in the series, but the line consists of the DPG Cuban Classic, the DPG Serie JJ I’m smoking today, and the recently reblended DPG Vegas Cubanas.
DPG Serie JJ is drawn from a rich blend of Nicaraguan Corojo and Criollo long-filler tobaccos, grown on Garcia family farms, tucked under an oily, reddish-brown Corojo Rosado wrapper leaf, also harvested in Nicaragua by the Garcias. Most DPG cigars, including Serie JJ, are handcrafted at the My Father factory in Estelí, Nicaragua, although the DPG Original Blue Label blend is still made in Miami.
When I open a new box, the cigars on the top row look immaculate with a pair of white-and-red cigar bands at the top and a white ribbon at the foot. The Belicoso I’ve chosen glistens with an attractive cinnamon complexion. After clipping the cap with my V-cutter, the airflow is concentrated but unrestricted when I take a few cold draws. Chewy notes of leather and spice layer the palate before the cigar is lit. How you cut a cigar makes a difference, and a deep V-cut preserves the structural integrity of the tip of a Belicoso while creating more surface area in the draw.
Once I’ve toasted the foot for a few minutes, a strong current of pepper and cedar unfolds as the wrapper, binder, and filler begin to burn in unison. Pepin and Jaime Garcia specialize in making fuller-bodied cigars, and DPG Serie JJ offers formidable flavor with a supporting bouquet in the first ten minutes. Intense notes of wood, nutmeg, and black pepper settle alongside hints of cocoa and dried fruit.
A steady, white ash forms at the foot of the cigar, and I’ve only tapped it off a couple of times throughout the first half of the smoke. You can tell an experienced roller crafted this cigar. There are no soft spots, and it has burned as sharp as a tack since the first puff. It’s a level of quality you can expect from a renowned factory that produces previous ‘#1 Cigar of the Year’ titleholders like the 97-rated My Father Le Bijou 1922 and 96-rated Flor de las Antillas.
Succulent notes of smoked caramel and coffee bean enter the fray after I’ve removed the cigar band. Only the best cigarmakers are capable of creating the right sequence of tasting notes throughout a single cigar, and the DPG Serie JJ Belicoso proves the Garcia family possesses the talent. After fifty minutes, the profile is smoky and peppery, delivering a surprising tanginess at the end.
If you’re a fan of other cigars blended by Pepin Garcia, order DPG Serie JJ and explore a complex, small-batch smoke that predates the history of the My Father brand. This intricate Belicoso imparts unique nuances courtesy of its Cuban-seed Rosado wrapper and the well-aged Nicaraguan long-fillers underneath. Savor another impressive, Cubanesque cigar from the Garcias today.
