Vegas Cubanas by My Father Invictos Cigar Review

One of my favorite stories to tell took place between 2003-2005, when a sales representative visited the cigar shop I, Barry was partners in. Glen Gutin came in pitching cigars, by Don Pepin Garcia, who he said was the next big thing and will be one of the hottest cigar manufactures in the industry. We smoked the cigars, and ordered them on the spot. 30 boxes of a couple of different lines. A big order for the 450 square foot shop, and it sold out in a couple of days. We quickly placed a re-order as the cigars were fire.

The reorder came in and we placed the cigars on the shelves, one of which was Vegas Cubanas. We were selling them like crazy, and we closed up shop around midnight. The next morning we opened up the shop and every single cigar from Don Pepin Garcia had unravelled on the shelf in our humidor. We called Glen Gutin up and told him to take the cigars back, that Don Pepin Garcia would never amount to anything. Boy, were we ever wrong.

Now a days I work for The Cigar Authority and spend my weekdays answering phones for 2GuysCigars.com. 14 years later and Don Pepin Garcia is without a doubt one of the biggest names in the cigar industry and his company My Father Cigars has brought back Vegas Cubanas nationally. Originally made at El Rey de los Habanos in Little Havana, Miami; today the cigar hails from his factory in Esteli, Nicaragua and My Father is referenced on the band where the original did not as the company was not yet in existence.

Cigar: Vegas Cubanas
Wrapper: Corojo
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: : Nicaragua (Esteli & Jalapa)
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 50
Size: Invictos (Robusto)

The Look: Packaged in 25 count Cuban style cigar boxes, the band features the colors of green, red, and gold with a white background. The image on the band shows a lone person in the cigar fields. Circular around the picture is the brand name Vegas Cubanas and the name Don Pepin Garcia. Underneath in a small font is My Father Cigars. The wrapper on this robusto won’t win any awards, as it is rustic looking with the vein structure visible in a non flattering way. But as we know from past experience you can’t judge a book by its cover.

The Notes: The cold draw has a subtle milk chocolate with a hint of wasabi encrusted peanturs. . The foot of the cigar is considerably sweeter with a rich cocoa aroma. After we toast the cigar and light it, the first note off the cigar is a sweet caramel component.

Moving into the first third the caramel note remains for about a half-inch until it slowly pulls back revealing a myriad of notes such as cocoa, red pepper, and a hint of freshly roasted peanuts. If you are looking for that classic Pepin spice that has been a signature of Don Pepin Garcia, it isn’t here,  although though that is not to say the cigar isn’t peppery.

As we smoke the second third the ash is still holding strong as the red pepper notes see the volume turned up. There is an underlying mocha sweetness that lingers in the background before becoming the primary note at the half way point. The retrohale of the cigar has an abundance of cedar and ads a buttery richness to the moderate finish.

The last third remains creamy with touches of mocha. There is also some subtle nuts, earth and cedar that almost get lost in the pepper notes that grow in intensity as the cigar comes to a close. The pepper notes are enhanced on the retrohale though the cigar continues to have a nice mocha/floral aroma. The lengthy finish is a touch leathery which provides a nice contrast to the sweetness of the Corojo wrapper.

The Finish: When Vegas Cubanas returned for the masses I was a very happy camper and I quickly fell in love with the Corona Gorda. I’ve slowly progressed away from that size to he Robusto which sees some added strength to the cigar without sacrificing flavor. For those of you who remember the brand this is definitely worth the trip down memory lane. If you haven’t smoked one, you must try this.

Score: 95
Price: $7.49 / $164.99