Some cigar brands are so well established they're sometimes taken for granted or just plain overlooked. One example is La Gloria Cubana. Created by Ernesto Perez Carrillo, this well-known brand made its mark during the cigar boom of the 1990's and still does quite well as a high-grade, medium to full-bodied premium brand. But the cigars that really stand out among the "aficionati" are Senor Carrillo's bold-tasting La Gloria Cubana Serie R cigars, and his limited edition Reserva Figurado selection which debuted in late 2004.

In the following interview, Michael P. Giannini, Director of Marketing for El Credito - the factory which La Gloria Cubana cigars are produced - talked to me about the most recent additions to the Serie R and Reserva Figurado series that were presented at the 2005 RTDA in New Orleans.

Famous Smoke Shop: Michael, what has Ernresto cooked up for 2006?

Michael Giannini: A first since 2001 when Ernesto released the Serie R No.7, is the new Serie R 6-pack. It's a 5½" x 56 cigar, and the concept here is that you have portable Serie R's. It comes in a little humidor-style box presentation of six cigars. Or, there is a display version that comes in six 6-packs for a total of 36 cigars. The alternate use of these boxes, which Ernesto is pushing as a marketing concept, is that you can use the box as a CD case [which Mr. Giannini said kiddingly].

FSS: Actually, it looks just about the right size.

MG: Yes, it is. And if you look at the back there's a little push area where you can actually push the pack out. It's kind of a cool thing.

Then there's the Serie R Limitada for 2005. It's a 7¾" x 62 ring Figurado. It comes in a custom, limited edition humidor made by Cristom Imports [one of the leading makers of fine Italian handcrafted humidors], and has a diamond glass top with our logo. The front panel, which also has a diamond pattern with Ernesto's name on it, opens up. Inside are drawers that hold 30 cigars, which is different then what we've done every other year because the past editions have only come with 20 cigars. The humidors are limited to 700 in Natural and 700 in Maduro. That's a total of 21,000 cigars in each of the wrappers. And this cigar is already sold out [to the retailers], so the size has been retired. You'll never see this cigar again.

FSS: Let's get to my personal favorites of all the La Gloria cigars, the Reserva Figurado.

MG: As you know the La Gloria Reserva Figurado cigars got great ratings last year. What Ernesto has done this year is released two new sizes. These two sizes are also the only sizes in the line that are also available in a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper. The first is the "Felicias," which is a 4 7/8" x 49 Small Perfecto.

FSS: Reminds me of the Fuente Hemingway Short Story. How did he come up with the name Felicias?

MG: It's named for Ernesto's mom. Here, as with all his cigars, he's paying tribute to his father, but his mom is the one who really helped get his father started with the [El Credito] factory in 1968. She was a seamstress and loaned him a little money, so Ernesto really wanted to do that. Then there's the "Regalias Perfectos." I'm not even sure how to describe it. It's kind of like a Belicoso/Figurado/Torpedo sort of shape.

FSS: I notice it doesn't have your traditional Torpedo-shaped tip.

MG: Exactly. It's more like a pointed Belicoso shape.

FSS: Why does Ernesto produce so many large ring cigars?

MG: That's one of the things he's really known for. It's a matter of personal preference. That's what he likes. And it's funny because when he introduced the Serie R in 1999, everybody else was making smaller ring gauges, and Ernesto went the complete opposite. This year, like our Serie R No.6, I'm seeing a lot of people making 60-ring gauges, and Ernesto made those four to five years ago.

FSS: He seems to have a pattern of being ahead of the trend.

MG: Yes, he's always been ahead of his time, which is wonderful. Of course, these sizes will also be made in limited edition.

FSS: What goes into these cigars that have to be made in such limited quantities?

MG: What Ernesto does is, he takes all the components of the cigar; filler, binder, and wrapper, and ages them all in cedar-designed bins that he's perfected. Usually the components are aged separately, but in this case they are all aged together, which is a really interesting concept. He does that for three months. After that he has two Grade-7 rollers [top of the rolling chain] that he hand picks, and then ages the cigars in their boxes for another three months. So, it's a whole six month process, which is why they're so limited in production.

FSS: Is there anything else Ernesto has improved upon for this year?

MG: Actually, yes. My favorite brand, the El Rico Habano. It's probably the fullest bodied cigar Ernesto makes. What we've done this year is kept the blend intact, but take a look at the band. Ernesto found this beautiful band in his father's house. He was going through some of his dad's stuff and found this band which appeared on his father's first nationally-branded cigars that were made when he started the factory in 1968. So to pay tribute to that, Ernesto put the band on the cigars, but it didn't really reflect the box, which is very pristine. So we used a lacquered box and put Ernesto's name on it as well, and we're really happy with it.

(Editor's Note: La Gloria Reserva Figurado cigars at Famous Smoke Shop are currently unavailable in boxes. However, keep your eyes and ears open. You may find them available again sooner than later. So keep trying, and check for 5-packs too.)