The Ultimate Guide to E.P. Carrillo Cigars

Most people get one great chapter in the cigar business if they’re lucky. Ernesto Perez-Carrillo has had two. He built one of the defining brands of the 1990s cigar boom, sold it at the height of its success, spent a decade working inside a major corporation, and then, at an age when plenty of people are thinking about retirement, walked away to start completely over on his own terms. The result, E.P. Carrillo has become one of the most consistently respected boutique brands in the industry, proof that sometimes the second act is ever better than the first. 

This guide covers Ernesto’s remarkable journey from Cuba to the top of the cigar world and back to independence, what makes E.P. Carrillo’s cigars so distinct, and which lines deserve a spot in your humidor. 

Ernesto Perez-Carrillo Jr. was born in Cuba 1952 and left the island with his family at just seven years old, part of the wave of Cuban families who relocated to the United States following Fidel Castro’s rise to power. The family settled in Miami and continued doing what they knew best: making cigars. Ernesto was raised inside El Crédito, the family’s Miami cigar operation, learning blending and tobacco selection directly from his father and absorbing the fundamentals of the craft from an early age, even as his early passion leaned more toward jazz than tobacco. 

Eventually, Ernesto took the reins and grew the business around a brand called La Gloria Cubana, modeling his approach in part on the profile of a Cuban Davidoff. When Cigar Aficionado rated La Gloria Cubana in 1992, the brand exploded in popularity practically overnight, riding the wave of the booming 1990s cigar craze and becoming one of the hottest names in the industry. Demand grew so quickly that Perez-Carrillo had to open a second factory in the Dominican Republic just to keep up.

In 2001, Perez-Carrillo helped redefine what a premium cigar could even look like, releasing the La Gloria Cubana Serie R No. 6 at a then, unheard of, 60 ring gauge, helping push the entire industry toward the larger, bolder ring gauges that are common today. By 1999, La Gloria Cubana’s success had attracted serious attention, and Swedish Match, through its General Cigar division, made Perez-Carrillo an offer for the brand, the Miami factory, the Dominican factory, and Ernesto himself as an employee.  He accepted, and spent the following decade working inside General Cigar, where the resources of a larger company fueled even more experimentation, even as the brand he’d built was no longer fully his own.  

By 2009, Perez-Carrillo was ready for something different. It was his own children, Lissette and Ernesto III, who encouraged him to step away from the corporate world and return to making cigars on his own terms. He left General Cigar and, together with his son and daughter, founded EPC Cigar Co., building their own factory, Tabaclera La Alianza, in the Dominican Republic. The company’s core brand, E.P. Carrillo debuted in 2010.

It was a full-circle moment. After building La Gloria Cubana into a household name, selling it, and spending a decade helping run it for someone else, Perez-Carrillo was starting fresh again, this time his own children directly involved in the business, echoing the same family structure he’d grown up in at El Crédito decades earlier. The new venture found its footing quickly, with early releases like the Elencos picking up serious acclaim and helping establish E.P. Carrillo as a brand to watch. 

In the years since, Perez-Carrillo has earned a reputation as something like the godfather of the modern boutique cigar movement, and the accolades have kept coming. His La Historia EIII was recognized among the top cigars of 2014, and his Encore Majestic received similar recognition in 2018. In 2020, Perez-Carrillo earned the No.1 Cigar of the Year honor from Cigar Aficionado, a career-defining achievement that cemented E.P. Carrillo’s place among the very best brands the modern cigar industry has to offer. 

Decades of hard-earned expertise. Few active blenders can claim a resume stretching back to the early 1990s cigar boom, and that depth of experience shows up in the consistency and polish of every E.P. Carrillo release.

A family operation. Ernesto’s children, Lissette and Ernesto III, remain directly involved in the business, continuing a family tradition of cigar-making that stretches back to El Crédito in Cuba and Miami.

A track record of industry firsts. From helping popularize larger ring gauges with the La Gloria Cubana Serie R to building one of the most acclaimed boutique operations of the last fifteen years, Perez-Carrillo has repeatedly shaped where the cigar industry was headed next.

One of the brand’s most celebrated and award-winning releases, Pledge offers a rich, medium-to-full bodied smoking experience with notable complexity and balance, reflecting decades of Perez-Carrillo’s blending expertise distilled into a single standout line. 

Known for its refined construction and rich flavor profile, Encore has earned some of the brand’s highest critical praise, including the acclaimed Encore Majestic vitola, which was recognized as one of the top cigars of 2018.

Named to reflect Perez-Carrillo’s own storied career, La Historia is widely regarded as as one of the brand’s flagship, prestige-level releases. The La Historia EIII in particular, named for Ernesto’s son, earned major industry recognition and remains one of the most sought-after cigars in the entire portfolio.

Released as a limited, small-batch line, Short Run has become a recurring favorite among E.P. Carrillo fans, with each year’s release offering its own distinct blend and format while maintaining the brand’s signature attention to construction and balance. 

A darker, richer expression within the portfolio, Selección Oscuro uses a deeply fermented wrapper for a fuller-bodied, more intense smoking experience, appealing to smokers who want serious depth alongside E.P. Carrillo’s signature polish.

A newer edition to the lineup, the Allegiance series, including vitolas like Chaperone and Confidant, pairs aged Nicaraguan tobaccos with a rich Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper for a smooth, medium-to-full bodied smoking experience with real nuance and complexity.

True to Perez-Carrillo’s history as a pioneer of larger ring gauges, the Inch series is built around notably thick, substantial vitolas, continuing a tradition that traces directly back to his groundbreaking work on the La Gloria Cubana Serie R.

Start with Encore or Pledge if you want to experience the brand’s most acclaimed work. Both are frequently cited as standout releases within the portfolio.

Try La Historia for a cigar with a real prestige behind it. It reflects the full arc of Perez-Carrillo’s career and remains one of his most respected lines. 

Go with Selección Oscuro if you want something bolder and darker. It’s a great option for smokers who already enjoy full-bodied, deeply fermented wrappers. 

Look for Short Run if you enjoy limited, small-batch releases. Each year’s edition offers something a little different while staying true to the brand’s quality standards.

No, though they share the same creator. Ernesto Perez-Carrillo built and later sold La Gloria Cubana to General Cigar in 1999. E.P. Carrillo is an entirely separate company brand that he founded in 2009 with his children after leaving General Cigar.

E.P. Carrillo cigars are produced at Casa Carrillo (formerly known as Tabaclera La Alianza), the company’s own factory in the Dominican Republic, which Ernesto Perez-Carrillo built with his children after founding EPC Cigar Co. in 2009. 

Several releases have earned major industry honors over the years, including La Historia EIII in 2014 and Encore Majestic in 2018, with Perez-Carrillo earning the No.1 Cigar of the Year distinction from Cigar Aficionado in 2020.

Ernest Perez-Carrillo’s career is a rarity in the cigar world: a blender who built one legendary brand, walked away from it, and then built an entirely new one that’s arguably earned even more critical acclaim. E.P. Carrillo reflects everything he learned across more than three decades in the business, now made on his own terms, with his own children by his side.

If you’re new to the brand, start with Encore or Pledge to understand why Perez-Carrillo remains one of the most respected names in the industry, then work your way toward the more prestigious La Historia and the bolder Selección Oscuro as your palate develops. For a blender with this much history behind him, every release carries a level of craftsmanship that’s hard to find anywhere else. 

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