E.P. Carrillo Cigar Guide

Some cigar brands are built on legacy, experience, and a lifetime spent around tobacco. This E.P. Carrillo cigar brand highlight is for smokers who want to understand the story behind the name, not just the ratings or the awards, but how this cigar brand became one of the most respected names in the modern cigar industry.

E.P. Carrillo cigars, often simply referred to as EP Carrillo within the cigar community, are rooted in Cuban heritage, refined during the Miami cigar boom, and now handcrafted at Tabacalera La Alianza in the Dominican Republic. From the Pledge Prequel to Encore Majestic to La Historia, the Carrillo brand has earned its reputation through consistency, craftsmanship, and blends that actually deliver when you light them up.

Whether you’ve seen the Cigar Aficionado headlines or heard seasoned smokers talk about Pledge or Encore, this guide walks through the history, flavor identity, and modern portfolio that define E.P. Carrillo.

E.P. Carrillo Quick Facts

• Founded: 2009
• Founder: Ernesto Perez-Carrillo
• Factory: Tabacalera La Alianza (Dominican Republic)
• Notable Awards: 2020 & 2018 Cigar of the Year (Cigar Aficionado)
• Known For: Pledge Prequel, Encore Majestic, La Historia

The Story Behind Ernesto Perez-Carrillo

The story of E.P. Carrillo begins long before the first EPC cigar was rolled. Ernesto Perez-Carrillo was born in Pinar del Río, Cuba, in 1951, into a family already deeply connected to tobacco. His father, Ernesto Perez-Carrillo Sr., owned a cigar factory and was firmly rooted in traditional Cuban cigar making. When the Cuban Revolution forced the Perez-Carrillo family to flee in 1959, they eventually resettled in Miami and rebuilt their cigar business from the ground up.

In Miami, the family operated under the name El Credito. For a period, Ernesto Perez-Carrillo Jr. stepped away from cigars and pursued music as a jazz drummer, but after his father’s passing in 1980, he returned to the cigar factory and took over the business. That decision would quietly influence the cigar industry in ways few could have predicted at the time.

Under his leadership, El Credito refined its blending and construction, eventually producing La Gloria Cubana, a cigar brand that surged during the 1990s cigar boom thanks to its bold flavor and larger ring gauges. In 1999, Perez Carrillo sold La Gloria Cubana to General Cigar Company, remaining involved for several years as a master blender. But the desire to build something under his own name never left.

In 2009, with support from his children, including Ernesto Perez-Carrillo III and Lissette Perez-Carrillo, he launched E.P. Carrillo Cigars. This time, the brand carried his name and represented decades of experience in blending premium cigars.

In recent years, the brand has transitioned toward the Casa Carrillo name, reflecting the family-driven identity behind the company. However, many core lines are still widely recognized under the E.P. Carrillo branding.

From El Credito to Casa Carrillo

Today, E.P. Carrillo cigars are handcrafted at Tabacalera La Alianza in the Dominican Republic. This is a family-operated cigar factory where blending decisions, tobacco selection, and production standards are controlled in-house rather than outsourced.

Casa Carrillo works with premium tobaccos from Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Ecuador, and Cameroon. Depending on the blend, you’ll see Nicaraguan binder, Ecuadorian Connecticut, Mexican San Andrés, Cameroon wrapper, or Habano wrappers used strategically to shape each flavor profile. That control over the process allows the Carrillo brand to maintain consistent quality while still exploring different expressions within the portfolio.

The result is a Dominican cigar company owned and operated by the Perez-Carrillo family that blends tradition with modern quality.

Cigar of the Year Wins & Cigar Aficionado Recognition

Few modern brands have stacked up the kind of résumé E.P. Carrillo has, and it’s not a “one lucky release” situation. Cigar Aficionado has consistently put E.P. Carrillo cigars near the top of the premium cigar conversation.

The big headline is the E.P. Carrillo Pledge Prequel, which earned a 98 rating and took Cigar Aficionado’s #1 Cigar of the Year in 2020. Two years earlier, the Encore Majestic landed Cigar of the Year in 2018 with a 96 rating, proving the brand wasn’t just catching lightning once.

And the “supporting cast” is strong too: La Historia earned #2 Cigar of the Year in 2014 with a 95 rating, and Selección Oscuro hit #4 in 2016 with a 94 rating.

For cigar enthusiasts, these awards weren’t random. They were the scoreboard catching up to what a lot of people were already saying: when E.P. Carrillo is on your radar, it’s usually for a reason.

E.P. Carrillo’s Influence on the Modern Cigar Industry

Ernesto Perez Carrillo’s influence on the modern cigar industry extends beyond awards. As a master cigar maker, Perez Carrillo worked through multiple eras of the cigar business, from Cuban tradition to Miami boutique growth to Dominican production scale.

His early work with La Gloria Cubana helped reshape how smokers viewed larger ring gauges and fuller blends during the 1990s cigar boom. Later, under his own Carrillo brand, he demonstrated that a Dominican cigar company owned and operated by a family could compete at the highest levels of the premium cigar market.

E.P. Carrillo cigars helped reinforce the idea that structure matters as much as strength. Construction, tobacco selection, and balance between body and finesse became defining characteristics. The Carrillo core identity centers on premium tobaccos, thoughtful blending, and cigars that evolve rather than overwhelm.

In many ways, Perez Carrillo’s approach reshaped expectations inside the modern cigar business, proving that consistency and premium tobaccos still win in the long term. That steady approach continues to influence the cigar community today.

The Core E.P. Carrillo Portfolio

The E.P. Carrillo portfolio is structured to serve a wide range of smokers, from medium-bodied profiles to full-bodied smoke options. Across the lineup, strength typically ranges from medium to full-bodied, with body building gradually rather than hitting in sharp spikes, a hallmark of the Carrillo blending style.

Pledge

The EP Carrillo Pledge line is the one most people point to when they talk about how far EP Carrillo cigars can go when everything clicks. The Carrillo Pledge Prequel, which earned a 98 rating and Cigar of the Year honors, is wrapped in a Connecticut Havana-seed wrapper over an Ecuadorian Sumatra binder and Nicaraguan fillers.

Right out of the gate, the first third delivers black pepper and darker earth. As it settles in, baking spices and dark cocoa begin to show up, followed by touches of black cherry and leather that add depth without sweetness taking over. By the second half and into the final third, spicy oak and charred wood come forward, creating a dynamic smoking experience that builds rather than fades.

Cigar construction is part of the appeal. The burn line stays sharp, the draw remains consistent, and it often leaves behind a firm white ash, the kind of detail cigar enthusiasts notice. It’s not just a high-scoring new cigar. It’s a deliberate, layered, and genuinely delicious smoke that feels engineered from start to finish.

Encore

EP Carrillo Encore is a perfect example of why the Carrillo brand has so much trust. It's flavorful, structured, and it keeps you interested the whole way through.

Encore is an all-Nicaraguan blend, but it’s still produced in the Dominican Republic at Tabacalera La Alianza, which means you get that bold Nicaraguan character paired with clean, dialed-in construction.

Encore leans into coffee bean, toasted oak, and subtle zesty notes early on. As it opens up, you’ll notice hints of dried fruit and a natural sweetness that rounds out the profile. It’s a full-bodied smoke without being aggressive, structured, steady, and well-balanced from first light through the final third.

EP Carrillo La Historia is where the portfolio leans darker and richer, the kind of cigar that feels built for late-day smokes and slower nights. It also has the awards to match: La Historia landed #2 Cigar of the Year in 2014 (95 rating), which is a big deal when you look at how many cigars come and go every year.

Blend-wise, La Historia features a Mexican San Andrés wrapper over an Ecuadorian Sumatra binder and Nicaraguan fillers, with a profile that leans into cocoa, espresso, pepper, and deeper earth tones. The reason this line sticks around isn’t just strength. It smokes like a complete blend, rich, steady, and composed from start to finish.

INCH Series

The Carrillo INCH series was built around a simple idea: big ring cigars shouldn’t taste watered down. When larger gauges became popular, a lot of blends lost intensity because the filler-to-wrapper balance shifted. Ernesto Perez-Carrillo approached it differently.

Instead of just scaling up an existing blend, the INCH series was specifically engineered for larger formats. The INCH Natural uses an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, while the INCH Maduro features Connecticut Broadleaf, built over Nicaraguan binder and filler blends. The goal wasn’t just about size; it was maintaining flavor concentration across a 60+ ring gauge.

In the smoke, the INCH line tends to deliver medium to full-bodied performance with noticeable spice, roasted earth, and darker sweetness. There’s enough structure to keep the cigar feeling focused, even in larger formats that can sometimes feel airy or diluted. The burn stays even, the draw remains controlled, and the profile doesn’t fall apart halfway through.

For smokers who enjoy big ring cigars but still want depth and layered character, the Carrillo INCH series proves that larger formats can still feel deliberate and balanced.

Selección Oscuro

Before Pledge Prequel dominated headlines, Carrillo Selección Oscuro, often referred to as Carrillo Seleccion Oscuro, quietly established itself as one of the most serious blends in the portfolio. In 2016, it earned the #4 Cigar of the Year spot from Cigar Aficionado, reinforcing that E.P. Carrillo cigars weren’t a one-release success story.

Selección Oscuro is built around a dark Mexican San Andrés wrapper, an Ecuadorian Sumatra binder, and Nicaraguan fillers. That wrapper choice brings depth right away. The profile leans into dark cocoa, espresso, earth, and black pepper, but what separates it from other oscuro cigars is the control.

This isn’t raw strength for the sake of strength. The blend is structured. The sweetness from the San Andrés leaf rounds out the heavier spice, creating a full-bodied smoke that still feels composed. As it moves through the second half and into the final third, the profile develops more charred wood and darker sweetness without becoming aggressive.

For smokers who enjoy depth and intensity but still want balance, Carrillo Selección Oscuro shows another side of the Carrillo brand.

New Wave Connecticut

Carrillo New Wave Connecticut is the “don’t overthink it” side of E.P. Carrillo, smoother, cleaner, and easy to live with, but still built like a serious cigar.

Featuring an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper over a Nicaraguan binder, with a mix of Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers, this blend is designed to deliver balance rather than brute strength. In the smoke, that usually translates to a creamy texture, toasted nuts, light cedar, and a soft natural sweetness that stays controlled from start to finish.

It’s an easy recommendation for newer smokers stepping into premium cigars, but it also fits experienced smokers who want something refined that won’t fatigue the palate. The construction remains tight and dependable, with a clean burn and steady draw that reflect the precision coming out of Tabacalera La Alianza.

New Wave Reserva

New Wave Reserva is the next step up from the Connecticut, still smooth and refined, but with more depth and more body behind it.

Featuring an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper over a Nicaraguan binder, with Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers, Reserva relies on carefully selected and aged tobaccos to build extra richness without losing its Connecticut character. The result is a cream-forward profile layered with deeper toasted notes, subtle spice, and a slightly darker finish compared to the standard New Wave Connecticut.

You still get that approachable smoothness, but there’s more weight to the smoke. It feels fuller, more structured, and more complex while staying composed. For smokers who enjoy Connecticut-wrapped cigars but want added dimension and strength, New Wave Reserva bridges that gap without turning sharp or aggressive.

What Makes E.P. Carrillo Cigars Stand Out?

What separates E.P. Carrillo cigars from many modern releases is restraint. Strength never replaces structure. Even in a full-bodied smoke like Pledge, the construction remains tight and deliberate.

Across the portfolio, you’ll notice consistent draw resistance, clean burn lines, and dependable construction from the Dominican Republic factory floor. The use of premium tobaccos from Nicaragua, Mexico, Ecuador, and beyond allows the Carrillo brand to create cigars that feel layered rather than one-dimensional.

Who Are E.P. Carrillo Cigars Good For?

E.P. Carrillo cigars appeal to smokers who appreciate evolution within a cigar. If you enjoy noticing how a cigar changes from first light through the final third, the Carrillo brand fits naturally into a serious rotation.

From medium-bodied options like Wave Connecticut to full-bodied smoke choices like Carrillo Pledge cigars, the portfolio accommodates both newer smokers and seasoned connoisseurs. These cigars reward patience and attention.

The Legacy of Ernesto Perez-Carrillo

Ernesto Perez Carrillo’s legacy stretches from Cuba to Miami to the Dominican Republic. From rebuilding the El Credito factory in Miami to launching Casa Carrillo, his career reflects adaptability without abandoning tradition.

Few figures in the cigar industry have influenced as many eras of premium cigars. Through La Gloria Cubana, General Cigar, and now E.P. Carrillo cigars, his work continues to shape how modern cigars are blended and built. EP Carrillo cigars continue to reflect exceptional quality because the foundation was built over decades of disciplined blending inside the modern cigar industry.

If you’ve followed the awards but haven’t explored the portfolio firsthand, it’s worth doing. Start with the Pledge Prequel or the Encore Majestic, then decide which Carrillo cigar belongs in your humidor. You’ll find a selection of E.P. Carrillo cigars here at After Action Cigars.