Alfonso Cigars

About Alfonso Cigars

Nelson Alfonso and Selected Tobacco

Nelson Alfonso is a Havana-born designer credited with the Cohiba Behike branding; Cigar Aficionado has described him as the imagery and creative director at Golden Age, the firm behind most of the major branding for Habanos S.A. His company, Selected Tobacco, also makes Atabey, Byron and Bandolero, and Cigar Coop calls Alfonso “an ultra-premium brand,” built around its packaging and extra aging.

Nelson Alfonso has said he leaves his blends to the smoker's imagination. After rolling, Selected Tobacco rests its cigars in cedar-lined rooms, raising and lowering the humidity, and Cigar Journal reports five different cedars; the Alfonso lines add a final stage in rooms lined with French oak. “Cedar is to cigars as oak is to wine,” he told halfwheel.

Alfonso at Sun of a Gun

Alfonso Añejos

Previewed at the 2022 PCA trade show, Alfonso Añejos began shipping in late September 2022 as the first Alfonso line in the United States. Many US reviewers and retailers call it Alfonso Extra Añejo; the boxes read “Añejos No. 1” to “No. 6.” Nelson Alfonso has described it as a hybrid of his Atabey and Byron lines. The first US release came from 2017 production: five years in cedar rooms, then a final stage in rooms lined with French oak. Selected Tobacco prints its series name, “Producción Limitada,” on the boxes and tube packs; halfwheel lists the line as regular production, and the first US shipment was 200 boxes of each size. Cigar Coop reports that the boxes of 25 reached US shops in two styles, a dress box and a rustic wood box. halfwheel ranked the No. 3 first in its Top 25 of 2022, and Cigar Coop placed the No. 2 second on its 2023 Cigar of the Year countdown.

Every Añejos size is also packed in tubes, three to a carton printed with the size number. We sell them by the carton of three; tubed cigars from every house we carry are on Tubo Cigars.

Alfonso Gran Selección

Selected Tobacco calls Gran Selección a sequel to the Añejos with a “darker profile.” It debuted at the PCA trade show in Las Vegas in July 2023 and shipped that November; like the Añejos, it rests five years in cedar rooms before a final stage in French oak, and Cigar Aficionado's launch report called it medium to full-bodied. Cigar Journal describes hand-crafted, dark lacquered dress boxes of 25, and halfwheel notes that the band is a single piece of paper cut to look like two. halfwheel reported production of 200 boxes of each size per year for 2023 and 2024 and lists the line as regular production. The Preciosos is the lancero, 7 1/2 x 40 as Selected Tobacco lists it; our distributor's sheet lists 7 x 40.

Alfonso ratings

halfwheel cited construction and draw problems in the Preciosos it smoked.

Common questions

Who makes Alfonso cigars? Selected Tobacco, the Costa Rican house founded by Nelson Alfonso, at Tabacos de Costa Rica in Santiago de Puriscal. United Cigars of Hudson, New Hampshire, distributes Alfonso in the United States.

Is Alfonso Añejos the same as Alfonso Extra Añejo? Yes. Alfonso Añejos is the US launch name, and the boxes and tube packs read “Añejos No. 1” to “No. 6”; many US reviewers and retailers call the line Extra Añejo.

Is Alfonso Añejos a limited edition? Selected Tobacco prints “Producción Limitada,” its series name, on the packaging, and the first US shipment was 200 boxes of each size. halfwheel lists it as regular production.

How strong are Alfonso cigars? Selected Tobacco has not published a strength rating we could confirm. halfwheel found the Añejos No. 3 mild to medium, and Cigar Coop rated the No. 1 medium and the No. 2 mild-medium in strength. For Gran Selección, Cigar Aficionado's launch report said medium to full-bodied, and Cigar Coop rated the Exclusivos medium in strength and medium-full in body.

What does Alfonso taste like? Selected Tobacco has not published tasting notes we could confirm. In the Añejos, halfwheel found cedar, lemongrass and peanut butter in the No. 3, and Cigar Coop found black pepper, cream, peanut, berry and cedar in the No. 2. In Gran Selección, Cigar Coop found natural tobacco, wood, chocolate and pepper in the Exclusivos.

How are the Añejos tubes packed? Three tubes to a carton, printed with the size number. We sell them by the carton of three.

Where can I buy Alfonso cigars in Yuma, AZ? At Sun of a Gun Cigars & Spirits, 1651 S Arizona Ave, an official J.C. Newman Diamond Crown Cigar Lounge with a walk-in humidor and a full bar. Call 928-276-3500 to ask which Alfonso sizes are on the shelf today, or see our cigar lounge in Yuma.

How much is shipping? $9.99 flat shipping, free on orders of $125 or more. Every order ships with a Boveda humidity pack.

More from Selected Tobacco is on Atabey, Byron and Bandolero. Every cigar we carry from Costa Rica is on Costa Rican Cigars, tubed cigars on Tubo Cigars, the whole portfolio United distributes on United Cigars, and every house we carry on Cigar Brands A–Z.