Balmoral is getting into the collaboration game with Balmoral Serie Signaturas. The first release under this new collaboration brand umbrella will be DUETO, blended by Ernesto Pérez-Carrillo of EPC. The cigar will make its official debut at the 2018 IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas this July.
“I am honored to have had the opportunity to work alongside Ernesto on this very special collaboration project for Balmoral,” said Royal Agio CEO Boris Wintermans in a press release. “I want to push the boundaries of what can be discovered in premium cigar blending, and it is this desire that inspired the creation of the Balmoral Serie Signaturas (Signature Series) and initial conversations with Ernesto. This collaboration platform offers another avenue for us to explore, discover and release completely new and exciting cigar blends. The resulting blend for DUETO, behind Ernesto’s blending genius, makes this first release nothing short of exceptional.”
“It has been a pleasure to work with Boris and his team at Royal Agio on this special project,” said Ernesto in a statement in the same press release, “especially because we share a fundamental, common exploratory philosophy as cigar makers.”
The DUETO blend features a Nicaraguan wrapper from Jalapa, a Nicaraguan binder from Estelí and fillers from Nicaragua and Brazil. The cigar will be made available in five vitolas: Robusto (5 x 50), Ovación (5 ½ x 50), Gran Toro (6 x 52), Gordo (6 x 60) and Churchill (7 x 49). They’ll range in price from $9.75 to $12.50 per cigar and shipments will begin in September 2018.