Who is Ernesto Padilla?
Padilla was born in Havana. He came to the United States with his mother in 1979, as a young boy. His father stayed behind as a dissident and got out about a year later. Ernesto grew up in Princeton, New Jersey, with time in Miami.
His father was the poet Heberto Padilla. Ernesto says his father's family grew tobacco in Pinar del Río. He remembers his father always had a cigar nearby.
What happened to his father in Cuba?
Ernesto describes a show trial. The regime forced his father to denounce himself. He says the secret police wrote the confession, and it was full of grammatical errors.
"Never get a writer to denounce himself because he'll outsmart you."33:58 in the episode
Then the regime tried a softer approach. His father got a stay at an estate outside Havana, with a driver, food and cigars. In his father's book, the driver lights a cigar of his own in the car.
"My father says, 'My god, what a terrible aroma on your cigar.' And the gentleman says, 'I know, but I don't have access to your cigars that you get.'"39:28 in the episode
Ernesto tells it as his father's account. He thinks it may have hit home for his father. For Cubans, he says, cigars are simply part of the culture.
How did Padilla Cigars start?
He started the brand 23 years ago. Someone sent him to Pepín García's small factory in Miami. Cuban rollers worked there, each making a cigar from start to finish.
The Padilla Miami 8 & 11 is named after the factory's spot on 8th Street, near 11th Avenue. He explains why one Cuban roller works slower than a Nicaraguan pair.
"A pair will do 500, 600 cigars a day. A Cuban, you won't get him to do that. He'll do 120 maximum depending on the size."21:46 in the episode
Does a maduro cigar mean a strong cigar?
No. Padilla says so plainly.
"Just because a cigar is maduro doesn't mean it's going to be strong or if it's [Connecticut], it's going to be mild."1:48:20 in the episode
Our cigar guide explains where strength really comes from.
Which cigars does he want people to try?
He wants more people to smoke the Churchill, a classic long size.
"One of the sizes that's so sad that people really are not smoking today is the Churchill 7 by 48 classic size."1:17:35 in the episode
He has no love for giant ring gauges. And he thinks you can smoke very well without spending much.
"There's plenty of cigars under $20 that'll blow your mind and a lot under 10."1:18:54 in the episode
Should you start a cigar brand?
"If you get in this business to make money, you're in the wrong business."1:05:41 in the episode
His first advice is to work in the cigar industry before you start a brand. A shop job helps, he says. But to learn how cigars are made, go to Nicaragua or the Dominican Republic. He also puts a number on the budget.
"If you don't have at a minimum $1.5 million minimum, that's the low end to start a cigar brand today."1:13:08 in the episode
What makes a good tobacconist?
Padilla wants shop clerks to become guides, like the tobacconists of his father's time.
"A tobacconist doesn't sell you a cigar. He guides you."1:48:46 in the episode
We asked for his last message to the cigar community.
"Don't forget where you came from or you never know where you're going."1:58:59 in the episode
In this episode
- 0:51Havana, leaving Cuba in 1979 and growing up in Princeton
- 7:09Meeting Pepín García and his Cuban rollers in Miami
- 14:50How a cigar is made: caps, bunching and rollers
- 22:15The state of Cuban tobacco today
- 29:38His father's arrest, the confession and the driver's cigar
- 41:16Why the brand exists, and Pinar del Río tobacco
- 48:57Growth abroad, and why he avoids lifestyle marketing
- 1:09:12Advice for anyone starting a brand
- 1:29:48Rapid fire: his father's cigars, ring gauge, tobacconists
Quotes come from the episode captions. Filler words like "uh" are trimmed, and names are spelled correctly.