No, not El Diablo – this is the La Palina El Di-ari-o cigar! In Spanish, “El Diario” means “The Daily,” and is the name of many Spanish-language newspapers. This cigar is a throwback to the brand’s ancient (as far as American businesses go) roots at the turn of the 20th century in Chicago.
You see, before Sam Paley was a “big shot” owner of his own cigar factory, which opened its gates in 1896, he was a lector. Lectors fulfilled a critical function in cigar making, because they used to read to the rollers in the time before radio was widespread. They might grab a newspaper, a good book, or anything to keep rollers entertained and informed while they handled the sometimes monotonous work of making cigars. (Cigar rolling may seem neat in a five-minute YouTube video or factory tour, but after you put ten thousand or so together it can get a little less interesting.)
Anyhow, “Mr. Sam,” as many called him, eventually put down the daily news and picked up a Certificate of Incorporation, launching the Congress Cigar company to produce La Palina cigars. Now, over a century later, his grandson Bill Paley has revived the brand and produced this smoke in a nod to his old grandad. Fortune continues to smile upon Mr. Sam and his progeny, because this little tribute was the first La Palina to appear on Cigar Aficionado’s annual Top 25 list. With a 92 rating, the El Diario took the 19th spot on the list in 2012, and was instrumental in helping the brand take its first modern steps up the cigar industry ladder.
The honor went to the KB vitola (i.e. version) of the cigar, which was named because the first sample of the blend nearly knocked Bill Paley on his butt when he smoked it, and he called it “Kill Bill.” The name stuck and this full bodied cigar was sent on its way to the market, bringing flavors of pepper, cedar, and earth to smokers everywhere. The blend is almost all Honduran tobacco, with some Nicaraguan leaf in the filler. As Mr. Paley says, the El Diario was designed to be, “something you don’t have to think too hard about when you smoke it, but something with lots of flavor.”
We’re right there with you.
Please browse our selection of La Palina El Diario Cigars at your leisure.
