Today, we are reviewing the My Father La Lealtad in the Toro size. In 2025, the Garcia family and My Father Cigars launched a line called My Father Blue. This marked the first release from My Father Cigars’ new Honduran factory, utilizing tobaccos sourced from their Honduran farms. My Father Blue was a highly successful release for the company, and with La Lealtad, My Father Cigars aims to build on that success. La Lealtad translates to “The Loyalty” and represents the Garcia family’s commitment to craftsmanship, heritage, and the loyal smokers who support their work.
My Father Cigars now operates factories in three countries. The company has operations in Nicaragua, highlighted by its My Father Cigars S.A. facility in Estelí. My Father Cigars also operates El Rey de los Habanos in Little Havana, Miami – the factory where the Garcias got their start rolling cigars. The new My Father Cigars Honduras factory is based in the El Paraiso region, and the La Opulencia farm is located in the Talanga region.
Without further ado, let’s break down the My Father La Lealtad and see what this cigar brings to the table:
SPECIFICATIONS
Blend and Origin
La Lealtad features an Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro wrapper. The cigar uses a double binder: one leaf from Honduras and one from Nicaragua. The filler also combines Nicaraguan and Honduran tobaccos. My Father Blue used no Nicaraguan tobacco, so I believe this is the first blend from My Father Cigars to incorporate tobaccos from Nicaragua and Honduras in the same blend.
- Wrapper: Ecuadorian Rosado Oscuro
- Binder: Honduran, Nicaraguan
- Filler: Honduran, Nicaraguan
- Country of Origin: Honduras
- Factory: My Father Cigars Honduras
Vitolas Available
La Lealtad comes in four sizes, each in a 20-count box. Each size is a parejo except for the torpedo.
- Robusto: 5 1/2 x 52
- Toro: 6 x 54
- Toro Gordo: 6 x 60
- Torpedo Box Pressed: 6 1/8 x 52
Appearance (*)
The Ecuadorian Habano Rosado Oscuro wrapper of the La Lealtad Toro had a near-chestnut-brown color. Upon closer examination, a slight amount of mottling was visible on the wrapper’s surface. In addition, the wrapper surface showed slight toothiness. The wrapper’s surface had a very light sheen of oil. There were some visible veins. The wrapper seams were minimally visible.
PERFORMANCE
Pre-Light Draw (*)
A straight cut removed the cap of the La Lealtad Toro. Once the cap was removed, it was time to commence with the pre-light draw. The cold draw delivered a mix of natural tobacco and cedar with a slight floral note. In most cases, a floral note on a cigar is a deal-breaker for me. This was no exception; it was simply a negative pre-light draw experience for me. Since the pre-light draw is not factored into the numeric score or value rating, there was no loss of points here. At this point, it was time to remove the footer ribbon of the La Lealtad Toro, light up the cigar, and head into the smoking phase.
Tasting Notes
The La Lealtad Toro opened up with notes of nougat sweetness, natural tobacco, earth, mint, and cedar. Early on, the nougat and natural tobacco took over as the primary notes. The earth, mint, and cedar settled in the background, where they were joined by some nut notes. The good news was the floral note on the pre-light draw was not there. Essentially, the mint note in the background replaced it. Meanwhile, the retrohale delivered a layer of black pepper.
Later in the first third of the La Lealtad Toro, the nougat sweetness essentially folded into the natural tobacco. As the La Lealtad entered the second third, the natural tobacco was the primary note and leaned toward the sweeter side. The earth, mint, cedar, and nut notes were joined by some black pepper on the tongue. Toward the midway point, some bitters developed on the natural tobacco. At the same time, the cedar notes emerged with the natural tobacco in the forefoot. These primary notes were rounded out by the earth, mint, nut, and pepper notes in the background. There was a gradual increase of the pepper and earth notes.
Toward the end of the second third, the earth and pepper notes joined the cedar in the forefront. The natural tobacco settled in the background with the mint and nut notes. This is the way the flavor profile of the La Lealtad Toro remained down the stretch until the nub. When the cigar experience came to a close, it finished with a soft, cool nub.
Burn
Overall, the La Lealtad Toro burned quite well. This cigar kept a straight burn path and a relatively straight burn line from start to finish, with minimal touch-ups. The resulting ash was skewed toward the firmer side. The ash had a mix of light and darker gray tones. Meanwhile, the La Lealtad Toro had an ideal burn rate and ideal burn temperature.
Draw
The best way to describe the draw of the La Lealtad Toro is that it is on the open side. Normally I like my draw to have some resistance. This draw wasn’t loose, but if it was any more open, it would have been loose. Luckily, there were no adverse effects.
Strength and Body
The La Lealtad Toro opened with medium strength and medium-bodied flavors. Both the strength and body did increase in intensity along the way. By the second third, the body moved into medium-to-full territory. The body continued to increase but didn’t move out of the medium-to-full range. As for the strength, it was slightly bolder at the end than at the start of the cigar, but it never got out of the medium range. In terms of strength versus body, the body maintained a significant edge throughout the smoking experience
BANDING AND PACKAGING NOTES (*)
The La Lealtad packaging features a natural wood-colored box with a large version of the primary La Lealtad cigar band draped across it.
The La Lealtad Cigar band is based on the classic My Father cigar band. There are some subtle color differences. In particular, there are maroon accents on it. The maroon accents are also present on the secondary band.
This wasn’t my favorite color scheme on a My Father branded cigar, but it’s still very nice packaging. It’s just that La Lealtad’s packaging is up against some epic packaging under the My Father brand.
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Final Thoughts
After a disappointing pre-light draw, La Lealtad started quite promising. I really enjoyed the first third. Things started to change after that; the second third became mediocre, and the final third was lackluster and disappointing. The big positive is that this cigar offers plenty of flavor transitions and nuances. Unfortunately, as the cigar progresses, things simply don’t play well together. To quote my friend and former Stogie Geeks host Stogie Santa, “this cigar could not figure out what it wanted to do.” In the end, I recommend trying a sample and seeing what you think. I’m curious to see what this smokes like in the other sizes.
Summary
- Key Flavors: Natural Tobacco, Earth, Cedar, Mint, Nut, Nougat, Pepper
- Burn: Excellent
- Draw: Good
- Complexity: Medium to High
- Strength: Medium
- Body: Medium (1st Third), Medium to Full (Remainder)
- Finish: Very Good
Rating
Value: Try a Sample
Score: 87
REFERENCES
Photo Credits: Cigar Coop
(*) Indicates this is not factored into the score or value rating
