Brand guide
Warped cigars
Warped is a cigar brand Kyle Gellis founded in 2007, started at a Little Havana factory in Miami, with its main lines now listed as made at TABSA in Nicaragua.
Warped began with weekend trips to Little Havana
Kyle Gellis established Warped in 2007, according to the company's own story page.
His father smoked cigars and had him choosing, cutting and lighting them at six. At 16 he smoked his first, a gift from his father. At 18, while studying at the University of Central Florida, he drove to Little Havana every week to learn how cigars were made and blended. He visited many factories looking for a partner and picked El Titan de Bronze on Calle Ocho.
The story page says Gellis blends every Warped cigar personally. The Serie Gran Reserva 1988 is named for his birth year.
Warped in Miami and in Nicaragua
Warped's story page says its cigars are produced at El Titan de Bronze, which it calls the only cigar factory left in Little Havana.
Its product pages tell a second story. La Hacienda, Corto, Maestro del Tiempo and Serie Gran Reserva 1988 each list Nicaragua as origin and TABSA as the factory. TABSA is in Nicaragua. Both statements are on Warped's own site, so both are reported here: Miami is where the brand began and where the story places production, and Nicaragua is where these four regular lines are listed as rolled.
One Warped blend recipe, many shapes
All four Warped line pages opened for this guide list the same tobacco: a Nicaraguan shade-grown Jalapa Corojo '99 wrapper, a Nicaraguan binder and Corojo '99 and Criollo '98 filler.
What changes is size, press and stated body. Corto is listed as full. Serie Gran Reserva 1988 is medium-plus. La Hacienda and Maestro del Tiempo are medium. Our tobacco regions guide covers Jalapa itself.
| Line | Stated wrapper | Stated body | Sizes |
|---|---|---|---|
| La Hacienda | Nicaraguan Jalapa Corojo '99 | Medium | First Growth 4 x 50, Gran Robusto 5 1/2 x 52, Superiores 5 5/8 x 46 |
| Maestro del Tiempo | Nicaraguan Jalapa Corojo '99 | Medium | 5712 4 1/2 x 52, 5205 6 3/8 x 42 |
| Corto | Nicaraguan Jalapa Corojo '99 | Full | X46 4 1/2 x 46, X52 4 3/4 x 52 (both box pressed) |
| Serie Gran Reserva 1988 | Nicaraguan Jalapa Corojo '99 | Medium-plus | 5 1/4 x 50 |
Warped lists all four as regular production. Sizes on the La Hacienda page carry a "~" before them, so treat those as approximate.
Warped sticks to thin rings
Warped says it chose 36 ring gauges while the rest of the industry was moving to bigger cigars, and it has kept making them.
The four lines here sit between 42 and 52 ring, with nothing above 52. A 36 ring is 9/16 of an inch across; a 52 is 13/16. Compare both in the ring gauge converter.
Warped timeline
Warped's founder story is dated by his age, and only one calendar year is on the record.
- Age 6: Gellis helps his father cut and light cigars.
- Age 18: weekly trips from UCF to Little Havana factories.
- 2007: Warped established.
- Undated: El Titan de Bronze chosen as production partner.
Warped labels to check before buying
Warped size names are codes or invented words, so a "5712" or "First Growth" needs a look at the line page for its real length and ring.
Because four lines share one listed tobacco recipe, the line name mostly tells you the format and stated body. Corto is the short, box-pressed one. Read what a box-pressed cigar is if that's new. The 6 3/8 x 42 Maestro del Tiempo 5205 is the long, thin one, close to a lonsdale.
Warped cigar questions
Who owns Warped Cigars?
Kyle Gellis founded Warped in 2007, and the company says he blends every Warped cigar himself.
Where are Warped cigars made?
Both Miami and Nicaragua appear in Warped's own materials: its story names El Titan de Bronze in Little Havana, while the La Hacienda, Corto, Maestro del Tiempo and 1988 pages list the TABSA factory in Nicaragua.
What does 1988 mean in Serie Gran Reserva 1988?
It is Kyle Gellis's birth year, according to the Warped product page.
Is Warped Corto box-pressed?
Yes. Warped lists both Corto sizes, the X46 and X52, as box pressed.
Where the Warped facts come from
- The Warped story, Warped Cigars
- La Hacienda, Warped Cigars
- Corto, Warped Cigars
- Maestro del Tiempo, Warped Cigars
- Serie Gran Reserva 1988, Warped Cigars