Luciano Cigars Launch ‘Y Panda’ Line in Homage to Loyal Partner

Luciano Cigars is releasing a new cigar and it pays homage to one of his loyal partners, Linxu ‘Panda’ Yan, who also helped Luciano Meirelles blend the cigar. Yan left China at the young age of 16, came to the USA but ended up in Estelí, Nicaragua where he started working with Luciano Cigars.
The line is called Y Panda.

For the blend, the duo went with a Corojo 98 wrapper from Ecuador over a double binder. One of the binders is Ecuadorian Sumatra, the other is Brazilian Mata Fina. The filler is Nicaraguan. Yan and Meirelles say that the cigar is yin and yang, “edgy sweetness, mild flavours brought to life with slight strength to the seasoned palate.” It is a blend that “seeks to disrupt palettes with the signature complexity for which Luciano Cigars is known,” according to a press release.

Y Panda comes as a Corona Gorda, Robusto, Toro and Sublime. The cigar expresses Panda Yan’s own intersection between tradition and innovation: “the pain of leaving family behind, the joy of finding one’s calling in a new place, and a mentor to guide him through.”

“I have always found that life is best lived when we embrace its contradictions,” Meirelles added. “From his own identity, to moments in life where he’s been blessed even when most struggling, this cigar is Panda’s attempt at expressing a new realization. Y Panda is about finding the good in the bad, the opportunity when things go wrong, and some of life’s answers even when overwhelmed with questions and uncertainty. Panda is one of a kind, a super taster, and working with him was priceless.”

Yan has been an intern at the company’s factory and farms for the past 14 months, but now his affiliation will be more focused on being a brand ambassador for Y Panda. Prior to joining Luciano Cigars, Yan worked at a retail shop in Memphis, Tenn. Now, he is dedicating this chapter of his life to learning about the cigar making process in its entirety alongside Meirelles.

“I truly believe the very reason Luciano does what he does is rooted in people, relationships, and the dreams that can be built together,” Yan said in a press release. “I’m humbled to be added to the legacy of Luciano Cigars with Y Panda.”