Despot

Despot Cigars was founded in 2019 by Serbian brothers Jovan and Ugljesa Despot, says the house: the second generation of their family in cigars, their father having launched the cigar market in Serbia in 2004. The two brothers chose Nicaragua to blend and roll their brand, from whole leaves hand-rolled in Estelí; the house does not name the factory.

The catalogue comprises three series. The Series J, the first, pays tribute to classic formats, says the house: wrapper and binder in Ecuadorian Habano, Nicaraguan filler from Estelí, medium strength, in Corona, Lancero, Pirámides and Robusto. The Series U focuses on aroma rather than power, says the house, with the same wrapper and a filler blending Pennsylvania (United States), Jalapa and Estelí, in Salomone and Double Corona formats among others. The Series Z, more recent, pairs an Ecuadorian wrapper — described variously as Rosado or Claro depending on the retailer — with a Jalapa and Ometepe filler, for a medium to medium-full strength, in R54, T54, Piramides Grande and A Size formats.

In 2024, the brand appeared at the Intertabac trade fair in Dortmund; in September 2026, it is sold at Luxury Cigar Club and Cigar Century.

Range Depth

• Series J

  Wrapper Ecuadorian Habano · Strength Medium

  The brand's first series, paying tribute to classic formats; Nicaraguan filler from Estelí, in Corona, Lancero, Pirámides and Robusto.

• Series U

  Wrapper Ecuadorian Habano · Strength Medium

  Focused on aroma rather than power, says the house; filler from Pennsylvania (United States), Jalapa and Estelí, in Salomone and Double Corona among others.

• Series Z

  Wrapper Undisclosed · Strength Medium-Full

  Ecuadorian wrapper described variously as Rosado or Claro depending on the retailer; filler from Jalapa and Ometepe, in R54, T54, Piramides Grande and A Size formats.