Los Amigos

Los Amigos was not created to be just another cigar brand. After three years of meticulous blend development, over one thousand nights of tasting and refinement, and drawing on sixty-five years of combined expertise - including a certified Master Habanosommelier among its three founding partners — Los Amigos was built for connoisseurs who demand truly exceptional cigars.

Founded by three friends from Brazil, Chile, and South Africa, the brand is rooted in a shared obsession: the pursuit of the perfect cigar as a journey best taken together. Every blend is composed from tobaccos sourced across Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Brazil, Honduras, Costa Rica, Peru, Indonesia, the United States, and Cameroon. Every vitola is rolled by a single dedicated pair of master torcedores, ensuring flawless construction, consistent draw, and a distinctive signature in every cigar. Production is deliberately limited, safeguarding exclusivity and collectible value.

Yet Los Amigos is not only about results — it is about the pursuit. We follow a path much like the quest for the holy grail of tobacco: an unattainable perfection that drives us to refine, to explore, to shape blends that capture rare moments of brilliance. The brand builds community around the quiet ritual of smoking - people from different worlds, sitting together, discovering something rare. This is not about exclusivity for its own sake. It's about creating something so genuine that people want to belong to it.

Who are we? 

Pedro Ramos - South Africa 

Born in South Africa, raised in SA and Portugal, studied in Spain, my life has always been defined by exploration and connection. I left my professional journey as a SAP consultant in Portugal in 2008 and returned to South Africa to pursue something far more personal - a life dedicated to cigars. 

Since 2009 cigars have been at the center of my world. Together with my father we created Amano Cigars with a mission: to elevate the cigar culture in South Africa and to share with others the passion and reverence we felt for tobacco.

As an importer and distributor, we had the honor of officially introducing New World Cigars to South Africa, giving the local market its first taste of fine blends from across the globe. Through long-standing partnerships with iconic names like AJ Fernandez, El Septimo, Daniel Marshall, E.P. Carrillo, Gurkha, My Father Cigars, Oliva, Oscar Valladares, Plasencia, Rocky Patel, Quesada, Saga, 1502, and other boutique producers, we helped lay the foundation for a new era of cigar appreciation in the country.

With time, this movement grew beyond distribution. Myself and my father built PedroPortia Cigar Lounge in Johannesburg, a place where cigar culture could truly celebrated — home to one of the country’s largest walk-in humidors and a space dedicated to community, ritual, and enjoyment. Later, I launched Cigars.co.za, South Africa’s first premium cigar e-commerce platform, allowing enthusiasts nationwide to explore and experience the finest cigars with ease. Together, these milestones represent more than business achievements — they symbolise a lifelong devotion to cigars and to the people who smoke them.

Yet, despite the growth and accomplishments, my connection to cigars remains deeply personal. Cigars are, to me, a sacred form of expression — a bridge between the spiritual and the earthly. Like the ancient civilisations that viewed tobacco as a mean to communicate with the divine, I see each cigar as a ritual, a moment of presence and introspection. My travels to tobacco-growing regions around the world have become something of a pilgrimage: walking through fields, feeling the sun on the leaves, and understanding the soul of tobacco through the hands that grow and cure it. Every visit renews my respect for this living craft and the invisible energy it carries.

Los Amigos Cigars was created from that same spirit — a vision shared between three friends from different countries and backgrounds, united by one passion. For me, it represents the natural evolution of a journey that began many years ago: the desire to not only enjoy cigars but to create them, to pour into each blend the experiences, emotions, and lessons gathered over nearly two decades. My role in Los Amigos is grounded in experience but guided by feeling — ensuring that every cigar we produce embodies authenticity, artistry, and respect for tradition.

Ultimately, my search has never been for commercial success alone, but for meaning — for that “holy grail” of a cigar that speaks to both my palate and my soul. Los Amigos Cigars is an extension of that pursuit, a brand built not to follow trends, but to tell a story — one of friendship, craftsmanship, and the timeless connection to the leaf that unites us all. Our journey is to break borders — both the physical ones that divide countries and the invisible ones that separate people through religion, beliefs, or economic circumstance — because cigars, at their core, remind us that connection has no boundaries.

Walter Saes - Brazil

Born in São Paulo, Brazil, with a background in accounting law with his own law firm, he began his journey in the world of tobacco  in 2005, not only as a cigar aficionado, but as a professional scholar of this universe.

Walter has traveled to almost all the countries in the world that produce tobacco to learn the differences that each country has, from soil to pre-industry and has endless videos of all these journeys with several master blenders showcasing their expertise. 

He went so deep into the world of premium cigars that he became the Habano (Cigar) Sommelier World Champion in 2015 in Cuba — a championship that measures in-depth knowledge of aromas, flavors, brands, planting, harvesting, tobacco aging, and cigar pairing with other elements, among many other disciplines. He is also an expert in wines, spirits, cocktails, and gastronomy, internationally certified across 21 countries and recognized by the most important academies in the world. 

He has dedicate his life to the premium cigar industry and its ultimate epicurean and hedonistic expression. Los Amigos is the materialization of that lifelong dedication — a brand where we definitively seek the pinnacle of sensory and gustatory fulfillment.

Eduardo Lahsen - Chile

Chilean by birth, with Palestinian and Syrian roots running deep through his veins, Eduardo Lahsen is a man shaped by the richness of cultures converging in one life. A practicing attorney since 1997, he has dedicated nearly three decades to construction law, leading his own legal practice and building a career grounded in precision, trust, and the ability to bring complex ventures to completion. But Eduardo's world extends far beyond the courtroom: he is an interpreter of traditional Arab music — playing the oud, qanoun, nay, and derbake — and has devoted years of service to the Arab community in Chile. Whether through law, music, or community, his life has always been about building bridges.

Eduardo’s love for cigars began at home. Married since 2000 and father of two, he first discovered the ritual of the cigar when his eldest child was born — sharing boxes of Habanos with friends who came to celebrate. A few cigars were left behind, and curiosity did the rest. What started as a casual gesture soon became a passionate pursuit: blind tastings orchestrated by his wife, pairing sessions with fine spirits, and a growing devotion to training his palate and his senses. That quiet beginning lit a flame that has never gone out.

What began as passion soon became deep knowledge. Over the years, Eduardo has completed specialised courses on Habanos and cigar pairing in Chile and Cuba, and has served as a judge in international cigar competitions. He has attended a dozens of cigar and habanos festivals across Cuba, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic and Honduras, walking through factories, learning from their owners, sitting with torcedores, and exchanging stories with connoisseurs from every corner of the world. These experiences, gathered over decades, have given him a rare understanding of tobacco — not only as a product, but as a living culture.

The name Los Amigos was born fifteen years ago in Eduardo's mind — long before the brand itself came to life. For years, he carried the vision of a cigar brand built around friendship, offering the idea to many along the way.

It wasn't until a trip to Nicaragua that the dream finally found its partners. Eduardo had known Walter and Pedro for many years — their paths in the world of tobacco had crossed repeatedly in Cuba, Nicaragua, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic. The three shared an instant connection — a mutual passion for tobacco, an appetite for adventure, and a belief that the best things in life are created among friends. Los Amigos Cigars was born that day.

Within Los Amigos, Eduardo contributes as a bridge-builder — someone who helps bring ideas together and find common ground. He has been hands-on in shaping many of the brand's details: from bands and boxes to blends and names.

But what truly drives him is what cigars have always meant to him: the joy of exploring the world, the warmth of genuine friendship, and the power to break barriers — between countries, cultures, and people. For Eduardo, Los Amigos is not just a brand. It is the way he has always chosen to live.

Where are the cigars being made?

The exact factory name is....secret. Sorry ;) 

But rest assured, we visited many factories in Nicaragua and Honduras to see how they handle the pre-industry and what type of tobacco they used. We settled with a small factory in Nicaragua that does magic!! The care that they have in the pre-industry is not commonly seen around. And they only use grade A tobacco which is what we were looking for! Besides grade A tobacco, they re-ferment all tobacco received in the factory to the standards that only they only accept! Its truely magical! 

What to expect?

For our launch, we started off with 4 blends. 

Each bend will have its optimized vitola. This means that we will not be doing several sizes for the same blend, as we tested a variety of sizes for each blend and we selected only the ones we found would work best. 

Our four blends are made with tobacco aged minimum of 3 years old, this guarantees the optimum flavour and strength. 

Our production is in small batches, and will have its year of production. This can serve as a collectible, and will also give you a reference of when the cigars were produced. Because of constante climate changes, the production of cigars is never the same year by year. So it would be senseless for us to market something that is not true, tying to maintain the same flavour you will find in our cigars as time passes by. When they finish, they finished. Rest assured, we have many more blends we worked on and are continuing to work on to introduce to the market as years pass by. 

We have also decided to showcase the full recipe of our blends in our boxes. We want you, as a smoker to understand what the 3 parts of the leafs can do to a cigar, and showcase how different regions bring together something special. When you read on most of the cigar blends that the wrapper/filler/binder is from Honduras or Nicaragua, or be it any other country, we want you to ask: But from where?  

Because all countries have different regions of tobacco production, each region offers different notes on the blends. The terroir is distinct from every region, just like wine. 

We want our smokers to understand this complexity and to join us in this journey of exploration. 

When and where will the cigars be available in South Africa? 

Let's get down to the important stuff! 

Our cigars have been patiently aging to get the rest they deserve in Nicaragua! I am expecting them to arrive to South Africa between last days of March / first weeks of April. Unfortunately customs in South Africa is a due process, so I can not give an exact date! But rest be assured, you will get a notification!

You will be able to get Los Amigos Cigars through www.cigars.co.za and also at PedroPortia Cigar Lounge. Once they land, slowly you will find them in more retailers accross the country. 

Our cigars will also be available in Brazil, Chile, USA and we are working to get in to more markets around the world.

www.LosAmigosCigars.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/losamigoscigars

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/losamigoscigars