Fratello USA 250 | halfwheel

As you may have heard, this year marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of America. Cigar companies have a long history of celebrating anniversaries by releasing new cigars or lines, so it has been no great surprise to see new releases from companies like Aladino, Arturo Fuente, CAO, Camacho, Casa Carrillo, Founders Cigar Co., J.C. Newman, Powstanie, Rocky Patel, Ted’s Cigars and others.

In March, Fratello announced it would be joining the multitude of companies releasing cigars to celebrate the Semiquincentennial of the United States of America by releasing the Fratello USA 250, a 6 x 54 toro made with a Nicaraguan wrapper covering a Pennsylvania binder and filler tobaccos grown in the Dominican Republic and Pennsylvania. The cigar is rolled at Fábrica de Tabacos Joya de Nicaragua S.A.

Like some of the releases from other companies, Fratello used 13-count boxes as a nod to the 13 original colonies. In addition, Fratello’s 250th cigar is limited to 250 boxes—representing the 250 years the U.S. has been in existence—for a total of only 3,250 cigars.

“This project represents more than a milestone; it represents legacy, resilience, and the entrepreneurial spirit that built this country,” said Omar de Frias, founder of Fratello, in a press release. “The 13-count box symbolizes the original thirteen colonies — the core of a nation that changed the world.”

• Cigar Reviewed: Fratello USA 250
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Fábrica de Tabacos Joya de Nicaragua S.A.
• Wrapper: Nicaragua
• Binder: U.S.A. (Pennsylvania)
• Filler: Dominican Republic & U.S.A. (Pennsylvania)
• Length: 6 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 54
• Shape: Round
• MSRP: $20 (Box of 13, $260)
• Release Date: June 2026
• Number of Cigars Released: 250 Boxes of 13 Cigars (3,250 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

Dark brown wrappers cover the three Fratello USA 250 cigars, and each has a very similar amount of mottling from the cap to the foot as well. The wrappers are dry and rough to the touch, a characteristic not helped by the fact that I can see virtually no oil. Numerous thin veins criss-cross each cigar, and two of the three have a large soft spot located just above their respective foot bands. Sweet woodiness leads the aromas coming from the wrappers, followed by creamy leather, barnyard, black pepper, dry earth and cocoa nibs. Oak and raisins are the main notes emanating from the feet of the first two cigars—the third cigar has more cinnamon than any other note—along with much less aggressive scents of creamy nuttiness, dry straw, citrus peel, coffee beans and earth. After straight cuts, the main flavors on the cold draws differ a bit: the first and third cigars feature sweet raisins, creamy peanuts, hay, earth and dark chocolate, while the second cigar is less sweet and has a dry hay strong on top, followed by creamy leather, cocoa nibs, oak and mulch.

Bitter espresso, black pepper and a very small amount of spice start the three cigars off, and while the profile is slow to transition, after about 15 puffs, a combination of creamy oak and gritty earth takes over as the main combination. Secondary flavors of anise, sawdust, dark chocolate and leather tack show up at various points, while the retrohale features both black pepper and light raisin sweetness. There is also a small amount of a vegetable note on the finish of the second cigar. Flavor ends at medium-full, the body hits make it to just under medium and the strength hits a solid medium. Construction-wise, my third cigar needs a major burn correction—see more in the Final Notes below—but the other two cigars are fine in that regard, and all three cigars feature excellent draws and plenty of smoke.

The second third is almost unchanged from the first third: the combination of gritty earth and creamy oak remains firmly in place at the top of the profile for all three cigars, as does the black pepper and raisin sweetness on the retrohale. Notes of dark chocolate, leather tack and sawdust are still present as secondary flavors, but each cigar has at least one new note: baking spices on the first cigar, a distinct creamy peanut butter on the second cigar and coffee beans on the third cigar. By the halfway point, all three cigars feature the same vegetal note on the finish that now reminds me of raw broccoli. Flavor remains at medium-full, the body increases enough to hit a solid medium and the strength passes into the medium-plus range. Once again, the third cigar has the only construction problem as its burn line needs attention from my lighter just before the halfway point.

When it comes to the main flavors, there is a divergence in the final third. While the first cigar continues to exhibit the familiar creamy oak and gritty earth notes at the top of its profile, the second cigar switches to a much more interesting—and more enjoyable—combination of creamy peanut butter and cocoa nibs and the last cigar becomes the least engaging of the three with a fairly standard earthiness. Additional notes of leather tack, nutmeg, chalk, rich espresso and light toasted bread flit in and out, and while the combination of raisin sweetness and black pepper remains in place on the retrohales of all three cigars, the second cigar is noticeably sweeter than the other two. Flavor for the first cigar stays at medium-full, the second cigar hits full, and the third cigar decreases to medium-plus. All three cigars stay at a solid medium for the body and medium-plus for the strength. The first and third cigars each need two burn corrections to stay on track, but there are zero issues with the draws or smoke production.

Final Notes

• While numerous companies have released cigars commemorating America’s 250th birthday, only one was chosen as the official cigar company of the United States Semiquincentennial Commission, better known as America250. That cigar is J.C. Newman’s The American Perfecto, which is exclusive to the company’s America250 Cigar Humidor.
• I have always loved the Fratello bands, and this combination of that design with red, white and blue color scheme is both distinctive and visually appealing. There are also numerous stars embossed into both the blue and red sections of the bands, which I did not notice in the press photographs.

• The third cigar had more construction issues than the other two cigars combined, including one significant burn problem that you can see in the photograph above.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.

• These cigars are listed as being 6 x 54 vitolas. Above are the measurements we took when we measured them.
• The final smoking time averaged out to one hour and 51 minutes for all three cigars.

Brooks Whittington

I have worn many hats in my life up to this point: I started out as a photojournalist for the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, then transitioned to photographing weddings—both internationally and in the U.S.—for more than a decade. After realizing that there was a need for a cigar website containing better photographs and more in-depth information about each release, I founded my first cigar blog, SmokingStogie, in 2008. SmokingStogie quickly became one of the more influential cigar blogs on the internet, known for reviewing preproduction, prerelease, rare, extremely hard-to-find and expensive cigars, and it was one of the predecessors to halfwheel, which I co-founded.