Philip Wynne

Philip Gregory Wynne, also known as Felipe Gregorio, is the owner of Felipe Gregorio Cigars Est. 1990. The son of an American foreign service officer, Wynne started in the cigar business in 1990 in Honduras, where he worked with La Flor de Copan a factory situated in Santa Rosa de Copan, there he created the Petrus, Tesoros de Copan, and Felipe Gregorio Brands. In 1994, he started operations in Condega Nicaragua and became one of the first US investors in Nicaragua after the Sandinista Government took office. In 1998 Frank Sinatra came to him and asked him to make his cigar brand, Mr. Sinatra insisted that the brand be made in the Dominican Republic, Wynne with the financial backing of Sinatra built Tabacalera Real where he continued creating cigars for over 20 years. He has been referred to as a "cigar legend" and a "cigar star" by Perelman's Pocket Cyclopedia of Cigars and Cigar Aficionado Magazine respectively.
Born in Switzerland, Philip Gregory Wynne, the namesake behind Felipe Gregorio cigars, was always fond of the Cuban-style, full-bodied Havanas he smoked in Europe. After graduating from college and working a number of years in the Middle East selling helicopters, he decided to start his own cigar business in 1988. Because he grew up in Europe where Cuban cigars were legal, when he decided to get into the cigar business, the haunting flavors of all the Cuban cigars smoked in his youth were still vivid on his palate. He wanted to produce cigars similar to the many Cuban brands he grew up with; in other words, strong. His first creation, the Petrus, was introduced at a time when most smokers were in favor of the lighter-bodied smokes, but still he persisted. A unique technique developed by Wynne is the fusion of wrapper, binder, and filler, fermented together in the same bales, from the very beginning of the manufacturing process.
Philip Wynne is especially known for his blending abilities and the introduction of the first full bodied cigars in the US Market, he is known as an innovator in the cigar industry, having created new sizes such as: The first and only double barreled cigar, also known as a three wrapped cigar, which can be seen in his Maximo Ligero, Double Barreled Ligero. This unique styled cigar was specially developed by Philip Wynne. Each bore is made up from one particular type of Ligero, and then wrapped with a third, also different, tobacco leaf . The construction of the cigar allows both bores to burn evenly with the delivery of the Ligero directly to the palate. Additionally, Philip Wynne is credited with creating the first "first free form cigars" with his release of "The Boa" in 1997, as well as the first "Short" big ring gauge cigar with his 1996 "Fat Boy".

Wynne is now growing tobacco and making cigars in the Cordillera Central region of Costa Rica where he is experimenting with Ancestral Cuban Seeds such as Pelo De Oro. “Like a great wine the leaves used to make a cigar need to have the identity of their birthplace and the earth they sprung from. The soil brings out the original characteristics of the blend. As men we can only paint with the palette of colors that the earth has given us. We borrow from nature so that you the smoker can taste the land."- Philip G Wynne, an active sponsor of La Ruta Maya Foundation in Honduras, a foundation that is dedicated to preserving the rainforest and helping the Mayan peoples of Central America. Wynne is also involved in local charities in Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic such as: Kids Saving The Rain Forest and The Doulos Discovery School.

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