Stogie Guys Friday Sampler XXXIII

In our ongoing effort to make StogieGuys.com as entertaining and reader-friendly as possible, each Friday we’ll post a selection of quick cigar news and stogie-related snippets. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) I guess it was only a matter of time. Earlier this week, the Baltimore City Council expectedly voted to prohibit smoking in all public places – including bars, restaurants, and taxicabs. The law, which goes into effect next year, was rightly criticized by the Baltimore Examiner: “Never mind the fact that restaurant owners now are free to choose whether to ban smoking on their premises and patrons are free to choose where to eat and drink.”

2) Starting on Wednesday, the first boxes of Ashton Estate Sun Grown Robustos began to hit tobacconists in major cities. The release – dubbed the 21 Year Salute – is the second in the ESG line and follows the Churchills that came out last summer. Getting your hands on one of these will cost a whopping $17.50.

3) The 9th Annual Habanos Festival was held in Havana this week sans Fidel Castro, who may not have been well enough to autograph humidors for charity auction (as previously planned). According to the LA Times, the five-day event was uncharacteristically “devoid of star power this year.” The highlight of the festival, however, was the launching of a new line of Cohiba cigars called Maduro 5.

4) Why did Padrón recently up the number of cigars per box from 25 to 26? Is it a clever marketing ploy? A celebration of the success of their 1926 Anniversary line? Nope. The increase is simply a result of changing the type of wood used to manufacture the boxes.

–The Stogie Guys