Stogie Guys Friday Sampler CXVIII

In our ongoing effort to make StogieGuys.com as entertaining and informative as possible, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other snippets of interest. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) The American Cancer Society didn’t appreciate it when recent photos of Michael Jordan surfaced showing the former Cigar Aficionado coverboy puffing on a cigar at a softball game. “When high profile athletes publicly display unhealthful habits they can mislead young people to emulate their behavior,” quipped an ACS official.

2) Just eight days after Hurricane Gustav swept through Cuba, Ike hit the Caribbean island nation, destroying over 3,000 tobacco curing barns and annihilating 8,600 tobacco workers’ homes. “The Cuban government estimates losses from the two storms at $5 billion,” reports the Miami Herald, a major setback that is expected to drive up the prices of Cuban tobacco.

3) A ruling in the Washington Supreme Court upheld the state’s smoking ban against a challenge from a local American Legion post, even though “all seven employees are relatives of members and all but one smoke.” A dissenting justice argues that the majority’s reading of the law renders it unconstitutional.

4) Around the Blogs: Cigar Jack smokes a Camacho Select. Stogie Review lights up a Los Blancos Premier. Keepers of the Flame reviews the Alec Bradley Harvest Selection. Cigar Command tries the Esencia Belicoso. Cigar Inspector inspects the EO 601 Black Label. Gary Manelski runs down his top ten cheap cigars.

5) Deal of the Week: Here’s a great sampler from Tinderbox. This “Pre-Game Sampler” includes ten top cigars including a Don Papin Garcia Cuban Classic, a CAO Gold, an Aroma de Cuba, and a Romeo y Julieta Viejo. You’ll also get a double guillotine cutter and free shipping on the entire order so you can stock up on your other favorites. Grab yours here.

– The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Flickr