The Stogie Guys

Last week Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced legislation that would increase federal taxes on premium cigars. Senators Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) are co-sponsoring the bill.

The goal of the legislation, as stated by the senators, is threefold: to bring all tobacco products in line with the relatively higher taxes that are levied on cigarettes, to discourage the use of tobacco products by minors, and to increase government revenue. “The current loopholes in the taxes on tobacco products encourage the use of products like pipe tobacco, smokeless tobacco, and ‘nicotine candies’ as a cheap source of tobacco, particularly among young people,” Durbin said in a statement. “This bill will stop tobacco manufacturers from gaming the system and protect more children and teens from this dangerous habit.”

It is also expected to boost government coffers by $1 billion.

Additionally, the senators aim to make it more costly to purchase premium cigars. Durbin’s so-called “Tobacco Tax Equity Act of 2012” would raise the per-cigar tax ceiling on large cigars over 150%, from 40.26 cents to 100.66 cents. It would also establish a per-cigar tax floor at 5.033 cents. This move comes only days after Durbin and Lautenberg publicly encouraged the FDA to regulate cigars and ban “flavored” cigars outright.

Senator Durbin and his cohorts do not have the courage to say that they’d like to regulate and tax cigars out of existence, but that seems to be the outcome they’re shooting for. Cigars are already taxed quite high, especially when you add up the federal, state, and local taxes. And we’ve written before that regulation of cigars by the FDA would be devastating to the industry, which helps provide 85,000 jobs in the U.S. and hundreds of thousands in Latin America. Ingredient disclosure, testing, and marketing restrictions would stifle the development of new cigar blends and eliminate events where cigar makers pass out free samples to cigar shop patrons.

Be sure to take a few moments to effectively contact your senators and urge them to not support the Tobacco Tax Equity Act of 2012.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Flickr

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

I can’t say I’d read much about the PIO Cigar Company when I lit up this sharply-pressed $8 offering. The wrapper is dark brown with multiple jet-black splotches, which takes away from an otherwise very attractive cigar. An easy draw reveals cedary wood and roasted nut flavors. The wrapper also imparts a slight spice on the lips. The cigar’s medium- to full-bodied flavors don’t vary much from start to finish, yet the construction is excellent and the flavor is enjoyable. Best of all, the Resurrection Robusto makes me want to try more offerings from PIO.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

With its unusual name and award-winning pedigree, this cigar is intriguing even before you light up. But when you do, the Toro (6 x 52) really begins to shine. Fairly strong, this Nestor Plascencia blend of all Honduran tobacco performs excellently and produces massive amounts of smoke. The leathery taste I often associate with Honduran tobacco is present, but so are many other flavors in this complex stick. I found pepper, nuts, coffee, and a syrup-sweetness all woven together with silky smoothness. Give it a shot for around $7-9.

Verdict = Buy.

–George E

photo credit: N/A

As we have since July 2006, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. Below is our latest Friday Sampler.

1) As we mentioned in the latest edition of our free email newsletter yesterday, May marks the six-year anniversary of StogieGuys.com. It has been our privilege and honor to bring you daily content from the world of cigars (over 2,100 unique posts and counting). Loyal readers will recall that we launched a complete site re-design last year at this time in celebration of our fifth anniversary. We think the new layout continues to provide a cleaner look, easier access to our vast archives of articles and reviews, upgraded search capabilities, and more reader interaction. And while we’re not planning another site overhaul anytime soon, we continue to welcome your comments and feedback so we can help make the next six years even better. Feel free to contact us anytime with your comments or suggestions. And thank you for your continuing readership!

2) If you’re attending the PGA’s The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, this weekend, be sure to pick up a copy of Ponte Vedra Life magazine. The latest issue is a guide to watching the tournament, known as “the fifth major,” and it features an article by the Stogie Guys about golf and cigars.

3) Inside the Industry: Litto Gomez has officially trademarked the Chisel, protecting the cigar shape he invented for La Flor Dominicana in 2003. Ernesto Perez-Carrillo is launching a new line called “Inch” that will feature three sizes with ring gauges of 60 or higher. Miami Cigar & Co. is expanding its La Sirena series with a new blend called “Merloin” that will be offered in three sizes and sell in the $9-11 range. Alec Bradley is releasing the American Sun Grown as a bang-for-your-buck smoke that will sell for around $5.

4) Around the Blogs: Cigar Explorer explores a Padron TAA 2012. Nice Tight Ash checks out a PG Reserva Exclusiva. Stogie Review reviews a Room 101 San Andres. Cigar Brief checks out an Ortega Serie D No. 8. Cigar Coop smokes an Avo XO. Cigar Inspector inspects a Viaje Double Edged Sword.

5) Deal of the Week: This mega-sampler includes 20 cigars for just $60. Included are such cigars as a Romeo y Julieta Habana Reserve Corona, a La Aurora Preferido Cameroon, a Gran Habano Corojo #5, a Don Pepin JJ Maduro, Carlos Torano 1959, CAO Cameroon, Rocky Patel Vintage 1990, an Entubar Double Corona Natural, an Oliva Series G Churchill Cameroon, Gurkha Raider, a Gurkha Gold, Sungrown, Intensa (from Raices Cubana) and a House Resolution (by JC Newman).

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Flickr

Between smoking bans, sky-high taxes, and pending FDA regulation, cigars are seemingly always under siege. But two Massachusetts towns are proposing a new attack  on cigars.

The local health boards of Saugus and Bedford are considering tobacco regulation ordinances that include two provisions that would be specifically devastating to local B&M cigar shops. The proposed regulations would require cigars to be sold in packages of four or more, and would set minimum wholesale and retail prices.

If approved, the tradition of walking into your local shop and buying one cigar to try before buying more would be eliminated. The provisions stem from a Massachusetts law that gives local boards of health power to consider this kind of restriction.

The law would also set minimum prices for cigars. Ironically, if cigar companies got together to establish minimum prices it would be a clear violation of anti-trust laws.

According to research conducted by the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO), while the state of Massachusetts has a minimum cigarette pricing law, there is no similar law in the state setting the minimum price of other tobacco products such as cigars.

NATO is challenging the laws on the basis that the Massachusetts legislature has not passed a statute authorizing local boards of health to set minimum prices for cigars. According to the group, there is no mention of statutory authority for local Massachusetts boards of health having the power to ban the sale of legal cigar products in certain package sizes or set minimum cigar prices.

It’s easy to dismiss this new effort as an isolated incident, but nearly all anti-cigar schemes started in states with anti-tobacco track records, including New York, Massachusetts, and California. Cigar smokers everywhere have good reason to oppose this new attack on cigars and cigar shops before the scheme spreads across the nation.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Wikipedia

What is it about cigars and music? Or, to be more precise, what is it about cigar makers and making music?

Foremost among the musicians in the cigar world undoubtedly is Avo Uvezian. The pianist, performer, and composer has an eponymous line of top-flight cigars created with master blender Hendrik Kelner and Davidoff. Avo also has created a unique aura with his wide-brimmed hats, white suits, and association with “Strangers In the Night.” Lucky is the smoker who’s able to attend an event where it’s possible to light up an Avo and hear the octogenarian entertain at the keyboard.

Next up is an ex-musician who has been turning out top cigars for years, Ernesto Perez-Carrillo. A one-time jazz drummer, he gave up the stage to join his cigar making father in Miami and launched his La Gloria Cubana line that became synonymous with the boom of the ’90s. The former jazz man is still involved with family, as he and his children create cigars that make smokers whistle a happy tune.

Then there’s Pete Johnson. Not only does he share names with an immortal boogie woogie pianist, the younger Pete was a bass player on the Los Angeles music scene before teaming with Don Pepin Garcia to set cigardom on its ear with Tatuaje. Just think how much different today’s cigar world would be if he had kept picking instead of blending.

Charlie Toraño played guitar as a kid and still gets a gleam in his eye when he talks about the pleasure he takes from the instrument. At a recent Toraño event, Charlie spent his down time chatting with the guitarist who was performing at the shop. He seemed to enjoy it as much as talking about his cigars, though no amount of coaxing could get Charlie up on stage.

Rocky Patel, on the other hand, can usually be lured on stage with a simple request, whether it’s to sit in on drums with the Doobie Brothers or tap the bongos at Burn, his club in Naples, Florida. The peripatetic cigar maestro has played percussion since he was a youngster and still loves doing it.

Not all the musical cigar connections involve big names, either. A blender I’ve never met, Alberto J. Medina, writes on the site for his Pio Cigar Co. about selling his bass guitar to get the money to start rolling in Miami’s Little Havana.

And these are just the ones of which that come to mind. There are undoubtedly many others. After all, creativity flows through the cigar industry just as it does through the worlds of music, painting, and other imaginative pursuits. Creating a cigar from many disparate parts and melding a complex operation into a harmonious whole doesn’t seem so much different from conducting a symphony.

So, the next time you light up, listen for—as well as taste—the harmony of the leaf.

–George E

photo credit: Flickr

It’s hard to think of a cigar maker currently on as long of a streak of widely-praised cigars as Ernesto Perez-Carrillo. Ever since founding the EPC Cigar Co., Ernesto has seemingly produced hit after hit.

The Short Run is no exception. So far, the line has resulted in one release per year, although when it was first introduced we were told there might be two Short Run releases per year. The concept is pretty simple: Make a limited run of a blend utilizing tobacco that isn’t available in enough quantities to become a full blend.

The original Short Run, introduced in 2010, featured an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper around Nicaraguan and Dominican tobaccos. The 2011 edition featured an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper around similar binder and filler tobaccos. Personally, I preferred the original 2010 edition, but I’ve talked to plenty of people who preferred the 2011 Shot Run.

The 2012 edition is a slightly different animal. It features the Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper from the New Wave Connecticut around binder and filler tobaccos from the Core Line Maduro (Ecuadorian binder with Dominican and Nicaraguan filler). Unlike the others, in theory they should be able to continue making this cigar (if EPC choses to), since all the components come from regular production lines.

The Short Run 2012 comes in three sizes: Exquisitos (4.9 x 50,) Invictos (5.9 x 52), and the Reinados—which apparently also going by the name Nitidos—(6.25 x 60). The cost ranges from $6.30 to $8.60 with only 1,000 boxes of 24 of each vitola made. I smoked three Invictos for this review. The Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper is slightly splotchy, but it has a bit of oily shine. The cigar is well-constructed. It is firm with an even burn, easy draw, and sturdy ash.

The flavors are perfectly balanced. The profile has lots of cedar, graham spice, and hints of straw, cream, and honey. There’s not much variation from start to finish, but the flavors are pleasant. The cigar is very similar to the original regular New Wave Connecticut, which isn’t a bad thing. But it punches up the body just a bit from medium-bodied to medium-full and adds some extra complexity.

It’s a cigar Connecticut fans will love and non-fans will like. The balanced flavors and solid construction earn the Short Run 2012 Invictos a rating of four stogies out of five.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.]

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys