Stogie Guys Friday Sampler No. 376
28 Mar 2014
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) Alaska is currently one of fewer than ten U.S. states that don’t have a statewide smoking ban. But that may be changing. While anti-tobacco forces in America’s biggest state have been pushing for smoking regulations for over a decade, a bill recently introduced by Rep. Lindsey Holmes (R-Anchorage) has made it further than any other effort to criminalize smoking statewide inside bars, restaurants, and other workplaces. And Alaska certainly isn’t the only state where anti-tobacco measures are under consideration. A newsletter issued this week by the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association lists 20 different states with legislative proposals ranging from mail order prohibitions and tax hikes to smoking bans and raising the legal tobacco age from 18 to 21.
2) During a Congressional hearing yesterday, FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg responded to a question from Representative Kevin Yoder, a co-sponsor of the Traditional Cigar Manufacturing and Small Business Jobs Preservation Act of 2013, which would prohibit the FDA from regulating premium cigars. In her response, Hamburg said that cigars would be part of a rule that the agency would be “hopefully putting forward for public comment very soon,” and also she said that she felt it was “very appropriate for FDA… to take [cigar regulation] on.”
3) Want to know more about cigar tasting? There’s a fascinating article in Bon Appétit exploring how your taste buds and olfactory senses work and, more importantly, how they can change dramatically over the years. While it’s obviously focused on food, the solid information applies to cigars as well.
4) Inside the Industry: Drew Estate has announced a new vitola for its popular Undercrown line called Dogma. A box-pressed cigar, it will measure 6 inches long with a ring gauge of 56. The limited run of 10-count bundles will be sold through Smoke Inn exclusively at a price of $9.95 per cigar or $99.50 per bundle. Pre-orders are being taken starting today.
5) Giveaways: Win a five-pack of Undercrown Dogma. Win a box of limited edition Punch Rare Corojo Salomones. Win a year of free cigars.
5) Deal of the Week: Emersons Cigars is featuring this five-cigar sampler for just $25. Included are the CAO OSA Sol, Rocky Patel Edge Habano, Room 101 Master Series, Toraño Master, and the Affinity by Sindicato.
photo credit: Flickr
1) Viva República, a boutique cigar brand made at La Aurora’s facilities in the Dominican Republic, will be distributed by Miami Cigar & Co. starting April 1. Jason Holly, Viva República’s “smokemaster general,†is also joining the Miami Cigar & Co. staff. He created Viva República, which debuted at the 2012 industry trade show, and its three blends: Rapture, Rapture Maduro, and Guerilla Warfare. “I am proud to have Viva República in the Miami Cigar family of lines we distribute,†said Jason Wood, vice president of Miami Cigar. “In adding Holly we bring on another valuable team member, who has seen the industry from the traditional retailer’s eye. He is highly creative and can add to our strategy immensely.†Miami Cigar is best known for distributing the Nestor Miranda and La Aurora lines. Viva República cigars are expected to continue to be produced at La Aurora under the guidance of Guillermo León.
1) The Goldie series from La Palina, launched in 2012, is adding its third size. Called the Laguito Especial, the fan-capped vitola will measure seven inches long with a ring gauge of 40 and be presented in boxes of 10. Only 2,500 boxes will be made, and they’ll start hitting stores in late May. Crafted at El Titan de Bronze in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood, each Goldie cigar is rolled by Maria Sierra. “Maria is one of the first women trained to roll cigars in Cuba,†according to a La Palina press release. “Her historic 32-year career at Villa El Laguito began July 22, 1967. Maria is a 95-rated, category-9 roller trained by Fidel Castro’s personal roller… as well as Avelino Lara, the creator of the legendary Cohiba blend.â€
1) In response to the looming threat of regulation, Cigar Rights of America (CRA) has formed the Connecticut-Massachusetts Tobacco Growers Association—a group aimed at protecting American farmers who would be adversely impacted by FDA oversight of hand-made cigars. “We have written about and proclaimed extensively the impact federal regulation of cigars could have on more than 350,000 jobs in Latin America,†wrote CRA Executive Director Glynn Loope. “Now it’s time to discuss the American farmer.†Connecticut Shade and Connecticut Broadleaf are among the most in-demand tobaccos for premium cigars. The FDA threat “brings into question the impact federal regulatory authority… could have on a valley that spans both Connecticut and Massachusetts and happens to produce some of the world’s most sought-after cigar leaf,†says Loope.
1) Arguably the most celebrated family in the cigar industry today has announced a new cigar that’s slated for release before the end of 2014. The Garcias, including patriarch Don PepÃn Garcia (pictured), are planning a line called La Antiguedad (Spanish for “the antiquityâ€). It will feature an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper around double binders (Nicaraguan Criollo and Nicaraguan Corojo). The filler tobaccos will also be Nicaraguan, and it will be made at the heralded My Father Cigars factory. All five sizes will be box-pressed and the prices will range from $6 to $10.
1) A heist recently occurred at the A.J. Fernandez warehouse in Sunrise, Florida. According to a press release from 
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