The Stogie Guys

Last week, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) announced the start of a new comment period on proposed rules regarding how the agency regulates tobacco products, including possibly cigars.

Through June 14, 2018, the FDA is accepting public comments relating to a new proposal for reduced nicotine cigarettes. The strategy is part of the agency’s new harm reduction approach to regulating tobacco products. Cigarette regulations were mandated by the Tobacco Control Act (TCA), which was signed into law by President Obama in June 2009, and the FDA formally expanded tobacco regulations to include cigars in May 2016.

Although the rule largely deals with cigarettes (the primary target of FDA regulation under the TCA), the new rulemaking could have a significant impact on cigars. The Advanced Notice of Proposed Rule Making asks for comments about creating regulations that would reduce the amount of nicotine in cigarettes on the grounds this would make it easier for those who want to quit smoking.

Harm reduction as a whole has drawn praise from many who see it as a more scientific approach than the FDA under the Obama Administration, which focused on stopping new products from reaching the market. Still, the nicotine reduction approach has its critics, including those who say mandating reduced nicotine cigarettes would result in black markets and international smuggling.

Part of the rulemaking notice addresses the potential impact on premium cigars and how they should be treated under a nicotine reduction approach:

Some suggest that large cigars and those cigars typically referred to as “premium” cigars should be regulated differently from other cigars, asserting that they are used primarily by adults and their patterns of use are different from those of regular cigars (81 FR 28973 at 29024). FDA requests information and data on whether large and/or so-called premium cigars should be excluded from a possible nicotine tobacco product standard based on asserted different patterns of use, and whether large and/or so-called premium cigars would be migration (or dual use) candidates if FDA were to issue a nicotine tobacco product standard that excluded premium cigars from its scope. FDA also requests data and information on whether and how there is a way that, if FDA were to exclude premium cigars from the scope of a nicotine tobacco product standard, FDA could define “premium cigar” to include only unlikely migration or dual use products and thereby minimize such consequences.

In response, Dr. Gaby Kafie, president of Kafie Trading Company, LLC (maker of Kafie 1901 cigars), responded with an open letter to FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, whose appointment by President Trump was supported by many cigar industry groups. Kafie, a physician, addressed the issue of nicotine in handmade cigars and why cigars are fundamentally different from cigarettes and many other tobacco products:

It is known throughout the premium cigar industry (cigar factories) that our tobacco products do not cause addiction. Addiction is directly related to nicotine levels absorbed in the process of smoking. Unlike cigarettes, the tobacco used in premium cigars is fermented for long durations of time (6 – 18 months or longer). The fermentation process is done to specifically remove ammonia from the tobacco. This removal of ammonia from the tobacco reduces nicotine absorption by cigar connoisseurs.

I have always had certain beliefs about premium cigars, tobacco, ammonia, and nicotine absorption and efficacy in humans. I have always known that premium cigars are a poor nicotine delivery method to humans.

The last part of that passage is key to the opportunity this new FDA approach provides to handmade cigars who have been uniquely restricted by FDA regulation, since thousands of new cigars have been introduced every year, unlike cigarettes where new products are relatively rare.

Handmade cigars, because of their artisanal nature, the techniques used to make them, and the costs associated with them, are an inherently inefficient way to deliver nicotine. Unlike cigarettes, traditional cigars are produced to achieve flavor and combustion qualities, not  manipulated for nicotine levels.

While handmade cigars do contain nicotine since they are made of 100% tobacco, adults who choose to smoke handmade cigars do irrespective of their relative nicotine content. In fact, as Dr. Kafie observes, the production techniques that make premium cigars attractive to smokers tend to reduce cigars’ ability to deliver nicotine.

This is compounded by the fact that, when used properly, cigars are not inhaled, which also reduces nicotine absorption.

In the coming weeks, we’ll have more on what consumers should include in their comments to the FDA about this new proposal. In the meantime, know that this new FDA approach represents both a threat and a possible reprieve for handmade premium cigars.

Should the FDA more forward with its nicotine reduction proposal without exempting cigars, it would create massive compliance costs that could further reduce the introduction of new cigars, which largely use the same production techniques as cigars have used for hundreds of years (and therefore effectively the same levels of nicotine). Subjecting handmade cigars to nicotine reduction regulations would crush the creativity that drives the premium cigar industry and leave what little new cigar production that could survive such regulation in the hands of scientists and bureaucrats, rather than master cigar makers with skills handed down through generations.

Meanwhile, the upshot is the new proposed reduced nicotine regulations seem to recognize the regulatory framework that might make sense for cigarettes can’t and won’t work for cigars, especially under an FDA regime focused on harm reduction. The cigar industry should embrace the opportunity to point out again (as it did when the FDA created the current framework for cigar regulation) that cigars are a unique, handmade product, and that cigar smokers don’t smoke cigars for their ability to deliver nicotine but because they appreciate the unique aspects of this artisanal handmade product.

–Patrick S

photo credits: 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.”

Often overlooked in La Palina’s now-expansive portfolio is the La Palina Classic. The line has been updated with three wrapper varieties (Rosado, Maduro, and Connecticut) in three sizes each (Robusto, Toro, Lonsdale) made at General Cigar Dominicana. Today, though, I’m smoking the orginal Classic blend in a Lancero size ($8), which was made at PDR Cigars with a Brazilian Habano wrapper, Ecuadorian binder, and Dominican and Nicaraguan filler tobaccos. The cigar features balanced, medium-bodied, roasted notes: coffee, cream, milk chocolate, cashews, and light cedar. Lanceros have a tendency for finicky construction, but this one was razor straight from start to finish.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Collaborations are nothing new in the cigar industry. In fact, some very large brands are the result of collaborations between a brand owner and an otherwise unaffiliated factory. While the La Gloria Cubana Colecction Reserva is also a collaboration (between La Gloria Cubana and Ernesto Perez-Carrillo Jr.’s Tabacalera La Alianza S.A.), it’s hardly the first time Perez-Carrillo has been associated with La Gloria Cubana.

The non-Cuban version of La Gloria Cubana was made for years by Perez-Carrillo, who gained prominence as one of the original boutique cigar makers in the 1990s. In 1999, the brand, along with El Credito Cigar Co., was sold to General Cigar’s parent company.

Perez-Carrillo stayed with General for another decade until he left to start his own family-controlled company and established the Tabacalera La Alianza S.A. factory in Santiago’s Zona Franca. La Alianza is just minutes away from the General Cigar Dominicana factory, also in Zona Franca, which is the current home of La Gloria Cubana. (General Cigar has La Gloria Cubana cigars made in a separate El Credito area inside the facility to keep some production techniques distinct from other brands.)

Colección Reserva isn’t even the first collaboration between General Cigar and Perez-Carrillo in recent years. That would be the limited edition Re+United from a few years back. And the commercial relationship goes back even further than that. (I recall seeing EPC boxes being made at the General Cigar box factory back in 2011.)

La Gloria Cubana Colección Reserva is made at La Alianza, as opposed to General Cigar Dominicana (where Re+United was produced). It is distributed by General Cigar which, by most accounts, is the largest importer of handmade cigars in the United States.

The cigar has an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper around Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos. It is packaged in 20-count boxes in 3 sizes: the Robusto I smoked (5 x 54), a Torpedo (6 x 54), and a Churchill-sized Presidente (7.5 x 54).

The Robusto features woodsy notes along with with leather and salted roast cashew. There’s a slight red pepper spice that lingers on the inside of your lips and also some nice sweetness (berries and dates), especially in the middle third of the cigar.

It’s a medium- to full-bodied smoke with a lingering tannic finish. Nicely textured smoke coats the palate like a fine powder.

The Robusto has a relatively loose draw and spongy feel, but construction doesn’t suffer any ill effects. The ash holds firm for at least a full inch and the burn is straight on all three samples I smoked.

In addition to enjoyable flavors and solid construction, the price ($7.59) makes this an impressive offering. If the same cigar were made for Crowned Heads (also a La Alianza customer) would it not have earned more buzz?

No matter the answer, if this is the future of collaboration in the cigar industry, sign me up. Full, complex flavors, good construction, and a fair price earn La Gloria Cubana Colección Reserva Robusto a rating of four and a half stogies out of five.

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

–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.”

This Honduran-made Robusto (5 x 52) features a Nicaraguan Corojo Shade wrapper, “Habano and Nicaragua” binder, and Habano, Nicaraguan Cubita, Colombia, and Costa Rican filler tobaccos. The well-constructed cigar (very form to the touch, but with an excellent draw) features a slightly greenish-tan wrapper and retails for around $9. It creates a balanced combination of coffee, cedar, cream, and some slight pepper spice. Gran Habano’s marketing materials call this a full-bodied cigar, but I found it to be more medium. I also found it to be enjoyable.

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.”

Gran Habano’s La Conquista sports a Nicaraguan Corojo wrapper, an unspecified Nicaraguan binder, and filler tobaccos from three countries: Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Colombia. The Gran Robusto (6 x 54) features medium- to full-bodied flavors with light cedar, brown bread, and cafe-au-lait. In the final third of the well-constructed cigar, some dried fruit notes (raisins and dates) emerge.

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.”

This 2015 release from La Flor Dominicana features a Brazilian wrapper, Mexican binder, and Dominican fillers. Nox means “night” in Latin, and with a dark wrapper and deep flavors the moniker is fitting. The Toro (6.5 x 50) produces burnt hickory, licorice, and roast nut notes. Some sweetness kicks in towards the final third. La Nox begins full-bodied, though it mellows slightly to a more medium profile. Rich flavors and excellent construction make this easy to recommend.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

In November. the A. Smith Bowman Distillery announced a new addition to its Bowman series of bourbon whiskey: Issac Bowman, a straight bourbon whiskey finished port barrels. The Virginia distillery traces its roots to before prohibition, and relocated from Fairfax County (now a suburb of Washington) to Fredericksburg, Virginia.

Today, it is owned by Sazerac, which owns Kentucky’s famous Buffalo Trace Distillery, home to some of the biggest names in bourbon today: Pappy Van Winkle, George T. Stagg, Weller, Eagle Rare, and Blanton’s. Although details are limited, it is believed that most of the Bowman bourbons were distilled at the Buffalo Trace distillery, shipped to Bowman for additional distillation, then aged in Virginia.

The Bowman line is named after the Bowman brothers, who fought in the Revolutionary War: Bowman Brothers Small Batch Bourbon, John Bowman Single Barrel Bourbon, and Abraham Bowman Limited Edition Bourbons. There’s also a George Bowman Revolutionary Rum, named after their father. While youngest brother Isaac had been left out, the popularity of multiple Abraham Bowman limited edition bourbons finished in port barrels inspired the new permanent addition to the line.

While the Abraham Bowman Port Finish bourbons which were aged for over 12 years, the new Issaac Bowman line is reportedly aged for about half as long. The bourbon is copper in color with short legs.

The 92-proof bourbon features a sharp nose of cherry, vanilla, and wine tannin. On the palate, I find a combination of toasted grains, fresh cut oak, cherry cola, and caramel. The finish has roasted flavors and notes of red wine aged in french oak.

Those flavors pair well with an Ecuadorian Habano-wrapped cigar. Some favorites include: Tatuaje Havana VI Verocu, Sobermesa, Illusione Garagiste, and My Father.

One benefit of living in Virginia is the state-run liquor stores carry Bowman bourbons that would otherwise be harder to find. The new Issaac Bowman port-finished ($40) was released first to Virginia, but is expected to roll out to other states soon.

I slightly prefer Angel’s Envy Bourbon ($50) to Isaac Bowman, but fans of Angel’s Envy should try this bourbon, too. Both prominently display the flavors imparted by finishing the bourbon in port barrels, though Angel’s Envy is more balanced while Isaac Bowman is more forward and brash. Neither is as excellent as the limited release Abraham Bowman Port Finish (pictured right) but, of course, that sold out years ago and is nearly impossible to find.