The Stogie Guys

Smoke shop customers in Florida have been reading a new magazine over the past few months. The colorful publication with the ironic name has grown in pages, distribution, and coverage. Here, publisher and editor Erik Calvino, who is based in Miami, answers questions about starting a new publication, the Florida cigar scene, and industry concerns.

SG: When did your first issue come out?

EC: Our first issue hit the street in May 2006. It was a thin, pamphlet-looking thing but we were proud of it.

SG: What prompted you to put out a magazine?

EC: I have always enjoyed writing about things that I am passionate about. And one night in 2005 while smoking a stogie and driving up to Tampa to visit a client in my previous life as an IT consultant, I started toying with the idea of putting out a magazine. I had written briefly for IT industry magazines so I knew that this project would entail ungodly hours of work…and it does. But I couldn’t wait till the morning and sometime around midnight I called my dad (and business partner) and said, “Do you know anything about the magazine business?”

SG: What niche are you trying to fill?

EC: We are all about the local cigar scene. There are plenty of publications out there that deal on a national level and do it well. We are not like them and don’t ever aim to be like them. Our niche is your town, your store, your cigar bar, your cigar-friendly eatery…that’s what we are about. Before Florida Cigar Snob Magazine there was no economically feasible and effective way for a cigar shop to let you know it was there. There was no effective way to inform you that it was hosting a herf, a smoker, a tasting, etc. Now they do.

SG: I understand you’re expanding your circulation area. Where is the magazine now available? What are your expansion plans?

EC: Florida Cigar Snob is currently circulating from the Keys to up to Orlando with the heaviest concentrations in Miami, Broward, Palm Beach County, Tampa Bay, and Orlando. We are steadily making our way northward till we hit the state line. We anticipate that by the May 2008 issue we will have most of the state well-covered. In addition, our website is a great way for folks to check out the magazine. Our site offers the ability to view the magazine in its entirety for free or subscribe to the printed version for one year for only $12.

SG: How have you been accepted in the marketplace?

EC: Overwhelmingly positive. I am grateful for the acceptance that we have received from the cigar business. Both manufacturers and retailers alike have been interested and excited about the idea from day one. As a result of this acceptance, we boast some big cigar advertisers that we are proud to have on our pages. But by far the most rewarding part of this business is the appreciation from cigar shop owners and customers as we visit the different shops in the state. Smokers love the fact that the magazine is about them.

SG: Do you do other magazines?

EC: We don’t publish anything else at the moment. Publishing a magazine of an acceptable quality requires more work than most people can imagine. But certainly as things become easier and my time gets freed up a bit, we will expand the operation further. By that I do not mean to take the Florida Cigar Snob national, I mean to start up another local publication. The local scenes get our blood pumping!

SG: What are your connections to the cigar industry?

EC: We have some solid connections in the cigar industry that were essential to the creation and development of Florida Cigar Snob Magazine. The Oliva Cigar Family, namely Jose Oliva, and I are dear friends. It was Jose Oliva that first introduced me to smoking cigars some 13 or 14 years ago. My grandfather smoked cigars and I loved the smell but I had never taken a puff. But when your friends’ family name is on the box, you have to give it a shot. So Jose gave me a quick lesson on the preparation and lighting procedure, and I was off and puffin’. Mind you I had never smoked anything up until that moment…other than secondhand smoke, I had zero exposure. Needless to say I drove home in second gear that night…and I was instantly hooked. The next day I thanked Jose and asked him where I could buy a box.

For more information on Cigar Snob Magazine, visit www.cigarsnob.com.

–George E

Tags: cigars

In three years, Mike McCarthy has built his cigar shop in Palm Harbor, Florida, into a premiere spot that both customers and manufacturers respect and admire. In a highly competitive arena – at least four more shops are within easy driving distance, numerous other nearby outlets carry premium cigars, and then there’s the seemingly endless array of Internet sellers – his focus is on cigars.

At MJM Fine Cigars, the store is the humidor, and the walls are lined with hundreds and hundreds of facings from scores of manufacturers. It is the kind of selection some smokers can only dream of.

When you talk to Mike, his passion quickly becomes apparent. He talks about constantly reading, researching, and evaluating new ideas to improve his operation. He’d like to see cigar sites and blogs do more promotion for local shops and put less emphasis on Internet prices. Otherwise, he said, “one of these days, there are going to be no local guys left.”

He said he’s well aware that trying to compete on price alone is a poor business plan. No matter how low you go, there’s always someone willing to go lower: “If you’re going to play the pricing game, you’re going to lose every time.”

His philosophy is centered on having what cigar smokers – newcomers and sophisticates alike – are looking for and on treating them well when they visit his shop in a strip center on busy U.S. 19 north of Clearwater.

“What’s made me successful,” Mike explained, “is romancing these cigars and getting guys to try different things…Why anybody would want to open a shop and sell the same old stuff is beyond me.”

Mike’s also not interested in expanding the small seating area, with a TV, at the front of the store. His plans for renovation and expansion are aimed at creating more space to showcase additional premium sticks.

“Hey, man, if you’re a cigar dude, you want it. You read the magazines and you want to find something different…you’ve got a better chance than not of finding it here. You want the same old stuff, bro, you can go anywhere,” he said.

Another hallmark of Mike’s shop is a monthly cigar event, where he’s presented top industry figures like Pepin Garcia. An avid pipe smoker, Mike also custom blends tobaccos and carries an impressive array of high-end pipes. He hosts monthly meetings of the Bay Area Pipe Guild at MJM.

His experience in the business goes back more than 25 years when he worked at a cigar shop while attending college. He was in and out of the trade over the years and got back full-time by opening MJM in 2004.

One of the most important things he’s learned, he said, is to focus on the “average guy.”
To that end, Mike said he tries to use common sense and rely on his own experiences.

“I think the average guy wants to have a good selection, wants to be treated fairly, he wants to be remembered when he comes in,” he said. “Charge him a fair price, have some events, throw him a bone every now and then, and he’s happy. I consider myself an average guy.”

But he’s got a store that’s way above average.

–George E

Tags: cigars

Known to many simply as “El Tiante,” Luis Tiant is a baseball legend. With 229 career major league wins, there are many who believe the three-time All Star – one the best big game pitchers of all time – belongs enshrined in the Hall of Fame. (He was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1997.)

Next month marks the 25th anniversary of the Cuban-born pitcher’s final major league game, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t been busy. El Tiante, long an avid cigar smoker, recently launched his own brand of cigars: El Tiante.

In this special edition of our Ask a Cigar Insider series, Tiant took some time to answer my questions about baseball, stogies, and his own special blend of cigars.

SG: How long have you been enjoying cigars? Do you remember your first smoke?

LT: This year is my 50th smoking cigars. I began when I was 17 years old. My first smoke was when I signed a contract playing baseball with the Mexico City Tigers.

SG: Do you ever smoke Cuban cigars these days? What do you think of them?

LT: Yes, on occasion I still do smoke Cuban cigars. They are not what they once were. A lot of them I don’t even finish.

SG: I’ve read you used to smoke cigars during baseball games. Did you sneak off between innings when you were pitching, or did you only enjoy cigars on your off days?

LT: Haha, no I didn’t do that. But I was always pushed by teammates to go out on the mound with a cigar in my mouth. As to the second part of your question, I always enjoyed smoking cigars on the days I pitched and on my days off. Both before the game started and once it ended I would light one up in the clubhouse.

SG: With so many quality cigars out there, why did you decide to make your own cigars? Can you tell us a bit about how you chose the tobacco?

LT: Smoking cigars was always my trademark during my entire professional career. Why not do something now in my later stage in life that I’ve enjoyed for already half a century? I always enjoyed mild cigars which is odd for a Cuban person, but I wanted my cigars to be mild and smooth with lots of flavor. Tabacalera Tambor has done a great job for us finding me blends that fit my taste. For a year straight we went through a process of smoking many blends, mixing and matching until we came to the blends that we use right now for our natural and maduro lines.

SG: What was the greatest challenge in starting up your cigar manufacturing operation?

LT: Finding a manufacturer to make our cigars to my exact specifications and would focus on us, along with the other lines that they produce. Someone who takes pride in their cigars the way I took pride in putting on that baseball uniform for 25 professional years, playing the game I love so much.

SG: How do you keep cigars in your personal humidor? Cellophane on or off?

LT: I don’t have time to keep them in my personal humidor because I smoke them too quickly…When I do put them in my humidor it doesn’t matter to me whether they are in cellophane or not. As long as my humidor is properly taken care of, my cigars will be fine.

SG: In your opinion, what is the best beverage to enjoy while smoking a fine cigar?

LT: I’m a scotch drinker, but when it comes to finding a drink I enjoy with my cigars it has to be either a good glass of port or Cuban coffee. Majority of times when I smoke the first thing I look for is my Cuban coffee.

SG: Finally, a non-cigar question: As a pitcher you were known for your distinctive pitching motion. How did you develop that unorthodox delivery?

LT: I started my career as a power pitcher who got his fastball up into the 96-98 mph range. After a year off from winterball, which in those days was unheard of for Latino players, I had a dismal ’69 season after a great season in ’68 where I went 21-9 with 1.60 ERA. I was traded to Minnesota from Cleveland and suffered an arm injury, which led to my release. My attempt for a comeback went from the Braves organization to Boston where I ended up resurrecting my career. My loss of velocity made me change my style of pitching, and from that came the development of my unorthodox style in order to keep hitters off balance. The rest is history.

Many thanks to Luis Tiant for taking the time to answer our questions. For more information about his cigars, and to find a retailer near you that carries El Tiante, please visit www.ElTianteCigars.com

–Patrick S

Like so many in the cigar business, Jesus L. Fuego is a friendly guy. At a recent store event to introduce and promote his new line of cigars, he chatted and joked like the host of a party. He really seems to live up to his goal: “I’m making a cigar for me and sharing it with the people.”

The Fuego family’s involvement with tobacco dates to 1876, and he has worked with numerous manufacturers. He’s often credited as the “mastermind” behind a number of Rocky Patel cigars, including the Vintage 1990 and 1992. Fuego went out on his own last year and introduced his eponymous cigars in December.

Fuego has two lines: the Natural and the Gran Reserva Corojo No. 1. Each comes in five sizes and MSRP ranges from $5.50 for the Natural Corona (4.5×46) to $10 for the Gran Reserva Grande (6.5×58).

The Natural is milder, what Fuego calls an every day smoke. “The people who smoke light will not feel it too strong,” he said. “The people who smoke strong will not feel it too mild.” The Gran Reserva is darker and stronger. Fuego prefers to call it full-flavored and said his aim in creating it was to eliminate harshness.

Both cigars are multinational blends. The Natural sports a Criollo wrapper and tobacco from three countries, while the Corojo-wrapped Gran Reserva blend represents four nations. All the tobaccos, Fuego said, are grown specifically for him.

He is selling through B&Ms, doing numerous events such as the one where I chatted with him at MJM Fine Cigars in Palm Harbor, Florida, a few hours from his company’s headquarters in Coral Gables. And he was looking forward to promoting his brand at the RTDA show currently taking place in Houston, Texas.

Although he isn’t selling directly to the big Internet cigar retailers, he said some of his shop customers offer the cigars on their online sites. Fuego has no website of its own.

Fuego said he won’t introduce anything new for at least a year, taking that time to get established in the marketplace and build on what he called a very good initial reception. Yet, he said, he’s always working on new blends and testing them, seeing what his father and others think.

“That’s pretty much what we do: make a blend that we enjoy and put it out there and see.” Fuego said. “If people like it, it will be good. If they don’t like it, what can I say — I’ll have a lot of cigars I can smoke.”

–George E

Tags: cigars

The Fuente Opus X may be considered the most elusive cigar in the world, but did you know Fuente makes a stogie that’s even rarer than the Opus X? That cigar is the Casa Fuente, and it’s only available at the Casa Fuente store in Las Vegas.

On a recent trip to the “Entertainment Capital of the World” (also known as sin city) I had the opportunity to visit Casa Fuente and talk cigars with Michael Fayerverger, the general manager. As we talked in the humidor, he told me the vitola that best demonstrates Casa Fuente’s flavor profile is the five and ¾ inch by 52 ring gauge Double Robusto.

Michael also generously agreed to take a few minutes to answer some questions for the third edition of our “Ask a Cigar Insider” series.

SG: Who’s the most interesting person to visit Casa Fuente? Can you tell us a bit about your customers?

MF: I think the most interesting person to meet was Andy Garcia, who attended our grand opening. You see all his movies and they’re great, and then to see him in person, makes it that much better. Plus he is a very close friend of the Fuentes. We get customers from all over the world; from entertainers to the average tourist to our local and repeat customers, and everyone has a cigar story. So it’s great to have such a diverse group of customers.

SG: Your store is the only place people can buy the Casa Fuente cigar. What makes that blend so special?

MF: From what we’re told, it’s a blend of Opus X, with a Cameroon wrapper. This makes it a phenomenal tasting cigar.

SG: If you could only smoke one specific cigar for the rest of your life, what would it be? If you had to pick a cigar not made by Fuente/Newman, what would it be?

MF: The cigar I’d pick would be the Ashton Virgin Sun Grown Spellbound. If I had to pick a cigar not made by Fuente/Newman, it would be a La Flor Dominicana LG.

SG: Casa Fuente has a very extensive list of drinks. What is your favorite beverage to enjoy while having a smoke?

MF: My favorite drink is a refreshing Mojito, made with 12-year-old Montecristo Rum.

SG: In your personal humidors, do you keep the cellophane on or off? Why?

MF: Both. The ones that come with cellophane I leave on. The ones that don’t have cellophane, that’s the way I keep them. Everyone seems to have different answers on the way they keep their cigars. I like to look at the cellophane after the cigars have been sitting three or more years, because the cellophane turns all yellow, and then I know I’m in for one hell of a cigar.

SG: When the Las Vegas smoking ban went into effect, your store had to go to court to continue to allow people to smoke on the patio. What’s the status of that litigation?

MF: First we filed a restraining order. Then we had our court date, which I’m happy to say we won. So smoking on the patio at Casa Fuente is a big go.

Thanks to Michael Fayerverger for taking the time to answer our questions. During your next trip to Las Vegas, be sure to visit Casa Fuente in the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace.

–Patrick S

Tags: cigars

Back in February we published two Quick Smokes featuring Cuban Crafters cigars: a Cameroon Robusto house blend and a J.L. Salazar Reserva Especial. Both fared very well.

If you’re not already familiar with Cuban Crafters (and you should be, especially if you like great smokes at inexpensive prices), they are purveyors of premium, boutique cigars that are “made in small batches with attention to each and every detail.” You can read more about how Tabacalera Esteli grows and cures their tobacco here.

Today we’re honored to have Alberto Noguera, national sales director of Cuban Crafters, as the second guest on our Ask a Cigar Insider series. Pictured below with famed cigar legends (from left) Don Kiki and Jorge L. Salazar, Mr. Noguera discusses his cigar-related hero, what makes boutique cigars unique, and why his cigars are “Cuban.”

SG: How long has Cuban Crafters been in the cigar industry?

AN: Don Kiki has been in the cigar industry his whole life. Tabacalera Esteli, our cigar manufacturer, has been in business for 14 years, and Cuban Crafters has been in business for five years.

SG: What’s something all cigar enthusiasts should know about “boutique” retailers like Cuban Crafters?

AN: Boutique premium cigars, like the ones sold at Cuban Crafters, are handmade in small batches and limited quantities. This assures quality and consistency. All this is possible due to the fact that we are the farm and factory of our own cigars. There is no greater detail on quality, and the tobacco leaves are hand-selected to create a distinguished, complex flavor. While difficult to find in many cigar retailers, boutique premium brands are something different from the ordinary mass-produced cigars commonly available in most shops. Their flavor and aroma is unmatched.

SG: Cuban Crafters doesn’t sell Cuban cigars, so what’s with the name?

AN: Cuban Crafters is owned and operated by Cubans that fled the island. All the tobacco grown by Cuban Crafters is Cuban seed tobacco, and all our cigars are made the old fashioned Cuban way.

SG: Who is your cigar-related hero?

AN: Orlando Padrón. His field and factory is close to ours, and he taught Don Kiki how to maintain quality – especially the principle of quality over quantity.

SG: If you could only smoke one cigar (that Cuban Crafters doesn’t produce) for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?

AN: The Padrón Aniversario, which has the same floral taste as our J.L. Salazar and Cuban Crafters Cabinet Selection lines. They are made with rich sun grown Habano tobacco, our favorite full-bodied leaves.

Many thanks to Alberto Noguera for taking the time to answer our questions. To get a taste of premium Cuban Crafters cigars, be sure to visit www.CubanCrafters.com.

–Patrick A

Tags: cigars

Back in early March we asked Stogie Guys Nation, “What do you really want to know about cigars?” You responded with a wave of interesting questions, many of which were used to create questionnaires that will be distributed to various leading figures in the cigar industry.

Today you’ll finally get some answers. In the first part of our Ask a Cigar Insider series, John Sullivan – manager of the JR Cigar store in Washington, DC – discusses famous clientèle, favorite smokes, cigar aging, and more.

SG: Who’s the most interesting person to visit your store? Can you tell us a bit about your customers?

JS: We have many interesting people come into the store. Some are famous some are not. But they all love cigars. We have been visited by Jake Lamotta (The Raging Bull) and Gerry Cooney. Sen. Fred Thompson used to come in. Ambassador Joseph Wilson and Rep. Tom Delay, but not at the same time. The former DC Mayor Tony Williams came in all the time, that is until his cigar smoking became politically incorrect. The best thing about this store is when someone comes in the only label they wear is “cigar smoker.” We have university presidents talking with truck drivers. People meet and talk across all sorts of social divides.

SG: If you could only smoke one specific cigar for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?

JS: I know it may seem odd but the cigar I would pick is the JR Ultimate Petite Corona Double Maduro. Just the right size to enjoy and not last too long. The maduro wrapper is a bit sweet, and this cigar can be smoked any time of day. It comes in a nice cedar box and…well, enough said. I think I’ll have one now.

SG: Conversely, what specific cigar are you surprised people keep buying?

JS: What a tough question. A “good” cigar is a cigar you like, so to pick one that’s “bad” is only a result of personal taste. But, if you must know, I personally dislike Onyx. I think it’s a cigar that doesn’t live up to it’s reputation. For a company that’s supposed to be a maduro specialist, Onyx smokes dry and too woody for my taste. No sweetness at all. But we sell the cigar at a decent rate. So again, a “bad” or “good” cigar is a personal decision.

SG: In your personal humidor(s), do you keep the cellophane on or off? Why?

JS: I do both. I have to admit my humidor is a collection of various cigars from a wide range of wrappers and blends. I keep the cello on to help protect the individual cigar from blending in taste with the one next to it. I should keep them separate, but I take care of my store much better than my personal humidor.

SG: Are you a believer that cigars get better with age? What affect do you think aging has on cigars?

JS: This question kind of goes with the cello question. I do think cigars get better with age, but only to a point. I think that when a cigar is bought it should be placed in a humidor for a period of time. This allows the cigar to pick up some moisture, and will ultimately make it much more enjoyable. Keeping cigars in a cedar-lined humidor helps them blend the different leafs into one taste. In this case, if it’s all the same cigar or blend, take the cello off to allow the effects of humidity and cedar to infiltrate the cigar. Cigars sometimes come to my store that are still too young to smoke. There is an ammonia taste. This means the tobacco has not yet aged enough.

Many thanks to John Sullivan for taking the time to answer our questions. For all you DC-area Stogie Guys out there, be sure to visit his JR Cigar store at 1730 L Street, NW.

–Patrick A

Tags: cigars