The Stogie Guys

This week StogieGuys.com is in Las Vegas covering the 79th annual International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers (IPCPR) Association Trade Show—the convention where cigar makers from around the world come to showcase their products and debut new creations. Check back throughout the day for updates, and keep an eye on Twitter for even more.

Early Morning Update: Yesterday was a busy day for me, and it was also a busy one for cigar makers as they took orders from retailers. The real test will be if traffic and sales hold up, or if the strong sales were just a function of people getting their buying done quickly so they can enjoy a few days of vacation in Sin City.

As we reported in our Trade Show preview, Tatuaje has plenty of new releases. Highly anticipated is the Black Petit Lancero, which was displayed next to the recently released La Vérité 2009.

Fausto is based on the T110 blend and, by all accounts, is a real powerhouse. Avion is a box-pressed perfecto that features the same blend but the size makes it less powerful.

La Casita Criolla features a blend made entirely of Connecticut broadleaf tobacco. The 7th Capa Especial is the same blend as the Brown Label but with a Sumatra wrapper.

Every year Tatuaje puts out a special Halloween-themed release like “Boris,” “The Face,” “Frank,” and “Drac.” This year’s will be “The Wolfman,” a box-pressed torpedo with an unfinished foot. A limited number of special boxes will be available. (more…)

This week StogieGuys.com is in Las Vegas covering the 79th annual International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers (IPCPR) Association Trade Show—the convention where cigar makers from around the world come to showcase their products and debut new creations. Check back throughout the day for updates, and keep an eye on Twitter for even more.

Early Morning Update: Yesterday I attended the IPCPR seminars conducted for members of the association (StogieGuys.com is a Online Media Member of the IPCPR). In the first seminar, IPCPR brought in an expert on social media marketing to help “de-mystify” social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc…). Some cigar makers and cigar shops have completely embraced social media (La Aurora, Tatuaje, and Drew Estate come to mind) and they’ve reaped the benefits, so it’s good to see the IPCPR educating its members on how to reach cigar smokers through social media, though I could have done without the constant sales pitches in the presentation. (I’m not sure whether this seminar was in the works already, but I should note that at one point we had discussed with the IPCPR leading a similar panel on social media and blog outreach, so obviously I thought the seminar topic was a good idea.) The second seminar featured an expert on productivity and increasing job satisfaction. This was also good to see because (as I’ve written) there’s nothing worse than a lazy or apathetic employee ruining what should be a great cigar shop experience.

The final seminar, and my personal favorite, was a tasting seminar lead by José Blanco (who we interviewed here). Last month Blanco announced his retirement from La Aurora after 30 years with the company, but he didn’t leave before leading his famous tasting seminar one last time. Attendees smoked one cigar (pictured above) with five different wrappers. The experience lets smokers experience the impact of each wrapper (Ecuadorian-grown Connecticut, Cameroon,  Ecuadorian-grown Sumatra, Brazilian mata fina, and  Dominican corojo) on the flavor. (more…)

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.”

By the time this is published, I’ll be firmly on the ground in Las Vegas to cover the IPCPR Trade Show for the fourth straight year. But writing (still from Virginia) I figured I’d get a jump on things by smoking a cigar that won’t officially be released until the convention opens Monday morning. I’ve yet to confirm any details about the newest cigar from Sean Williams’ El Primer Mundo, except for the fact that I’m holding this tightly constructed, double-banded robusto in my hands. Epifania (Italian for “epiphany”) features medium-bodied woody flavors and subtle sweet molasses notes. It’s a well-rounded, balanced smoke with significant spice on the finish. It paired well with the spicy notes of an Elijah Craig 18 Year Old bourbon.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credits: Stogie Guys

Next week the center of the cigar world will be right in the middle of the Las Vegas Strip, as the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show returns to the Sands Expo and Convention Center at the Venetian Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. As we have each year since 2008, the last time the show was in Las Vegas, StogieGuys.com will be on the trade show floor providing updates on the many new cigars set to be released.

I’ll be providing live updates starting Monday morning from the middle of the action. But just because the trade show doesn’t open until then, that doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty to report already. Here are some of the high-profile new releases that we already know about: (more…)

The bill to keep the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) from regulating premium cigars as part of its newly acquired tobacco oversight is inching along in Congress. The latest advance is a few more co-sponsors—including a second Democrat—putting the total at 22.

“We’re still pushing the bill,” George Cecala, spokesman for Rep. Bill Posey, the Florida Republican who introduced the bill in April, told me the other day. He added that the congressman, described by Cecala as an occasional cigar smoker, is especially concerned about potential job losses if FDA cigar regulations are adopted.

What’s needed now is for you to join the push by getting in touch with your representative and urging support for the bill, known as HR 1639.

It could be a milestone for cigar regulation. It would constitute legislative recognition of premium cigars for a reason other than taxation and establish an even sharper distinction from cigarettes. As such, it would make it easier, and more likely, for premium cigars to be excluded from future regulations.

Now I know there are smokers who consider it heretical to argue for favoring one form of tobacco over another. They believe that everyone who uses tobacco should be fighting every restriction on every form. Frankly, to me that’s not only impractical; it’s detrimental for cigar smokers.

(more…)

Elected officials looking to raise cigar taxes to close budget deficits should look at New York State before proceeding. Despite two large tax increases, tax revenues from cigar taxes have fallen off dramatically.

In 2009, the state raised taxes in “Other Tobacco Products” (OTP) from 37% of the wholesale price to 46%. Then, in July 2010, the tax went up again to 75%—the highest in the nation. On top of its OTP tax, New York has a 4% state sales tax that is also applied to cigars and other tobacco products.

Meanwhile, taxes collected on premium handmade cigars have fallen over 50% from over $8 million per year in 2007 to about $4 million in 2009. The 2010 numbers aren’t available at this time, but Empire State retailers have observed continued declines. (more…)

Florida is the cultural, historical, and economic center for the U.S. cigar industry. That makes the Sunshine State’s legal climate for cigar smokers worth watching.

Unfortunately, smokers’ rights are once again under attack in Florida. Kathleen C. Passidomo, a state representative from Naples, has introduced House Bill 211, which would amend the Florida Clean Indoor Air Act. A companion bill has also been introduced in the State Senate by Alan Hays. Part of the Florida Clean Indoor Air Act is a preemption by the state in the area of smoking regulation. What this means is that unlike California, where municipalities can pass anti-smoking regulations that are stricter than the state statute, local governments in Florida cannot pass their own local anti-smoking regulations.

The proposed bills would change the language in the preemption section from “this part expressly preempts regulation of smoking to the state and supersedes any municipal or county ordinance on the subject” to “this part expressly preempts regulation of indoor smoking to the state and supersedes any municipal or county ordinance on the subject.” Adding “indoor” makes a huge difference because it would allow local municipalities the unfettered right to create legislation that bans smoking in outdoor areas such as sidewalks, beaches, and public parks.

Jeff Borysiewicz, owner of the Orlando-based Corona Cigar Co. and board member of IPCPR and CRA, summed up the importance of this legislation. “In 2002, when the Florida Clean Air Act was passed with a 71% majority, it was clearly understood that the law would ban indoor smoking in restaurants and workplaces. Back then, no one even imagined that smoking could be banned outdoors.”

“It was clearly the intent of the voters that outdoor bans were not part of the deal and that the government’s powers to further expand smoking bans would be limited by the preemption clause,” Borysiewicz continued. “Even today, public polls show that 65% of the public do not support outdoor smoking bans even though less than 20% of the adult population smoke.  Why?  Because most people believe that Americans should still have the freedom to make adult choices without ‘Big Brother’ telling them how to live their lives.”

Florida smokers should take note and work toward stopping passage of this bill, or they may find the number of places they are allowed to smoke significantly reduced. Unlike many places, Florida has struck somewhat of a balance between the “rights” of non-smokers to be free of secondhand smoke and the rights of smokers to be able to go out and enjoy a cigar in public.

If either of these bills are allowed to pass, that balance will suddenly end. Florida smokers should to visit the Cigar Rights petition page and take the steps listed to help prevent the bill’s passage and protect their right to smoke in outdoor places around the state.

“If you can’t smoke a cigar inside, and the government wants to ban smoking outside, where the heck are you supposed to be able to smoke? Enjoying a cigar should not be a crime,” Borysiewicz told us. “Let’s speak up and let our elected officials hear from us that enough is enough. Cigars are still a legal product and America is supposed to be ‘the Land of the Free.’ It’s our patriotic duty to fight to keep it that way.”

–Patrick S & Patrick M

photo credit: public domain