The Stogie Guys

We’ve written about how CAO leads the cigar industry with its innovative marketing strategies, so it comes as no suprise that, once again, CAO is bringing something new and unique to market:

Lovers of unusually shaped and creatively crafted cigars should examine C.A.O.’s Brazilia vs. Italia: Artistry of Champions sampler set. The collection of five cigars breaks new ground in cigar making. Two of the shaped cigars are C.A.O. Italia blends, two are C.A.O. Brazilias and one is a combination of the two blends dubbed “Bratalia.” Two of the cigars feature oversized trumpets with feet nearly wide enough to serve as baseball bats.

By the way, those “trumpets” are the 96 ring gauge cigars that we wrote about a few weeks back (the ones that were scaled down from 137). At $100 dollars for the set, these five cigars certainly aren’t cheap, but there’s nothing else like them on the market.

So if you’re feeling adventurous and burdened by too much cash in your wallet, pick up the Artistry of Champions sampler set at your local cigar retailer…and feel free to send one over to the Stogie Guys!

-Patrick S

In a bombshell development that yielded both subdued prayers and massive celebrations, Fidel Castro handed the reins of the Cuban government to his brother, Raúl, to cope with “an intestinal crisis with sustained bleeding” that required “complicated surgery,” according to a letter read Monday night on Cuban television.

As a cigar connoisseur who has no sympathy for the ruthless dictator who has held Cubans’ freedom hostage since he took control of the island in 1959, the first question I asked myself was, “Is this the beginning of the end of the trade embargo?” Sure, the world’s longest-reigning dictator might be on his deathbed, but – more importantly – when can I legally purchase Cuban cigars?

It’s true that we can’t expect major reform from Raúl – who has been at his brother’s side from the beginning – anytime soon, but many foreign policy experts believe he is more pragmatic than Fidel, and therefore more open to economic reforms.

Coincidentally, just three weeks ago, the Bush administration commissioned a report detailing what the U.S. government would do to foster democracy on the island in the event of Castro’s death. The multi-agency paper cited humanitarian aid and help organizing free and fair elections as cornerstones of post-Fidel American-Cuban relations.

Any political novice could tell you not to hold your breath waiting for the trade embargo – which was signed by JFK in 1962 – to end, but if Raúl is open to economic and political reforms, the legality of Cuban stogies in the U.S. is a possibility in the next decade or so.

For now, just keep smoking them illegally.

-Patrick A

As our readers are no doubt aware, we are baseball fans as well as Stogie Guys. (I root for the surging Mets, while Patrick A is a fan of the pitiable Cubs.)

And while you may be tired of our rantings about baseball, cigars, and the Washington Nationals’ apparent indifference to having half their stadiums’ seats remain empty (even though a plan to put paying customers in some of those seats already exists), I am going to harp on this issue some more with the promise that – barring something extraordinary – it will be the last time for a while.

Last week in the Weekly Wrapper column the godfather of cigar publications, Cigar Aficionado, weighed in on the whole baseball and cigars issue. Author and Mets fan Mike Marsh writes:

What’s also exciting, at least from a cigar smoker’s standpoint, is the recent influx of cigar bars into Major League ballparks. OK, so it’s only been two, but isn’t that a start?

In April, PNC Park, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates and host of this year’s All-Star Game, opened the Montecristo Club. Then in June, Christian Eiroa and Camacho Cigars struck a deal with the Detroit Tigers to open the Camacho Cigar Bar at Comerica Park. They join the Cuesta-Rey Cigar Bar at Tropicana Field, which has been accommodating cigar-smoking Devil Rays fans since 1998, as the only full-blown cigar bars in the majors.

But the key quote was from one Tigers executive who properly described the beauty of cigar smoking at the ballpark:

Baseball is a relaxing sport… Enjoying a cigar and a drink goes along with that. We want fans to have a well-rounded experience when they come to the ballpark, and cigars reach out to another segment of our fan base.

Our thoughts exactly! Now if only other teams would reach out to the cigar smoking segment of their fan bases…

-Patrick S

I usually don’t get this excited about public transportation, but I just can’t wait for the Macanudo Bus to pull into Washington on its American Passion Tour.

A so-called “cigar lovers’ paradise on wheels”, the traveling cigar lounge allows lucky patrons to partake in premium smokes while relaxing in the luxurious bus, or outside on it’s “green carpet” decked out with high-end patio furniture.

Most recently, the bus – a mobile replica of Club Macanudo in Chicago – pulled into the PGA Tour’s Western Open in Lemont, Illinois. These fortunate golf fans (including my folks) had the opportunity to unwind in Macanudo lavishness, including a big screen television, a putting green, and a blackjack table with a dealer. Complimentary cigars abound, of course.

While it doesn’t appear as though the American Passion Tour will be rolling into the nation’s capital anytime soon, a quick glance at Macanudo’s events webpage reveals the magical mystery tour may be coming to your neck of the woods sometime in the near future (especially if you live in Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, or Louisiana).

If you’re lucky enough to catch the bus, take some pictures and send them along with a short description of your experience. We’ll share your photos and anecdotes with Stogie Guys the world over.

One final note: How sweet would it be to earn a living driving a huge cigar bus – smoking, relaxing, and sharing stories with fine stogie enthusiasts across America? What a long, strange trip that would be…

-Patrick A

I don’t want to make a habit of writing posts in response to reader comments, but in our effort to make StogieGuys.com an open forum for cigar enthusiasts – and simply for the sake of invalidating false information and idiotic opinion once purported as fact – this time I can’t help myself.

An anonymous comment was left on Friday’s post regarding our proposal to the Washington Nationals to create a temporary cigar section at RFK Stadium for an upcoming home game. As you know, the Nats rebuffed our suggestion.

But this guy – who didn’t have the balls to leave his name…and who claims to have a law degree from the University of Virginia (cough) – made some superfluous and blatantly bogus fabrications apparently in an attempt to suggest that our proposal was a bad idea.

In the following paragraphs, I will address Mr. Anonymous’ ridiculous lies and outrageous claims one by one. Enjoy.

[I]t [has] been proven unprofitable for private establishments to allow smoking because of the negative impact it has on non-smokers.

Wrong. If it was profitable for private businesses to ban smoking, they would do so on their own (thereby eliminating the need for Draconian government intervention). And who could blame them? Businesses are in business to make money, and good businesses will do what it takes to increase their profit margins. Private establishments should be able to choose what amenities to offer on their own, and many have already done so. But the sad fact is that smoking bans at their root are not about business; they’re about imposing the tyranny of the majority on minority smokers.

[I]t is also illegal for RFK Stadium to have a cigar smoking facility in the stadium. In my expert legal opinion (UVA Law School ‘04) RFK would not be exempt from the Washington, DC smoking ban. Because it would be run by Aramark, the stadium’s operator, and it would be run inside the stadium it would be counted as part of the profit of the stadium. This means it would not meet the required income from tobacco products to be exempt under DC’s smoking ban. Sorry to rain on your parade.

Well, sorry to rain on your parade, but your “expert” legal opinion is utter bullshit. The DC ban only prohibits smoking in indoor public places. If you have ever been to RFK, you will notice the giant, gaping hole where a roof would need to be for the ban to apply.

That being said, I certainly do not want to discourage readers from leaving comments on StogieGuys.com. Feedback from fellow cigar-lovers is one of the most exciting and rewarding aspects of this hobby, and constructive criticism is always appreciated. But if you’re going to leave anonymous, false, and/or dim-witted ramblings, please be advised that I just might call you out on your lies.

Finally, to whoever left the comment: Grow some balls, write back, identify yourself, and engage us in debate. Anonymously hit-and-running while claiming falsehoods as expert fact is just plain cowardly.

-Patrick A

In my June 30 post announcing the Washington Nationals rebuffed our proposal to create a temporary cigar section at RFK Stadium, I argued there is an “indisputable demand for cigar friendly sections at major league ballparks.”

Demand for these facilities is evident in the highly popular cigar sections at the Pittsburgh Pirates’ PNC Park, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays’ Tropicana Field, and the latest case in point: the Camacho Cigar Bar at the Detroit Tigers’ Comerica Park.

Since it’s grand opening on June 23 (the Tigers beat the Cardinals 10-6), the new stogie haven has been inundated with Motor City baseball fans/cigar enthusiasts. And with top-shelf liquor, a delicious menu, large screen televisions, lounge sofas, and a wide assortment of Camacho cigars, it doesn’t look like the bar’s popularity will wane anytime in the near future.

The Camacho Cigar Bar is located on the Club Level of Comerica Park along the first-base side and is open to luxury suite owners and guests, and to any fan sitting on the Club Level or in the Tiger Den area. The bar is open two hours before game time and for an hour after the last out…The real attraction is the full selection of Camacho cigars, including SLR Maduros and Tubos, Corojos and La Fontanas. Prices range between $6 and $12 and humidified cigar lockers are available.

As you might have guessed, I’m going to assert this story is proof positive that our proposal to the Nats for a Stogie Guys Cigar Night at RFK would be successful. And I’m also going to take this opportunity to ask you, once again, to please consider signing our online petition to help make that event a reality.

-Patrick A

The 230th anniversary of our nation’s independence is not only a great opportunity to barbeque, drink, and – of course – have a cigar. In unfortunate times of war, it’s also a time to somberly remember those Americans who are jeopardizing their lives in the name of the greatest country on Earth.

Lets all take a few moments today to give thanks for those brave patriots overseas. Whether or not you support the war, we can all agree to support the troops…and hope for their safe return.

Speaking of which, the photo is a friend of a friend who is currently working on predator drones for the military for Boeing in Iraq. He is seen here smoking a stogie with a gigantic sandstorm in the background. Pretty hardcore, eh? You can see all of his pictures here.

So while you’re biting into that hamburger, gulping from that bottle of Sam Adams, taking a puff from that Punch, and enjoying that splendid array of pyrotechnics in the sky, take a few moments and think of our countrymen abroad. They deserve a good cigar on Independence Day more than anyone.

-Patrick A