The Stogie Guys

[Editors’ Note: NEW ORLEANS — Stogie Guys staffers Patrick S and Patrick M are reporting live today from the 78th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show. This convention is where cigar makers from around the world come to showcase their products and debut their new creations. Check back throughout the day for live updates.]

6:00am Central: Yesterday, Bruce Lewis of the Toraño Family Cigar Company told us that the recent changes at the his outfit have been very well received by retailers. The company is releasing three new lines (detailed in our interview with Charlie Toraño last month): Brigade, Master, and Single Region. In addition, Toraño is expanding the Exodus 50 Years series to include a box-pressed robusto size. We also learned that the Signature blend has become a private label exclusive to Famous Smoke Shop.

6:05am Central: Also yesterday, Pinar del Rio’s Abe Flores reported that the new 1878 Capa Madura is doing very well, with 8,000 boxes sold since it launched just over two months ago. Priced around $5 each, he hopes the blend will introduce smokers to Pinar del Rio and his other lines.

12:05pm Central: A quick chat with Litto Gomez revealed some exciting news from la Flor Dominicana, including that Airbender was La Flor’s “most successful release ever.” Debuting at the show is the new Airbender Chisel with a stronger, darker, and thicker wrapper because, according to Gomez, “the Chisel deserves respect.” Also new is the Maduro Soloman. Litto told us that the LG Vintage 2010 and Small Batch No. 3 would be shipping soon. Additionally, new 5-cigar samplers were also available including a maduro sampler with never-before released Coronado Maduro double coronas and Airbender maduros.

12:15pm Central: As expected, CAO released the new La Traviata Maduro in three sizes. I smoked one this morning and found a medium-bodied smoke with lush chocolate and espresso notes. I’m predicting that, much like the original La Traviata, this will be a hit, particularly at its $5-6 price point. Also out for the show are a number of line extensions including a small Cameroon perfecto, a large (6 x 60) Lx2, an Lx2 box press (4 x 45), and four-inch cigars in tins of five for both the Lx2 and La Traviata.

12:25pm Central: My Father will be releasing a Limited Edition line extension that will be personally rolled by Jamie and Pepin Garcia. The Limited Edition will come in coffins of twelve and only 2,000 boxes will be released. MSRP on the Limited Edition will be somewhere between $20-$25 per cigar and will be available in mid to late September.

12:30pm Central: Viaje debuted last year with their Oro and Platino lines and have since followed up with a bunch of micro lines. The line available at the show this year is Sartori, which means “enlightenment. ” Sartori’s MSRP is $12 per cigar and only 450 boxes will be produced. Also new from Viaje is a 50/50 Red Label with two different fused filler blends. Only 450 boxes will be produced.

12:40pm Central: We stopped by El Primer Mundo to talk with owner Sean Williams, who told us about the new Liga Miami that is being handmade in Miami at El Titan de Bronze. The blend is rolled “entubado,” meaning all of the filler leaves are rolled individually instead of being bunched and rolled at once. Then the filler is wrapped with two binders to provide extra support. Liga Miami features a Nicaraguan binder, Nicaraguan and Dominican ligero fillers, and an Ecuadorian sun-grown wrapper with an MSRP of $9.50 per cigar.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Stogie Guys

[Editors’ Note: NEW ORLEANS — Stogie Guys staffers Patrick S and Patrick M are reporting live today from the 78th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show. This convention is where cigar makers from around the world come to showcase their products and debut their new creations. Check back throughout the day for live updates.]

11:30am Central: Before the floor closed yesterday we were able to find out about the latest releases from General Cigar. Headlining were two new Macanudos, both seemingly designed to challenge America’s best selling cigar brands’ mild image. Already announced was the Macanudo Vintage 1997 Maduro, a first for Macanudo, which features a metal band/cigar holder that will ship with the first 70,000 cigars. Also announced (for an early October release) is the Macanudo Cru Royale, featuring an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, proprietary Dominican binder, and Nicaraguan,  Dominican, and Brazilian mata fina filler. The blend was created by master cigar maker Benji Menendez and originally designated for General’s Partagas line before the decision was made to release it under Macanudo.

11:45am Central: Also from General Cigar are two new La Gloria Cubana blends. Artesanos de Obelisco is a box-pressed pyramid inspired by the “Monument to the Heroes of the Restoration” obelisk in Santiago. The cigar ($9 MSRP) comes in a distinctive semi-circle box and uses an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, Connecticut broadleaf binder, and Dominican and Nicaraguan filler tobaccos. Meanwhile, La Gloria Serie N is a new Nicaraguan heavy line of four sizes with an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper. Rounding out General’s new cigars is the Hoyo de Monterrey Reposado en Cedros, which uses a proprietary aging process designed to impart extra cedar flavors. It sells for $6.50-$7 each and comes in three sizes. Also of note from General is that the Cameroon-wrapped Hoyo Excalibur 1066 is changing names and bands, and will now be known as Hoyo de Monterrey Cameroon.

11:50am Central: Most of Davidoff’s new products are accessories. Two of the most interesting are the Davidoff Lacquer White Palladium Series, which includes a Prestige Lighter, Double Cutter, and Round Cutter. The second accessory is a new set of porcelain ashtrays called Mosaic and Phoenix. On the cigar front, Davidoff will be introducing a Maduro Toro to compliment the Robusto and Corona already in the line. They are also adding a Maduro to the Primeros line. Primeros Maduro will have an Ecuadorian Sungrown wrapper. Earlier in the year Davidoff rolled out a new line, Puro d’Oro, which they say is continuing to do really well. We inquired about the Colorado Claro and were informed it may be as long as 10 years before we see it again as it takes that long to store up enough tobacco to make a release.

11:55am Central: The Joya de Nicaragua camp is adding a box-pressed Toro (6 x 52) to both the Dark Antaño and regular Antaño lines.

12:05pm Central: Drew Estate has launched the Dirty Rat as part of the regular production of a new line, Unico Serie, under which all of the company’s unique cigars will fall. Contrary to what many have believed, the Dirty Rat doesn’t share a blend with either the No. 9 or the T-52. It will be sold in boxes of 12 at an MSRP of $12 per stick. Steve Saka, president of Drew Estate,  said the “Dirty Rat isn’t a limited release, it’s just a pain in the ass to make.” Drew Estate will also be adding a Belicoso and a Corona Doble to the T-52 line, as well as a 3,000-box run of the T-52 Flying Pig. In the Acid line, “Toast” will now be available nationwide. Lastly, Drew Estate has partnered with Starbuzz and will be releasing a line of Acid Shisha for Hookah Smokers.

1:35pm Central: Kurt Kendall, owner of 7-20-4, gave us the scoop on this dead trademark for a brand of clear havanas that was produced in a factory in Manchester, New Hampshire. About four years ago, Kurt started the process of obtaining the expired trademark and is now producing cigars under the name again. The cigars are made in Honduras with a Brazilian mata fina wrapper, Costa Rican binder, and a filler blend of Nicaraguan, Honduran, Mexican, and Colombian tobaccos. 7-20-4 introduced two new sizes: a Londres and the “Dog Walker,” which is about the size of a petit corona.

1:50pm Central: Dion Giolito of Illusione doesn’t have any new products this year other than the Singulare, which will be a yearly, limited release that will change sizes and blends every year. Dion said that Singulare is the mildest cigar that he makes. He described it as being very light on the palate with most of the taste coming through the nose. The Cruzado Domenicos is being phased out and replaced with a Domenicos Extra: a 6 inch by 56 ring gauge cigar. Under the Illusione line, he also has an HL Maduro and an HL Candela. When asked about why he chose to make a candela, he replied that he loves them and always smokes them and wanted to make one of his own. Epernay gets the Le Matin as a box-pressed line extension. Nosotros will be getting a facelift with the addition of a second band on the cigar and the Illusione warranty seal on the boxes.

3:00pm Central: As expected, Avo debuted their new Heritage line. A spicier, more full-bodied blend than Avo smokers may be used to, it uses the LE 2009 “compañero” wrapper from Ecuador and a Dominican San Vincente binder with filler consisting of Dominican ligero, Dominican seco, and Peruvian seco. It is being launched in four sizes that will sell for $7-9.50.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Stogie Guys

[Editors’ Note: NEW ORLEANS — Stogie Guys staffers Patrick S and Patrick M are reporting live today from the 78th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show. This convention is where cigar makers from around the world come to showcase their products and debut their new creations. Check back throughout the day for live updates.]

6:00am Central: Before I arrive in New Orleans, here are a few thoughts on what to expect this year. One trend we’ll see more of are brick and mortar exclusive cigars. Cigar makers know that small independent smoke shops are the hardest hit by smoking taxes and bans, so offering them some protection from being severely undercut by online and catalog prices makes a cigar more desirable to a shop owner. I’ll also be curious to see the prices of new cigars. After year after year of higher and higher prices on new cigar lines, we saw some more reasonably priced introductions at last year’s show.

8:30am Central: Before hitting the Trade Show floor today, it’s worth mentioning that Hendrik “Henke” Kelner from Davidoff gave a tasting and blending seminar last night. The event started with a quick overview of the different factors that are responsible for the way tobacco tastes. Those factors were broken into three categories: cultivation (soil, climate, seed, leaf position, farmer), manufacturing (curing, fermenting, aging), and production (expertise of blender). He also discussed how different regions of the tongue respond to different taste stimuli (sweet, salty, bitter, acid) and that blending a cigar is really directing how the tongue is stimulated. After that quick overview, we smoked three pure grade tobaccos to determine which part of the tongue that particular tobacco was stimulating. Then we smoked a completed blend of the three tobaccos, which turned out to be a Davidoff Gran Cru No. 3. Finally, we smoked two more Gran Cru No. 3s, but each with different wrappers. Overall the experience was very educational and I highly recommend attending a tasting and blending seminar if you get the chance. Davidoff has been giving them across the country as part of the roll out of the Puro d’Oro.

8:50am Central: Yesterday, StogieGuys.com provided a preview of the Trade Show entitled “Cigar Smoke Descends Over New Orleans” for Tucker Carlson’s The Daily Caller. You can read the whole article here.

11:15am Central: Our first stop this morning was Altadis,where we learned more details about the cigars we covered in yesterday’s preview. The new H. Upmann Sungrown, made at the La Flor de Copan factory in Honduras, will be available in six sizes ranging in price from from $6.25 to $7.75. Altadis’ new Nicaraguan line, Warlock, comes in five sizes, priced $5.50-6.50. The A. Turrent Triple Play Maduro comes in five sizes, all selling for between $7 and $8.

11:20am Central: Altadis also told us about two new interesting lines. The first, Dos Familias, is a collaboration of the Turrent and Ortez families that’s made in Nicaragua with a San Andreas criollo wrapper around Nicaraguan and San Andreas binder and filler. Also previously unannounced is the Don Diego Fuerte, an extension that’s made in Nicaragua by Omar Ortez with an Ecuadorian Cubano wrapper, a Nicaraguan binder, and filler from Nicaragua and the Dominican. It comes in five sizes and is priced from $5-$6.50.

12:35pm Central: We stopped by the Cuban Crafters booth to get the latest from Don Kiki Berger. The only “new” line is the J.L. Salazar Maduro, which has been available for some time but is only now a regular full production series. The always friendly Don Kiki said he’ll have something new in a few months. Prompted by a reader’s question, we asked about the Miami Medina Habano and were told that, despite being well-received, they aren’t being made right now and only a few remain at their Miami headquarters. You won’t find them online, but if you ask a Cuban Crafters retailer to order some, or call headquarters directly, you may be able to get them.

3:15pm Central: Felipe Gregorio has three new lines coming out. The first is Vallejuelo, which features an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper an a blend of Cuban-seed lijero filler. Vallejeullo will be available in three sizes with an estimated MSRP of $4.50-$6.00. W20 is another new line, this one celebrating the 20th anniversary of the company just like the Power celebrated the 15th anniversary. W20 has a marrón Habano 2000 wrapper and tis supposed to cater to those looking for full-bodied cigars. Finally, Felipe Gregorio is releasing the rosado-wrapped Minotaur at a price point of $15 a cigar for the only size in the line. Minotaur is sold in boxes of 15 and was made at the request of a prominent cigar distributor in France. It is blended to approximate the profile of Cuban cigars to make it more marketable in Europe. Interestingly, none of the new lines say Felipe Gregorio anywhere on the product, and it appears the company may be moving away from that name as part of their marketing. Also of note is that the company says their business is much stronger abroad than in the U.S.

4:55pm Central: Alan Rubin of Alec Bradley gave us the rundown on his new lines. First up was the Maxx Connecticut, which was crafted in response to requests from his sales staff. He told us you can’t build your name on a Connecticut wrapped cigar, but he felt that his brand is now established enough that it could produce a well-received Connecticut cigar in its Maxx sizes.

5:05pm Central: While he was enthusiastic about the new Maxx, Rubin was most excited to tell us about the new Tempus Maduro. To get the maduro leaf, he resurrected an old Cuban technique where the pulp of canna fistula fruit is boiled and the resulting liquid is sprayed on aging pilons of wrapper leaf along with water. Rubin says the process causes the maduro leaf to age more quickly, thus maintaining a full flavor while also having the traditional sweetness of a maduro. The new Tempus Maduro is available in five sizes and Rubin says the reaction from cigar shops has been very positive.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Stogie Guys

[Editors’ Note: NEW ORLEANS — StogieGuys.com co-founders Patrick A and Patrick S are reporting live today from the 77th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show. This convention is where cigar makers from around the world come to showcase their products and debut their new creations. Check back throughout the day for live updates.]

11:00am CDT: First stop this morning was General Cigar, where they are debuting two new brands as well as some interesting line extensions. La Escepción (the name is a Cuban brand that was discontinued 20 years ago) features General’s exclusive Nicaraguan Ometepe tobacco as a binder around Nicaraguan filler surrounded by a Honduran habano Talanga wrapper. It will sell in the $6-7 range and comes in three sizes, including a figuardo (5 x 54). We also heard that General Cigar is  hoping to use the Ometepe tobacco, which comes from a Volcanic island with uniquely rich soil, as a wrapper in a future cigar.

11:15am CDT: Another new General brand is Brioso, which retails at the value price of $3-4. It features a Honduran Jamastran wrapper, a  Connecticut  habano binder, and a blend of Dominican, Nicaraguan,  and four types of Mexican filler. Also of particular interest is “Upper Cut,” an extension of the Punch line based on one of the Punch Election cigars released last year, and new sizes in the La Gloria Cubana Serie R and Macanudo 1968 lines.

11:45am CDT: Sam Leccia, creator of Nub Cigars, told us how he embraces the need to come out with new smokes every year. He showed us the new Nub Maduro, featuring a Brazilian Arapiraca wrapper. He also showed us his new Cain “straight ligero” cigars, which come with either a Nicaraguan habano or maduro wrapper. While Cain does feature three different types of Ligero tobacco, it isn’t 100% ligero because, according to Sam, a small amount of other tobacco is necessary to create a proper burn.

[View all of our shots from the IPCPR Trade Show at the official StogieGuys.com Flickr album.]

–Patrick A & Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

[Editors’ Note: NEW ORLEANS — StogieGuys.com co-founders Patrick A and Patrick S are reporting live today from the 77th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show. This convention is where cigar makers from around the world come to showcase their products and debut their new creations. Check back throughout the day for live updates.]

11:00am CDT: In our search for a cutter, we stopped by the Palío booth where we saw their new sportsman cutter series and also a new Churchill size of the Escencia cigar that they released at last year’s show. We also stopped by the Arganese booth where Gene Arganese gave us the story behind “S-This,” which he figures will save smokers over 40 cents per cigar.

2:30pm CDT: Just met with Jesus Fuego who told us about his new 777 Corojo made with a Brazilian corojo wrapper. His father is growing the corojo wrapper in Brazil and Fuego says he is the only one to have access to it, which will be the focus of some upcoming limited releases.

3:45pm CDT: Got the run down on the new smokes from Altadis. Some of the highlights were a Siglo Limited Reserve Maduro, Montecristo 75th Anniversary, Frank Llaneza 1961, Romeo y Julieta Maduro, and a Bering Puro Nicaragua.

4:30pm CDT: Dropped by the Padrón booth and saw the highly-anticipated Padrón Reserva de Familia 45th Anniversary. Due out in September, the box-pressed smoke will be released only in a maduro wrapper at first, with a natural wrapper possibly to come later this year.

[View all of our shots from the IPCPR Trade Show at the official StogieGuys.com Flickr album.]

–Patrick A & Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

[Editors’ Note: NEW ORLEANS — StogieGuys.com co-founders Patrick A and Patrick S are reporting live today from the 77th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show. This convention is where cigar makers from around the world come to showcase their products and debut their new creations. Check back throughout the day for live updates.]

2:30pm CDT: This afternoon we checked in, collected our passes, and took a brief walk around the trade show floor.  The huge space doesn’t officially open until tomorrow, so currently everyone is scrambling finish setting up the intricate displays designed to show off their wares.  Some of the biggest areas belong to General Cigar, Altadis, Rocky Patel, Oliva, Ashton, Davidoff, and the Cigar Family (seen below). Other booths are smaller and more modest.

3:30pm CDT: While walking the show floor we ran into our good friend Alberto Noguera of Cuban Crafters, who introduced us to Don Kiki Berger. Kiki told us how his father fled Poland during the run up to World War II and eventually settled in Cuba where he learned the tobacco trade. He also told us about his new smoke, Entubar, which is releasing under the Berger & Argenti brand. Pictured below (from left to right) are Patrick A, Kiki, Steve Ashby (Patrick A’s father), Alberto, and Patrick S.

4:00pm CDT: In our preview on Thursday we mentioned Arganese was creating a two-in-one cigar designed to minimize the SCHIP tax. Below is a photo of the cigar, called “S-This.” What might not be clear from the photo is the cigar is really two smokes, connected at their heads with an extra bit of wrapper that can easily be removed by the smoker. So while for tax purposes the consumer is buying five cigars, in reality they get ten smokes. Sneaky.

4:30pm CDT: We overheard that Louisiana’s cigar excise tax is being applied to cigars given away on the floor. If so, it could put a damper on the number of samples that makers will be giving out. We’ll be following up with more details on this story, but rumors are the tax may be as much as $1 per cigar.

[View all of our shots from the IPCPR Trade Show at the official StogieGuys.com Flickr album.]

–Patrick A & Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Patrick S and Jon N will be reporting live this week from the 76th Annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show in Las Vegas. Check back regularly for updates throughout the day.

Patrick S (7:00 AM PDT): Today is our last day of live reports from the show. Not surprisingly, last night’s CAO party with Lyrynd Skynyrd rocked. They played all the hits including Free Bird for the big finale.

Jon N (7:00 AM PDT): Patrick and I stopped by the Isla de Cuba booth yesterday to sample two of the brand’s latest offerings. I tried out the Wango Tango “longie” (a 7 inch by 38 ring gauge lancero), while Patrick lit up Blend 376 in a robusto-extra size (5.5″ x 50). I found the smoothly wrapped, beautifully constructed lancero to have a pleasing draw with plenty of smoke; I got lots of pepper and cedar from the medium to medium-full body. Patrick enjoyed his 376, whose flavors he described as “nutty and earthy, with just a hint of leather.” For the record, the Wango Tango lancero is wrapped and bound in Connecticut broadleaf tobacco, with a four-country blend of Central American fillers. The Blend 376 (so named, apparently, because Isla de Cuba “went through 375 blends before they chose this one”) is wrapped with Mexican San Andres leaf, with a Nicaraguan binder and a blend of fillers from Nicaragua, Honduras, and other “secret” Central American tobaccos. Much like the Classic and Aged Maduro lines, these offerings from Isla de Cuba did not disappoint, and I look forward to trying out some more in the coming months.

Patrick S (11:25 AM PDT): This morning we started out stopping by the PG booth to check out the new Soiree line, a “full-bodied after dinner cigar.” I also smoked a PG Gourmet petit corona from 1995 that was fantastically smooth, and Jon lit up a Gourmet corona which he describes as “nice and smooth, a little woody with a touch of pepper.” I’ll be dining with the Garmirians this coming Monday at Morton’s.

Patrick S (11:35 AM PDT): Our next stop was Arganese for the new ML3 and CL3. We also landed some samples of the Arganese Edición Especial Dos Capas, a very cool-looking barber poll perfecto which we will be reviewing in the coming weeks. Additionally we learned that Arganese will be making a line of cigars with Joe Gannascoli, the actor who played Vito Spatafore on the cigar-friendly HBO hit The Sopranos. Naturally, we snapped a photo of Joe with Gene Arganese (right).

Patrick S (1:30 PM PDT): J.C. Newman’s new stuff at the IPCPR is mostly in the accessories area, with new humidors and hygrometers, but we did hear about something they are working on for 2009. They plan to roll out an extension of the Diamond Crown line called the Julius Caesar (after the original “J.C.” who started the company over 100 years ago). The line will be stronger than the current Diamond Crown blend and will consist of three different perfecto sizes. They are currently working with the Fuentes to perfect the blend, which they hope to release at or before next years’ IPCPR.

Patrick S (1:40 PM PDT): This will be my final update from Las Vegas before I fly back to Washington, but I wanted to add that being at the show reinforced my feeling that the cigar industry is full of generally friendly people who are in it as much because they love cigars as for the profits. I wish I had two more days because there are many more booths and people that I wanted to visit with. Overall, I leave with a very optimistic view of the industry. While marketing gimmicks may be part of the trade, manufacturers understand that cigar smokers want quality and interesting smokes, and they are trying to meet those demands. It should be a good year for Stogie Guys everywhere…

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Stogie Guys