Cigar Industry Report: Volume 3, Number 1 (11/30/13)

The Cigar Industry Report is a one stop place to catch up on the activity here at Cigar Coop and Stogie Geeks. It is a combination of our news reports, cigar reviews, and assessment updates we do throughout the week. We will also recap what happened on our Stogie Geeks show. Finally, each week we will look back at Cigar Coop history. Look for this report every Saturday morning at 8am Eastern time.

This week’s report is a little longer as we have some housekeeping items being put in place for the 2014 Cigar Year.

Happy New Year

Wait it’s November 30th, but on November 29th (the day after Thanksgiving) we started the 2014 Cigar Year on Cigar Coop. We will update all of our volumes on Editor’s Corner and the Cigar Industry Report to be “Volume 3”. The 2014 Cigar Year will run through November 27th 2014 (Thanksgiving).

New Name

Speaking of the Cigar Industry Report, this feature has a new name. We have replaced Cigar Week Wrap with Cigar Industry Report. We are striving to be the most comprehensive and reliable news report in the cigar industry. You can be sure that on Saturday morning a 8am Eastern, this report will be published and you can make this a part of you Saturday morning routine. The combined strength of Cigar Coop and Stogie Geeks (and now partnering with Cigar Federation) brings the most complete ecosystem the cigar media realm has ever seen.

We are also adding a “Feature of the Week” this will be a new addition to the Cigar Industry Report, We will pick one topic/review/news item – Cigar Coop or Stogie Geeks-related and expand on it a little in this section.

Further Integration with Stogie Geeks

One big change you will see is in our Reviews, Pre-Reviews, and Assessment Updates. Where applicable, there will be references to a Stogie Geeks podcast and Stogie Feed entry. This is another step in the development of this media ecosystem. It will allow you to hear or read our thoughts on this cigar when talked about on the podcast.

There will be two other changes we are implementing. First up, the Cigar Coop numerical scoring will undergo a slight change. It will make it a little harder to achieve a high score, but hopefully it will put our scores in-line with the industry norm. In October, we also implemented the unique Stogie Geeks scoring system. We will now make a change factor a price/value component into that rating. This is how Stogie Geeks does it and we want to be consistent. As for our numerical scores, they will remain price agnostic. This provides a good mechanism to contrast how well a cigar scores versus its value proposition.

Expect still tighter integration with our Stogie Geeks brand to come – and look for some exciting things for 2014.

Epic Encounters Begins December 1st

On December 1st, we begin the most exciting time of the year at Cigar Coop – our “Epic Encounters – 2013 Cigar of the Year Countdown”. Tomorrow’s Editor’s Corner will kick off the series – as well as the first entry – cigar #30.

Feature of the Week: Pete Johnson Discusses 2014 Plans for Tatuaje

We were proud on Stogie Geeks to have as our special guest, Pete Johnson of Tatuaje Cigars for Episode 75. Johnson has built one of the most passionate followings in the cigar business. In this very special conversation, we talked to Johnson about his start in the cigar business, how he connected with Don Pepin Garcia and his family, a review of some of the work he has done in 2013, and of course a look ahead into 2014. The plans for 2014 show there is no slowing down on Johnson’s part when it comes to Tatuaje.

News and Previews

7-20-4: We looked at the company’s plans for growth in 2014.
Arturo Fuente: We took a look at the long awaited Casa Cuba line.
Gurkha Cigar Group: Announced the first release of its Pedro Martin brand, the long-awaited Pedro Martin Limited Edition. Earlier this year, Gurkha acquired the trademarks from Maria Martin following the closing of Martin Family of Cigars.
JM Tobacco: We previewed the JM Dominican Classic Connecticut.
Kinky Friedman Cigars: The company announced it is ceasing its cigar operations.
La Aurora Cigars: We previewed the La Aurora Preferidos Diamond Chicho’s Choice – this is a limited production regional release heading to six states. It will be a 6 x 58 parejo.
Legacy Brands: Announced the Tortuga 215 Reserva Cedros No. 5 and two additional vitolas will be added to the Tortuga 215 Reserva line. The company also announced the Ora Vivo Armand Assante and Tortuga 215 Reserva are heading to Europe
Ortega Premium Cigars: We were the first media outlet to cover the announcement of the The Big Red Machine – this is one of four cigars that will be part of the South East Series and will be a retail exclusive cigar to Tobacco World in Marietta, Georgia.
Perdomo Cigars: On the 11/23/13 edition of Kiss My Ash Radio, Nick Perdomo mentioned the Perdomo Conmemorativo is on target for a mid-year 2014 release. The Perdomo Conmemorativo has been a cigar that has been several years in the making. Perdomo also mentioned two other blends that could be targeted for a mid-year launch.
Tatuaje Cigars: In our exclusive interview with Pete Johnson, we got a preview into what’s in store with Tatuaje for 2014.