Cigar Industry Report: Volume 5, Number 42 (9/10/16)

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.

Cigar Industry Report: Volume 5, Number 42 (Edition 191 9/10/16)

Feature of the Week: Question Looms on Whether Cigar Donations to Charity and Troops Are Allowed

It’s a gray area under the way the FDA Regulations are written because of the prohibiting of sample distribution. It’s also got many cigar manufacturers and retailers playing it safe rather than sorry. There was some action in Washington this week on this topic. We got a full rundown here of this issue.

Our ongoing FDA Coverage is here:

Our FDA articles.
Our FDA Regulations Primer series.

Detailed IPCPR Coverage

Our goal is to wrap up our IPCPR recaps by next week.

De Los Reyes Cigars: We took a closer look a De Los Reyes Cigars at this year’s trade show.
Debonaire House: We took a closer look at Debonaire House at this year’s trade show.
Don Tomas: The Don Tomas Nicaragua was unveiled for the U.S. market.
PDR Cigars: We took a look at the Flores y Rodriguez Connecticut Valley Reserve Azul line.
Rocky Patel Premium Cigars: The company unveiled the Rocky Patel Edge Connecticut Howitzer line extension. In addition the company unveiled the newRocky Patel Dark Dominican line.
Villiger North America: We recapped Villiger North America‘s 2016 IPCPR Trade Show.
Casa Fernandez: We took a closer look at the new Master Mason line.
Catelli Cigar Company: We took a look at the Catelli Cabaletta line.
Falto: We took a look at the Falto Yagüez Arawaco and the Falto El Procer Historias.
Fratello Cigars: We took a closer look at the Fratello Oro.
Gurkha: The company unveiled its new infused line, the Gurkha Bourbon Collection. We also took a look at new Gurkha Heritage line extensions and packaging changes.
IndianHead Cigars: We took a look at the La Galera 80th Anniversary Box Pressed Limited Edition and the La Galera Maduro.
La Gloria Cubana: We took a closer look at the new La Gloria Cubana Esteli Maduro and La Gloria Cubana Black Maduro cigars.
La Palina: The company debuted the new La Palina El Ano 1896 Oscuro at this year’s trade show. We also took a look at the new La Palina Mr. Sam Lancero.
LH Cigars: We took a closer look at LH Premium Cigars at this year’s trade show.
Macanudo: The brand has re-released two old vintage lines, the Macanudo Vintage Cabinet 1984 and the Macanudo Vintage Cabinet 1988.
Montecristo: We took a closer look at the Montecristo Politico Pepe Mendez.
Partagas: The Partagas 160 Signature Series was re-released at this year’s trade show.
Recluse Cigar Company: We took a look at Recluse Cigars at this year’s trade show.

Other News

Davidoff: The Davidoff Corona Cigar Company 20th Anniversary was launched to commemorate Orlando based retailer Corona Cigar Company’s 20 years in business.
Nomad Cigar Company: The company went national with the newNomad GB-19 line.

Legislative News

Senate Bill S. 441: S. 441 is the Senate Bill to gain an exemption from the FDA on premium cigars. This week, no new co-sponsors were added. The total sponsor count remains at 21.
House Bill HR 662: H.R. 662 is House Bill to gain an exemption from the FDA on premium cigars. This week one new co-sponsor, John Duncan [R-Tennessee] was added. The total number of sponsors is now at 167.
House Bill 2058: H.R. 2058 is the House Bill to change the effective date for cigars subject to FDA regulation from 2007 to 21 months following any proposed regulations are put into effect. This week four new co-sponsors were added. This includes: Randy Weber [R-Texas], Mike Coffman [R-Colorado], Markwayne Mullin [R-Oklahoma], and John Moolenarr [R-Michigan]. The total number of sponsors is now at 76.
House Bill 5955: This bill was introduced by Kathy Castor [D-Florida] to allow cigar companies to make charitable contributions to the Troops.