As in the past Miami Cigar and Company’s booth served as a hub for its own brands as well as the other brands it distributes a this year’s IPCPR Trade Show. In 2018, those brands include the La Aurora and Toscano brands. One big change from 2017 was the absence of Viva Republica from the booth.

While much has been made about how many distribution partnerships have failed, many forget the ones that work. When it comes to the alliance between Miami Cigar and Company and La Aurora, the case can be made that it is the strongest in the industry. When we presented La Aurora our award for #2 Cigar of the Year, it was both Master Blender Manuel Inoa and Miami Cigar and Company’s Jason Wood who jointly took a photo opportunity.

Cigar Coop did run into Viva Republica owner Jason Holly at the 2018 IPCPR, and he did tell us he will be discussing his brand’s future plans.

Most of the offerings at the Miami Cigar and Company booth we saw in 2018 were limited production ones. The one big exception was two new offerings under Tatiana, Miami Cigar and Company’s highly successful flavored line Caribbean Chill offers a citrus-flavored experience in while Harvest Moon brings a pumpkin spice flavor into the Tatiana line. Both offerings are in 6 x 44 Lonsdale.

Photo Credit: Miami Cigar and Company

Meanwhile, it was company President Nestor Miranda’s 75th birthday, and he has a special cigar being made at the My Father Cigars factory in Nicaragua – appropriately titled the Nestor Miranda Collection 75th Anniversary. It’s a massive limited edition 7 1/4 x 57 salomon. Miranda is a known fan of the lancero format (he used it for his 70th birthday cigar), but he was quite pleased with the salomon for his 75th birthday. He reminded me of two things – My Father Cigars is not known for salomons – so this one is special. Plus the cigar uses a corojo wrapper – a personal favorite of his.

La Aurora had two limited edition offerings. The first is the La Aurora Puro Vintage 2007. It’s the fifth installment of the series and first installment in three years. The Puro Vintage series is a limited production line of cigars where each installment of the series is made up of what La Aurora considers the best tobaccos harvested from a particular year. As the name indicates with the Puro Vintage 2007, tobaccos harvested from 2007 are used. The blend consists of a Dominican wrapper, Ecuadorian binder, and a filler of tobaccos from Brazil, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. The tobaccos used were also subject to extra aging. The cigar is also a salomon (common for the line) measuring on the smaller side – a 6 1/2 x 50. Production has been limited to 6,000 ten-count boxes.

The other offering was the La Aurora Preferidos Hors D’Age, an ultra-premium limited edition cigar that made its debut at ProCigar earlier this year. Hors D’Age stands for “beyond time”. Back when the cigar was first announced at ProCigar, La Aurora referred to it as a”category that describes the highest quality products and subject to the highest aging where time is the key to reach the ideal level of perfection.” At the time it was announced at ProCigar, La Aurora said the cigar had been in its aging room for 2 years.

The cigar is available in one size – a 6 x 54 Toro. It is a multi-national blend utilizing an Ecuadorian wrapper, Ecuadorian binder, and fillers from Colombia, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. It will be a limited edition cigar with a total production of 500 fifteen-count boxes for the U.S. market.

 

Last year, La Aurora introduced the La Aurora ADN line, a line utilizing andullo tobacco in the blend. This year the company showcased blending training kits (something it typically uses at events) featuring the ADN tobaccos.

It’s been well known that 2018 is a big year of anniversaries in the cigar industry. For Toscano Cigars, they may have the title for oldest anniversary as the brand is celebrating its 200th anniversary. This year the company is going back to its roots showcasing the Toscano Originale, a cigar based on the original recipe of the first Toscano. It utilizes both Kentucky Fire Cured and Italian tobaccos in a cheroot format. The cigar is produced at the company’s factory in Italy.

Toscano Originale

2018 Product Reports

Photo Credits: Cigar Coop, except where noted