PCA 2024: Somm Cigars

PCA 2024: Somm Cigars; Photo Credit: John McTavish, Developing Palates

One of the first-time exhibitors at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was Somm Cigars. Somm Cigars was started by Vlada Stojanov. Stojanov is an accomplished sommelier who has been in the cigar industry for several years. Over the past year, he has brought his own portfolio to market with Somm Cigars. There are two main brands Stojanov has created under Somm Cigars. There is BDX, which pays homage to the Bordeaux wine region of France, and Rioja, which pays homage to the Rioja wine region of Spain. At PCA 2024, Stojanov added his second blend to the BDX line, the BDX Blanc.

The first BDX blend is a San Andres Maduro-wrapped cigar made at Fabrica Centroamericana de Tabaco S.A., the factory owned by Cavalier Genève. The San Andres Maduro wrapper is aged three years and covers a three-year-old Nicaraguan Viso Jalapa wrapper. The fillers are a combination of two-year-old Honduran Broadleaf and three-year-old Mexican San Andres and Nicaraguan Viso Jalapa.

BDX Blanc is the newest line from Somm. It pays homage to the Bourdeaux region of France, particularly the white wines from this region. The blend uses a Connecticut Shade wrapper aged three years over a Habano binder, also aged three years. The fillers are a mix of Nicaraguan, Honduran, and Dominican tobaccos, all aged three years. It is available in a Robusto and Toro offering. The cigars come in five-packs priced at $12.00/cigar for the Robusto and $13.00/cigar for the Toro. BDX Blanc, like the original BDX, comes out of Fabrica Centroamericana de Tabaco S.A. (FCT) in Honduras.

Somm’s other core line is Somm Rioja. This line made its debut earlier this year. Somm Rioja comes from Eladio Diaz‘s Tabacalera Diaz Cabrera factory in the Dominican Republic. The Rioja uses a three-year-aged Dominican Corojo wrapper. The blend also uses a three-year-aged Sumatra binder and four fillers from the Dominican Republic that have been aged four years. Somm Rioja comes in two sizes: Toro (6 x 52, MSRP $14.00/cigar) and Robusto (5 x 52, MSRP $13.50/cigar). Each size comes in ten-count boxes.

Somm has added a QR code to its BDX and Rioja Cigars. This QR code will take you to more information on YouTube about the cigars themselves.

Finally, Stojanov says he is not in the accessories business, but his Somm hybrid lighter got considerable attention. This lighter can switch between a soft flame and a jet flame. Stojanov likes a soft flame but can see a need for a jet flame. After a gust of wind blew out his soft flame, Stojanov was inspired to make this lighter. The lighters come in four colors, and three of the four correspond to the various lines: Red (BDX), Blue (Rioja), Gold (BDX Blanc), and Black. The pricing comes in around $25.00 per lighter.