This month was a historic month for the cigar industry – and not in a positive way. On August 8th, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) implemented its Deeming Regulations for premium cigars. An offshoot saw the rise of something that we have termed “Stealth Products”. What is Stealth Product? We defined a stealth product […]
The 2016 International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers (IPCPR) Convention and Trade Show is now in the annals of history. This is my seventh consecutive year covering the show and I feel very fortunate having this opportunity to deliver coverage. First up an apology – and it seems to be one I am issuing now […]
2016 will mark our seventh consecutive year of IPCPR Trade Show coverage. For this year’s Cigar Coop IPCPR coverage, it appears we may have to adjust the formula we have used for several years. Over the past few years that formula has involved three components to our coverage: “Pre Game” (covering product announcements before the […]
This past month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced its final regulations on premium cigars. While traditional media, online media, blogs, and social media have all covered this, one thing that has become very clear to me is there is a lot of misinformation floating out there on this very topic. And it’s the […]
The way things stand, May 5, 2016 will go down as the darkest day in the history of the cigar business. This is the day the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced sweeping regulations on the premium cigar industry. One question I’ve been asked is “What do you think will happen?” I hesitated putting […]
IMPORTANT ANNOUCEMENT: DAY/TIME CHANGE FOR STOGIE GEEKS The Stogie Geeks Show is moving to Mondays at 6:30 Eastern Time beginning on Monday May 9th. This change will allow us to have a greater focus on production and allow us to work on some other projects that we will announce in the future. As always, our […]
One question I often get, how does appearance factor into the way you review and score a cigar. The answer is, while it is a part of the review, it plays no factor in the numerical score nor the Cigar Coop assessment rating. I’ll explain this by posing two questions. 1) If a cigar looks […]
Since the inception of Cigar Coop, La Palina Cigars has been a brand that we have followed closely. This is a brand that went from relative unknown to a staple in many retail humidors. Along the way, it’s a brand that would capture Cigar Coop Cigar of the Year awards in 2011 and 2012. It’s also a brand that […]
When it’s January in the cigar industry, it’s a time of the year when cigar companies start to lay out their strategies for the the calendar year. While there always seems to be a shop exclusive these days to report on, we have seen some big stories kick off the 2016 calendar year. In fact, many of these […]
Six years, another Cigar Coop Countdown is in the books. The Countdown Concept began on Cigar Coop back in 2010, our first year in operation. Once the Countdown is over, there always is a sense of relief given the amount of time it takes to pull it off. At the same time, it’s also an […]
