For the eighth consecutive year, the Cigar Coop brand will be providing coverage of the International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers (IPCPR) Association Trade Show and Convention. We are proud to be a part of a very small group of media to say that. Our four-part series has you covered whether you are going to the show or following from […]
Erik Espinosa filmed a short video talking about one of his two cigars featuring Jamaican tobacco, the Espinosa Reggae DREAD. The Espinosa Reggae DREAD is described as a medium to full-bodied cigar featuring Nicaraguan, Honduran, and Jamaican Lengue de Vaca tobacco in an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper. The cigar is unique in that it is rolled with several pigtails […]
For the eighth consecutive year, the Cigar Coop brand will be providing coverage of the International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers (IPCPR) Association Trade Show and Convention. We are proud to be a part of a very small group of media to say that. Our four-part series has you covered whether you are going to the show or following from […]
With U.S. President Donald Trump’s new directives toward Cuba announced June 16, 2017, we have some Q&A on what this means. 1. Did President Trump Really “Cancel the last administration’s completely one-sided deal with Cuba”? The answer is simply, no. However, the new Trump directives crack down on travel and conducting business in Cuba. The changes are aimed to […]
Back in February, I had the opportunity to tour the operations of JRE Tobacco Company. Run by tobacco industry icon Julio R. Eiroa and his son Justo, JRE Tobacco Company is a true vertical integrated crop to shop operation – ranging in everything from growing tobacco, processing tobacco, cigar production, and handling distribution. In this […]
Last week came word of the hiring of Sean Williams as the Brand Ambassador for one of General Cigar Company’s most prestigious brands, Cohiba. The news came as a big surprise to many in the cigar industry, but to this author, it’s clear it’s part of a bigger story at General – one of change. It is a change that continues to evolve, but […]
For the past three years on Cigar Coop, we have given out Factory of the Year Awards. We have divided this up into Small/Single Operation and Large/Multi-Faceted Operation. For the past two years, 2015 and 2016, the award for Small/Single Operation has gone to Erik Espinosa’s La Zona Factory located in Esteli, Nicaragua. Last month, […]
Back in February, I had the opportunity to tour the operations of JRE Tobacco Company. Run by tobacco industry icon Julio R. Eiroa and his son Justo, JRE Tobacco Company is a true vertical integrated crop to shop operation – ranging in everything from growing tobacco, processing tobacco, cigar production, and handling distribution. Today, I take […]
Friday March 24th was a very sad day for the entire cigar industry as Avo Uvezian, the beloved man behind the Avo Cigars’ brand passed away at age 91. As word came out about Avo’s death came tributes from the cigar industry, cigar enthusiasts sharing their own personal recollections of Avo, and many breaking out their […]
Last December, I penned an article entitled “The Myth of Rudy Giuliani Saving the Cigar Industry“. In my 6 1/2 years of owning and operating Cigar Coop, it easily was the most controversial article I wrote. Shortly after the 2016 Presidential Election, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was being anointed by some as “the […]
