Our 2014 Year in Review coverage concludes with a look at how the various cigar brands did on Cigar Coop for 2014. This analysis is based on the average numerical score of all cigar assessed on Cigar Coop. A total of 257 (up from 232 the previous year) cigars were considered for this ranking. The […]
2014 Year in Review: Cigar Industry Person(s) of the Year – Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard and Jim Young (Davidoff)
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized No Comments 2014 Year in Review, Davidoff, People
Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard (Left) and Jim Young (Right) (Photo Credit: Davidoff.com) This year, we introduce a new category for our Year in Review postseason recognition. The award is for Cigar Industry Person of the Year. The purpose of this award is to look at a person(s) in the cigar industry that has made a significant impact, […]
2014 Year in Review: Best Aged Cigars for 2014
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized No Comments 2014 Year in Review
For the fourth consecutive year, we provide the Cigar Coop selections for Best Aged Cigar. The purpose of this category is to look at some cigar lines that were released the previous year, and see the impacts of age on them. This is a unique category not often seen, but one we feel as important […]
2014 Year in Review: Top 12 Cigar Industry Stories / Themes of 2014
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized 2 Comments 2014 Year in Review, News
The 2014 Cigar of the Year Countdown will resume tomorrow on December 31st, 2014 at 3pm Eastern Time with the announcement of the #2 Cigar of the Year followed at 4pm Eastern by the #1 Cigar of the Year. For the fourth consecutive year, we bring you our selections and analysis for the Top 12 […]
Feature Story: Analyzing the Road Ahead to End the Cuban Embargo (Editorial)
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized No Comments Cuba, FDA, Feature Story, Opinion
On December 17th, 2014, President Obama announced plans to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba for the first time in over 50 years. These plans also include the intent to lift the Cuban Embargo. This has been of considerable interest to the cigar industry as premium cigars made in Cuba have been subject to the embargo […]
Feature Story: Tatuaje Pudgy Monsters
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized No Comments Feature Story, Pudgy Monsters, Tatuaje
As many of our readers know, we have been taking a look at the cigars that make up the Tatuaje Pudgy Monsters series. This was released as a sampler pack based on the original Tatuaje Monsters Series. In 2012, a sampler set called Tatuaje Little Monsters was released providing small and thinner versions of the […]
Feature Story: How Limited is that Limited Edition Cigar?
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized No Comments Feature Story
Over the past few years, the rise of limited edition cigars has become an integral part of the cigar landscapes. It seems like every month, a new limited edition cigar is hitting the marketplace and there are more companies adding limited edition cigars as offerings. There are many factors that drive a company to produce […]
Feature Story: Swisher’s Acquisition of Drew Estate – The Analysis
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized 1 Comment Drew Estate, Feature Story, Opinion, Royal Gold Cigars, Swisher International
This past week, one of the biggest stories in recent cigar industry history took place as Swisher International announced they had entered into an agreement to acquire Drew Estate Tobacco Company. Last month, shockwaves rode through the cigar industry as General Cigar Company acquired the brands of Torano Family Cigars and Leccia Tobacco. As big as […]
Feature Story: A Closer Look at Swisher International
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized 1 Comment Drew Estate, Feature Story, Swisher International
While Swisher International is the largest manufacturer of cigars worldwide, they are a company that the online cigar media has not focused on. This is because much of the cigar media focuses around handmade premium cigars. In light of the acquisition of Drew Estate Tobacco Company by Swisher International, we take a closer look at […]
Feature Story: Why 2014 is not the Year of the Lancero
William Cooper Feature Story, Uncategorized No Comments Feature Story, Opinion
The lancero vitola has often been an enigma when looking at the cigar industry. A lancero is a long, thin vitola measuring 7 to 7 1/2 “ in length with a ring gauge between 38 and 40. Ask many cigar experts, and they will tell you that the thin ring gauge will give you the […]