Early in 2020, Protocol Cigars would release the second installment of its Lawman Series known as the Protocol Eliot Ness. Eliot Ness pays homage to the American Prohibition agent, famous for his efforts to bring down Al Capone. It was originally planned for a late 2020 release, however, due to the supply chain delays as […]
In 2019, Quesada Cigars introduced a new line in its portfolio known as the Quesada 1974. The year 1974 is significant because that was the year the Quesada family would open its first cigar factory, Manufactura de Tabacos S.A. (MATASA). Today that factory is known as the Quesada Cigars factory and it has been operating […]
St. Francis is the second regular production brand to come out of Micky Pegg‘s All Saints Fine Cigars. At Tobacco Plus Expo (TPE) 2021, the St. Francis Oscuro line would be announced and then a couple of months later, a second blend, the St. Francis Colorado would be announced. For the production of all of […]
At the start of 2021, J.C. Newman Cigar Company launched a new brand known as Havana Q. The Havana Q is described as a cousin to J.C. Newman’s popular Quorum brand. Quorom is a brand that has been in the J.C. Newman portfolio for quite some time and its a value-priced line of Cuban sandwich […]
The year 2021 marks the 50th anniversary of JR Cigar. Technically the start of JR Cigar goes back to 1970 when Jack Rothman (thus the name JR) opened his first cigar store in New York City. It was a year later when Jack’s son Lew Rothman was approached by a customer asking if he could have […]
Agile Cigar Reviews are cigar assessments where we use a lightweight, shorter format. These will never take the place of our comprehensive reviews. They are only used on blends we have previously assessed. This might be a blend we are re-scoring or giving a score for the first time. It might be a blend we […]
In 2019, Illusione Cigars marked the 10th anniversary of its Epernay line with the release of a commemorative cigar, the Illusione Epernay 10th Anniversary D’Aosta. The Illusione Epernay is considered somewhat of a game-changing cigar. For a long time, cigars with Nicaraguan tobaccos were often associated with strong and bold, but when it came to […]
Late in 2019, industry veteran Micky Pegg made his official return to the cigar industry. Pegg was best known for being the Vice President of Sales at CAO Cigars, and prior to that, his time with Davidoff, Felipe Gregorio Cigars, and Georgetown Tobacco. Shortly after CAO was absorbed into General Cigar Company, Pegg would […]
In 2020, a change happened at Protocol Cigars where Kevin Keithan, who was serving as the company’s national sales manager, became an owner in the company. At the same time, Protocol Cigars co-founder Bill Ives would depart the company. Both Ives and Juan Cancel, who were the two founders, had built a career in law […]
In 2020, after several years of anticipation, the 601 Black made its return. The 601 Black is a cigar that traces its roots back to EO Brands, the partnership between Espinosa Cigars’ founder Erik Espinosa and Eddie Ortega. 601 Black was one of the original 601 blends released in the EO portfolios. At the time […]
