When I wrote about El Septimo Geneva following the 2022 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, I wrote the following: “There was no doubt that at the 2022 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, El Septimo Geneva President and CEO Zaya Younan wanted to make a big splash. Younan is looking to take El Septimo […]
When it comes to the Premium Cigar Association (PCA), the presentation can genuinely make a difference. In this case, I’m referring to the booth presentation at Wildfire Cigar Company. Undoubtedly, the booth was one of the most talked about at the 2023 PCA Trade Show – so much so that it was voted Best Small […]
Past Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Shows have seen Dapper unveil several products that would ship after the Trade Show, but 2023 was a quieter year for Ian Reith and Dapper Cigar Company. This year was a little different as Dapper released a single cigar before the Trade Show, the HolySmoke Genesis. This project […]
One of the Big Four companies making a return to the Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was Altadis U.S.A. It was really good to see Altadis back. Altadis’ return meant many of its iconic bands were also returning to the premium cigar industry’s showcase event. Altadis U.S.A.’s last trade show was in 2019, and […]
Foundation Cigar Company often themes its cigars around different cultures. Over the years, the branding of Foundation has paid homage to the cultures of Nicaragua, Ethiopia, Egypt, Jamaica, and England as well as Melillo’s home state of Connecticut. That continued in 2023 as the owner Nicholas Melillo’s company’s new releases honored Nicaragua, Ethiopia, and Connecticut. […]
In addition to Altadis U.S.A. returning to the Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show in 2023, the brands of Boutique Blends – the company co-owned by Rafael Nodal and Hank Bischoff – also made a return. Back in 2017, Boutique Blends entered into a strategic partnership where Altadis U.S.A. would take over distribution for Boutique […]
One of the rising boutique companies we have seen over the past few years has been Aric Bey’s Black Star Line Cigars. Coming into this year’s Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, Bey, and Black Star Line would introduce two new cigars. While Black Star Line is best known for working with the Aganorsa Leaf […]
For the third consecutive year, Matilde Cigars was a part of the Sutliff Tobacco pavilion. During this time, Sutliff has provided distribution services for many companies, including Matilde. It had been almost 6 1/2 years since Matilde Cigars has released a new regular production line, but earlier this year, Matilde released the Matilde Serena Maduro. […]
In 2009, Bill Paley decided to resurrect the brand his grandfather created, La Palina Cigars. That year La Palina would attend its first IPCPR Trade Show, and since then, La Palina has been a staple of IPCPR/PCA Trade Shows. If I count correctly, La Palina would now have displayed at 14 IPCPR/PCA Trade Shows. La […]
Pospiech Cigars is an operation run by Mike and Greg Szczepankiewicz out of Deltona, Florida, where they also have their Cigar Hustler retailer operation and Hustler Universe Podcasts. Pospiech is best known for the Powstanie Cigars made at RoMa Craft Tobac’s Nica Sueño factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. This year, they were a part of the […]
