At the 2019 IPCPR Trade Show, General Cigar introduced a new regular production line under its CAO brand known as the CAO Session. The CAO Session is a cigar developed by CAO Master Blender Rick Rodriguez. Rodriguez got the inspiration from smoking cigars in his own “man cave” (his garage) and decided to blend a […]
Early in 2020, Viaje released a cigar known as the Viaje Zombie Farmhand Andre. If you have followed Viaje Cigars for the past decade, you will know that Viaje Cigars’ founder Andre Farkas creates themes, narratives, and storylines among his releases. Viaje Zombie Farmhead Andre ties two of these concepts together – Viaje’s Thanksgiving themed […]
Seasonal/holiday releases are not a new concept for the cigar industry, but when it comes to Thanksgiving, Viaje Cigars is the company that blazed the trail. Viaje’s Thanksgiving releases trace back to 2011 when it released its first Viaje Stuffed Turkey Cigar. The concept for a Thanksgiving cigar was originally suggested by the Stogie Review […]
The concept of pairings with spirits and cigars seems to have been around forever. As long there have been spirit/cigar pairings, there are debates on where the pair selected complements/enhances each other as well as where pairings, in general, are a good thing. In these debates, these often come down to personal preferences on what […]
Social media groups have been a big part of consumer engagement on cigars over the past year. One such group is “The Cigar Culture.” It’s a group spearheaded by Adrian Acosta, a cigar industry veteran with the goal of bringing consumers information and education on the tobacco industry. Acosta has worked in many facets […]
In 2014, Altadis USA released the Espada by Montecristo. Historically, it was an important cigar in that it was the first Montecristo cigar to come out of Nicaragua, and for Altadis it was one of their first major releases produced by an outside factory which in this case was the Plasencia factory. In addition, the […]
In 2019, Gurkha Cigars announced the Gurkha Treinta. It was a cigar that would commemorate 30 years of Gurkha Cigars ownership by now-former Chairman Kaizad Hansotia. You may be a little puzzled at why Gurkha is celebrating its 30th anniversary when in 2012, Gurkha Cigars celebrated its 125th anniversary with a cigar. This is because […]
A big year for Viaje Cigars came in 2010 as Andre Farkas’ company had two landmark releases – Viaje Oro Reserva VOR No. 5. and the Viaje Skull and Bones Daisy Cutter. The Viaje Oro Reserva VOR No. 5 would capture Cigar Aficionado’s #2 Cigar of the Year (and #1 non-Cuban cigar). The Viaje Skull […]
Since the U.S. Food and Drug Regulations Deeming Rule was promulgated back in 2016, it has had an effect on newer companies entering the cigar industry. In particular, this has also reduced the amount of first time companies exhibiting at the IPCPR/PCA Trade Show, and has reduced the amount of large-scale debuts at this Trade […]
Since its inception, the La Zona factory in Estelí, Nicaragua has been known for cigars that use Ecuadorian Habano or San Andres Maduro wrapper – and has much success with both of those leaves. At the same time, La Zona has not been a two-trick pony and there have been several other wrappers the factory […]
