The CLE Azabache is CLE Cigar Company’s contribution to the 2016 Tobacconist Association of America (TAA) Exclusive Series. 2016 was the second consecutive year CLE has been a part of the TAA Exclusive Series. A year prior (2015), CLE’s Asylum brand contributed the Asylum Nyctophilia Maduro. With Azabache, it is the first CLE branded cigar to be […]
In 2016, Boutique Blends Cigars resurrected the Oliveros brand name under its traditional premium handmade offerings. One might remember Oliveros as the former name of Boutique Blends before the company rebranded itself in 2012. Since then, Oliveros has pretty much only been used as the brand name for Boutique Blends’ flavored cigar offerings. At the 2016 IPCPR Trade Show Boutique Blends […]
At the 2016 IPCPR Trade Show, PDR Cigars launched a new line known as El Trovador. This was a brand that PDR Cigars owner and master blender Abe Flores took inspiration from a couple of sources – his musical roots and from a trip to Cuba. While many know Flores as a cigar maker who previously […]
At the 2016 IPCPR Trade Show, La Flor Dominicana showcased a new cigar known as the La Flor Dominicana Andalusian Bull. Company owner Litto Gomez was born in Spain and the Andalusian takes its name from Andalusia, a region in the southern part of that country. The cigar pays homage to the cattle breed that is a part of […]
Agile Cigar Reviews replace what we termed “Assessment Updates”. The concept is the same, but the name is different. Agile Cigar Reviews 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 providing […]
Late in 2014, Drew Estate announced a partnership with Pappy & Company to produce a small batch cigar line to be distributed exclusively by Pappy & Co. The concept of this project would be to create a cigar could be paired with Pappy & Company’s Van Winkle bourbon and rye products. The resulting line would be known as […]
Early in 2016 Mombacho Cigars SA announced it was releasing its second regular production line called Liga Maestro. While it was a new regular production offering, this was not a new blend for Mombacho Cigars SA. Liga Maestro is a collaboration between Mombacho President and Master Blender Claudio Sgroi and cigar luminary Stefano Bertin. Back in […]
The Padron 1926 Serie No. 48 is the fourth installment in the Tobacconists Association of America (TAA) series by Padron Cigars. The No. 48 introduces a 5 1/2 x 60 vitola in the Serie 1926 line. This is not Padron’s first 60 ring gauge in the 1926 Serie as back in 2013 the Padron 1926 Serie TP40 was released […]
The Nicoya Robusto Medio is one of two blends launched by newcomer Nicoya Cigars in 2016. Nicoya Cigars was founded by Australian entrepreneur Gerard Hayes. Nicoya is best known as the name of a large peninsula located on the Pacific Ocean side of Costa Rica. It was also a part of Nicaragua until 1824. For this project Hayes […]
The Quesada Reserva Privada Oscuro is a limited production introduced this past year. It was in 2015 that Quesada Cigars launched the first Quesada Reserva Privada, The Reserva Privada is also a limited production, ultra-premium offering that features Dominican San Vincente tobacco set aside from a 1997 crop covered with an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper. It is the aged […]
