Sometime over the summer Drinnan Thornton the sales rep for Alec Bradley stopped at The Cigar Authority to catch up with us, and at the time to give us a sample of Sanctum. In turn we asked about Alec Bradley Post Embargo of which he had no clue, so we showed him the trademark that Alec Bradley had registered that same day. This Saturday AM I got a text asking if I would be around […]
When the Cuban embargo lifts there will be quite a few things that will need to be decided rather quickly when it comes to a few brands, and one of those is Partagas which has been around since 1845. Prior to the Cuban revolution, the brand was last owned by the Cifuentes family before being taken over by the government of the island nation. Stateside, the brand is owned by General Cigar Company which acquired […]
Kilo Cigar Review by David Garofalo I promised Barry Stein I would do an in-depth and possibly painstaking review of his brainchild Kilo, since the IPCPR trade show in July but I put it off for 3 months for a couple of reasons. To let the cigar rest and to be honest with you, I really didn’t want to do it. For those that know my palate, you understand that I favor milder smokes. This, […]
Today’s cigar comes to me from one of the Principals of Creativas Group, who handles public relations, branding and events for some of the top cigar makers today including AJ Fernandez. Based in Miami the company represents restaurants and spirits companies as well, and is perhaps one of the easiest to deal with when trying to find out information about those they represent. According to the AJ Fernandez website Enclave is available in four sizes […]
This summer saw the launch of Foundation Cigar Company by Nick Melillo who had his career start at the retail level while living in the state of Connecticut. From here he would go on to Drew Estate where he would oversee their factory operations and he was responsible for blending Liga Privada No. 9, T52, Dirty Rat, L40, Nica Rustica as well as others. Nick would eventually leave Drew Estate to start his own business […]
On the day after the Two Guys Smoke Shop 30th Anniversary Eric Hanson of Hammer + Sickle stopped by to drop off a few samples of Tver which is available at select retailers in Texas. According to their Tver website, “Maduro is an art, a passion rooted in generations of tradition. True maduro is about purity, and to that end, the tobacco must be allowed to ferment longer. That is where patience meets perfect execution, and […]
According to the Bandolero website; “Cigar history has followed a difficult path between crime and pleasure. Demonized on arrival to Europe, in which latter tobacco trade was monopolized. The success of the tobacco expansion is explained by the attempts of [being] controlled.” This past weekend Nelson Alfonso was a guest on The Cigar Authority where it was disclosed that the smaller the size, the stronger the cigar and David Garofalo told me to try the […]
According to the local rep in an interview at IPCPR the Avo Classic Covers Volume II is based on the Avo Heritage blend. The cigars come in boxes that look like records that are held closed by magnets making them not retailer friendly but collectible for the end-user. The inaugural release aka Volume 1 sold out in record time and scored a 91 back in April. Today we look at Volume 2. Cigar Review: Avo Classic Covers […]
While it rains outside in biblical proportions we take a look at the new La Flor Dominicana La Nox. As cigar manufacturer after cigar manufacturer rolls through Two Guys Smoke Shop that is celebrating their 30th Anniversary I got to talk with Tony Gomez the son of Litto Gomez who created the cigar. Unlike many manufacturers who first create a concept and then a cigar that goes with it, Tony decided to break the mold […]
This week our friend Rudy from Canada who is in our chat room every Saturday as “cigarsonist” during the live broadcast of our podcast is in town for Two Guys Smoke Shop 30th Anniversary shindig tomorrow night. Having heard on the show that I’ve been looking for a Cuban lancero he brought with him two as a gift. One of which was today’s review which is one of three cigars on my bucket list. The […]