50 years ago, the most famous name in cigars was born, Cohiba. At Festival del Habano XVIII during the gala dinner, guests were given a box of 2 cigars. Encased in a felt sleeve, the lacquered boxes denote Cohiba 50 and were designed by Nelson Alfonso who also makes Atabey, Byron and Bandolero. Inside the cedar box are two cigars, one of which David Garofalo gifted to me. This limited edition cigar is not to be confused with […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food & Drug Administration and Related Agencies released the fiscal year 2017 Agriculture Appropriations, which included language addressing the issue of premium cigars and proposed FDA regulation. Cigar Rights of America applauds the language included by the committee that seeks to protect small businesses and the freedom of adult consumers throughout the nation. The language contained within the bill, and […]
International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Applauds U.S. House Effort to Protect Premium Cigar Industry from Onerous Regulation WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies released the draft legislation for FY2017 which included a provision to protect premium cigars from undue FDA regulation. The language states, “SEC. 749. None of the funds made available in this Act may be used […]
Recently our own David Garofalo was at the Habanos Festival where he was able to secure some cigars for review here on The Cigar Authority. The first of two cigars that we plan to review is the Cuaba 20th Anniversary. The Cuaba was officially launched 20 years ago in 1996 at the Claridge Hotel in London, England. To date all of the Cuaba cigars have been part of the perfecto family. The brand was launched […]
SPLIT CIGAR WRAPPERS REPAIRED LIKE A SURGEON By David Garofalo It happens, especially here in New England, with all the climate changes during the year. An old saying around here says “if you don’t like the weather here in New England, don’t worry… it’ll change soon.” Weather change can and does play havoc on your cigars, some worse than others. Have you ever been smoking a cigar and all of a sudden…POP, the cigar wrapper […]
The Tail of THE FIRECRACKER CIGAR Salem, New Hampshire (April 9, 2016) It began on May 19, 2007 at a cigar rolling event at Two Guys Smoke Shop in New Hampshire featuring Jose Don “Pepin” Garcia. David Garofalo, owner and founder of Two Guys Smoke Shop asked Pepin to roll him a short cigar and to put a long pig tail on it. Pepin followed the direction and The Firecracker Cigar was born. Over the […]
On today’s episode of The Cigar Authority we light up Room 101 while discussing Cigars 101. We’ll discuss the slobber cutter, how to taste, when to ash, and how to relight a cigar after it has gone out. In the second hour we will discuss the history of the Two Guys Smoke Shop Firecracker and reveal who will be making the 2016 edition and when you will be able to buy it… All this and […]
Each week we share some of the news that comes across our desk about upcoming legislation.. This week we have stories from Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri and Texas. Illinois – The proposal to raise the state tobacco from 18 to 21 advanced to the full chamber of the senate this week. The measure passed a committee hearing 6-3 via The Southern Illinoisan. Maryland – The Town Council of Mount Airy banned smoking in parks this […]
Yesterday I had a chance to sit down with David Spirt and Taylor Hall from E.P. Carrillo who stopped by Two Guys Smoke Shop while in New Hampshire. During the course of the visit, I was gifted a pre-release of the Short Run 2016 which is scheduled to ship to retailers in early May. There are a few things new about this year’s release and the most noticeable is the band which is the first […]
Back in 2009, I recall sitting in a New York City Cigar Shop is a shoe shine chair with David Lafferty of Drew Estate. It was right around the time of a Cigar Aficionado function that might have been The Big Smoke or something entirely different. It was here that I was gifted with my first Dirty Rat. Over the years it feels like the Dirty Rat went from cult status to a cigar that […]