Tag Archives: Southern Draw

by Craig Vanderslice | August 25, 2021 · 9:46 pm

Tatuaje T110 Limited Edition Broadleaf and Sumatra and a Southern Draw Lady Killer

I wasn’t even going to write about the Southern Draw Lady Killer, but I had a special request, so I figured what the heck. I had stopped in to Cigar Mojo on Sunday to buy some cigars I didn’t need. I had been looking for some Illusione CG:4 White Horse for the Diner en Blanc because of the whole white thing, I like to smoke something with “white” in the name of the cigar, and they had gotten some in, so I felt obligated to go buy some for next year. Now I have to remember I have them next year! Anyway, as I was checking out I spied the last two Southern Draw Lady Killers by the register and picked them up. This is Limited Cigar Association exclusive, in a Lonsdale format, with an Ecuador oscuro wrapper. I’m not one to hunt down stuff like this, but this is a cigar I was interested in trying, I like Southern Draw cigars and I had been itching to smoke something new from them. The Lady Killer is 6½” x 46, which is a great size. The wrapper is dark and oily and it was a beautiful cigar. This was a powerhouse, reminded me a bit of the Jacobs Ladder, with less sweetness. I avoid a lot of the LCA stuff because of the silly branding, but I trust Robert Holt to keep things on brand and classy with his Southern Draw releases. This was a great smoke.

When I stopped by Son’s Cigars a few weeks back I picked up one each of the Tatuaje T110 Limited Edition in the Broadleaf and Sumatra wrappers. To be honest, I only got one of each because they are only 4¾” x 52 and I so infrequently smoke cigars that short. I’m fortunate, I suppose, to have the time that a cigar that short just isn’t satisfying. Sure, I could smoke another cigar, but that gives me some flavor problems at that point. Anyway, I smoked the Broadleaf first. I have really enjoyed the Tatuaje Broadleaf cigars I’ve smoked in the past, and this was no different. This was a full flavored cigar with rich, espresso flavors, and actually burned longer than I expected. The burn time on this short robusto was comparable to a toro. It was an unexpected surprise.

The T11o LE Sumatra is the same size as the Broadleaf, also made a at the My Father factory in Esteli, with an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper over Nicaragua binder and fillers. The story on this size is that it was originally a shop exclusive for a store in Hawaii back in 2009, I believe, so these are reissues. If I recall, the original blend went on to be the Fausto. Makes sense, I love the Fausto! This cigar had a nice sweetness that I love in a Sumatra wrapped cigar, and was equally as full bodied as the Broadleaf. Oddly, the smoking time on this was was more appropriate to the size of the cigar. I had planned well, I got home a little late, then cut the lawn and got off to a later start with the cigar than normal. This was a different, but equally as good cigar as the Broadleaf.

That’s all for tonight, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as cigar, cigars, Lady Killer, Southern Draw, T110, tatuaje

by Craig Vanderslice | September 30, 2020 · 8:51 pm

News: Southern Draw Announces Two New Desert Rose Sizes

Here’s some news from Southern Draw Cigars. They’ve been quiet recently, but are breaking their silence with these two announcements, with the promise of more in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!

Southern Draw Cigars, the family owned premium cigar brand announced two unique line extensions for the DESERT ROSE cigar blend. The first “new bloom” is the Famous Exclusivo (Famous Smoke Shop) and the second is for general distribution to all valued retail partners.

Leading off Southern Draw Cigars’ exciting 2020 Fall Release Collection, are two new renditions of the Desert Rose cigar blend. This includes sizes intended for any consumer who wants to experience the heartier Rose of Sharon blend in the ever-popular Toro 6.0″ x 52 and the company has heeded the overwhelming requests and now offers an elegant Lonsdale 6.0″ x 44. Southern Draw has also made a commitment to expand the award winning 2019 release Desert Rose Belicoso Finos 5.5″ x 54, production is set at 80,000 cigars per year and these are now available for purchase in standard 20 count boxes and a limited amount of 20 count bundles.

Commenting on these developments, Southern Draw Cigars’ Boss Lady and the namesake of the Rose of Sharon blend, Sharon Holt said “We had to wait much longer than desired but the Desert Rose now headlines the 2020 Fall Release Collection in sizes that I find most enjoyable, offering a wider variety of smoking experiences of the blend. Simply put, the two new sizes of Desert Rose provide consumers, what I personally consider the two best smoking experiences for the blend and I have tried it in many sizes and formats. That said, we understand that our customers are sometimes very focused on new releases, wanting products that are specifically tailored to uniquely highlight the blend, so these are my gifts to them. These product line extensions address this desire for new releases while honoring the character of the original blend and by working closely with Famous Smoke Shop over the last 18 months, we were able to bring yet another exciting exclusivo cigar offering to their loyal consumers.”

Southern Draw Cigars is elated to announce the Desert Rose Toro 6.0″ x 52 Famous Exclusivo. A toro size in an eye-catching round format, each cigar is dressed in the iconic pink main band with a unique Exclusivo secondary band each produced by Cigar Rings, Estelí, Nicaragua. Production of the Famous Exclusivo has been limited to just 250 boxes of 10. “Considering Southern Draw’s continually growing popularity,” added Jim Charnley, Director Purchasing & Merchandising at Famous Smoke Shop, “we’re expecting the cigar to sell out quickly. This is not one to sleep on.”

The Famous Exclusivo is available for purchase during a live virtual event hosted by Famous Smoke Shop & Southern Draw Cigars from 7 – 9 pm ET on September 30th . Now in their 81st year of operation as a private, family-owned business, Famous Smoke Shop owner Arthur Zaretsky noted a special connection with Southern Draw: “To work with another family-owned company, it’s a connection that allows our families to collaborate so easily, and create exciting cigars our customers will enjoy.”

https://zoom.us/j/95135283424?pwd=V1NvTU51cXl3ZElZaE00c0xDay9Idz09
Meeting ID: 879 7929 7165
Passcode: 176484

For those unable to attend the virtual event, all remaining 10 count boxes will be made available via the Famous Smoke Shop website on October 1, 2020 by clicking on the link: https://www.famous- smoke.com/brand/southern-draw-rose-of-sharon-cigars

The second Desert Rose line extension is a subtly sophisticated Lonsdale 6.0×44, also rolled at AJ Fernandez Cigar Co. in the traditional “redondo” format with a “flag” cap and packaged in artful 12 count box designed by Humidif Group USA, a shelf friendly design that offers an eye-catching display for the new size. Production is slated for 4,000 boxes per year and all valued retail partners can now pre-order the initial 1,000 boxes that are expected to begin shipping in October 2020.

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by Craig Vanderslice | June 21, 2020 · 10:49 am

Providencia Spectrum and Espinosa Comfortably Numb Cigars and Other Stuff

Happy Father’s day. Later today I’ll smoke the last cigar from a box of cigars I bought for Father’s Day in 2000. It’ll be a hard cigar not to save, but I’m going to bite the bullet and light it anyway. I didn’t smoke the whole box one every Father’s Day, it took a few years for me to develop that tradition. I had smoked a few and shared a few, but over the years I had a few gifted to me as well to supplement the inventory, thanks to Mike Perry for extending my tradition for a few years by sharing some of his aged stash with me! So today will see the last Esperanza Para Los Niños toro, a cigar made by Christian Eiroa in 1999 with the help of some guys from a usenet group who met up in Danli and selected this blend and sold it with proceeds going to children orphaned by hurricane Mitch. $85 a box was a fortune for me at the time, a bargain now for an excellent cigar, which was heavy bodied, not unlike the old Camacho Triple Maduro. It’s always an adventure smoking a 20 year old cigar, I’m rather looking forward to it, but it’ll come with some sadness as I’ll never have another! I still have the box someplace though!

On to some cigars I actually smoked! I went on a brief Southern Draw bender on the heels of their press release announcing the cancelation of all of their public events for the rest of the year due to pandemic concerns. Personally, I find this to be a responsible decision, as areas that seem to be lax in their preventative measures seem to have a higher infection rate, and who amung us doesn’t want to protect their families? I think the Rose of Sharon Desert Rose is one of the top Connecticut shade style cigars out there, and the Kudzu Lustron is definitely a top notch cigar as well! I smoked both, they are the same box pressed torpedo vitola and are delicious. Speaking of box pressed torpedos from a Texas-based cigar company, I also smoked a cigar from Providencia Cigars. This cigar is called Spectrum, and my assumption is that it has an autism charity connection, considering the colorful puzzle pieces on the band. I can appreciate this theme. If I were to guess, I’d say it was 5″ x 52ish, and the only information I have on it is that it has a Sumatra wrapper that was characterized as delicate and thin. I was advised to avoid wind and humidity due to the fragility of the wrapper, so I did. This is an abso-friggin-lutely delicious cigar! As with just about every Providencia cigar I’ve ever smoked, the cigar burned perfectly. This was the rival of another Sumatra wrapped, honduran made cigar I love in flavor, balance and overall enjoyability (Don Juan Calavera). There’s a sweetness that I really dig, I really have to buy a mixed bag of old-timey hard candy and try to isolate that flavor, but there’s a candy sweetness that makes this cigar a great desert smoke. Absolute joy. I don’t have any idea what the availability of this is or was, but try it if you can.

I believe the Espinosa Comfortably Numb Vol.1 is a Meier and Dutch distributed brand, which is the distribution arm of Cigars International. I picked this one up a few years ago at the CI store in Hamburg when Erik Espinosa was there the day Cigar Fest tickets went on sale. I was just there for the spectacle of it all, hundreds of people lined up outside for hours in the freezing cold for tickets, not my bag, baby. This is a toro with an Ecuador Habano wrapper, Corojo binder and Nicaraguan fillers and is surprisingly mellow. It almost smoked like a shade wrapped cigar. It doesn’t have the grassy flavor, but it does have a sweet, nutty flavor that is pretty nice, and it seemed to have aged pretty well. I say “aged”, it was February of 2018 when I picked this cigar up, so, it’s hardly aged compared to a lot of things, but it held up. Tasty cigar, and not badly priced. I’d be very tempted to sample the madur version, the Vol. 2, the next time I happen to be in a CI store, or if I see it in a shop. Older folks will note the Alton Kelley/Wes Wilson inspired band design.

Speaking of “aging”, I smoked one of the Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust Famous Smoke Shop 80th Anniversary cigars from last October last night and it was spectacular. There’s not a lot of Saka’s cigars I don’t like, but this one is pretty special. Well, on with the day, have a great one, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as 80th, cigar, cigars, Comfortably Numb, Desert Rose, Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust, esperanza para los ninos, Espinosa, Famous Smoke Shop, Kudzu, LUSTRUM, Providencia, Rose of Sharon, Southern Draw, Spectrum

by Craig Vanderslice | January 29, 2020 · 8:50 pm

TPE 2020 Day 1: Southern Draw Cigars

As day one at the TPE comes to a close, I wanted to take a minute in the media lounge (thank you TPE) and post a video interview I did with Robert Holt of Southern Draw Cigars. Please note my glorious shirt made by my wife! Robert tells us about the Cedrus Lancero he launched at the show here and I smoked it and it was fantastic!

So far the show has been quite interesting! There are many more premium cigar companies here than years past, and many I spoke with were seeing new accounts opened and orders written, so they are having good experiences. More to come in the coming days.

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Cedrus, cigar, cigars, Southern Draw, TPE

by Craig Vanderslice | January 17, 2020 · 12:00 pm

News: Southern Draw Cigars to reveal the CEDRUS Lancero at TPE 2020

Here is some pre-TPE news from Southern Draw Cigars. So far Southern Draw is one of the only appointments I have at the show so far, so I encourage people to reach out to me and make appointments before I get booked up 😊. Seriously, I’m looking forward to seeing everyone at the show, although it’s looking like it’s falling at a time of great personal change for me! More on that as the situation unfolds. I dig the Southern Draw lanceros, looking forward to the Cedrus in this format.

NO price increases for 2020!

The love of lanceros, those long, thin cigars is nothing new for the Southern Draw Cigars family as they are our true favorite smoking experience. The family never likes to show up empty handed to a trade show or event, so it is excited to share something new with TPE 2020 attendees.

“Southern Draw Cigars has been quietly enjoying this size for several years (in fact I am smoking one as I draft this PR) and plans to reveal the CEDRUS Lancero 7.5×40 in celebration of our first ever attendance at the Tobacco Plus Expo in Las Vegas, NV. From January 29th – 31st. The family and the CEDRUS lancero may be found in a quaint little corner of Booth #4059. We have previously offered a lancero size in each of our core blends including the popular Rose of Sharon, Firethorn, Kudzu and Jacobs Ladder and this new addition will complement the CEDRUS line nicely. Although lanceros reportedly do not make up a large portion of sales for most brands, Southern Draw Cigars has been blessed with solid sales over the previous five years, sales that are on par with our more traditional robusto and toro sizes. We will have a limited number of samples on hand and will be taking pre-orders for April and July 2020 deliveries,” per Robert Holt.

Southern Draw Cigars is also pleased to announce that it has NO plan for a price increase for 2020. Sharon Holt a.k.a. The Rose of Sharon shared the company’s thought process, “We wish to avoid spending too much time on price increase (and justification) discussions with our staff and current valued retailer partners. The family believes this is time that should be spent on value increasing discussions instead. Southern Draw has been blessed by the patience and loyalty of our partners and consumers, which more than warrants this important decision.”

The company would like to share some of the reasons that a 2020 price increase on current products wouldn’t be productive:

SDC would like to hold on to our retailers and customers during this time of gloom and uncertainty in the industry by providing quality products at fair prices and an incentive for consumers not to turn to bargain or overall cheaper products.
A price increase would likely increase churn in the essential life blood of brick and mortar shops operating in states with higher than average tobaccos related taxes.
SDC has been blessed with a growth rate of >100% per year over the last 6 years, a 4% – 5% price increase now won’t really matter over the next 5 – 10 years, however the churn and the loss of referrals and consumer support will adversely impact our growth rate.
A price increase on current products and with existing partners will take a lot of time and energy away from family, sales representatives and brokers, if sales are soft or growth declines, the opinion will likely be that it was due to the price increase.
A one-time price increase may solve immediate increased labor, legal and logistical costs but when it is done, it hasn’t fixed any real issues. We need to support the industry more and proactively work together on long term solutions that benefit the industry.

Southern Draw Cigars plans to introduce more expensive product offerings in 2020 and when it has been determined a price increase is necessary, the company will make every effort to telegraph it well in advance and then apply it equally to all products in an attempt to mitigate any issues.

CEDRUS Lancero

Country of Origin: Nicaragua

Factory: AJ Fernandez Cigar Co., Estelí, Nicaragua