Category Archives: Trip Report

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A Quick Trip to Tampa, J.C.Newman, Hockey and Sanchez y Haya

Monday I took what is becoming an annual event, a trip to Tampa to go to a Flyers hockey game! Once again I met up with Kevin (CigarProp) to smoke cigars and watch hockey. Of course we smoked some great J.C. Newman cigars both at Corona Cigars in Tampa pre-game, and at the Diamond Crown Lounge in the Benchmark International Arena (the only NHL arena that still has a cigar lounge!). The lounge has been remodeled since last year, overlooks the ice surface, and is the best way to watch a game short of being able to smoke in the seats! It’s a beautiful lounge with comfy seating, TVs, and a nice selection of J.C. Newman and Fuente cigars. The service is excellent as well, with attentive staff there to make recommendations and cut and light your cigar if needed. If you ever have the opportunity to get club level seats at a Lightning game, it’s well worth it!

Photo Credit : Kevin

Tuesday morning I decided my best course of action was to get to the La Segunda bakery in Ybor to get some coffee and a cinnamon bun for breakfast, and pay a visit to El Reloj. I enjoyed an enormous cinnamon roll and a double espresso in the Cigar Workers Park across the street from the factory. It just so happened that my visit perfectly aligned with the ground-breaking ceremony for the Sanchez y Haya building that the Newmans have been working to renovate over the past couple years. It was a media event. TV stations were there, as well as a bunch of dignitaries, including Kathy Castor, the area’s member of the House of Representatives. Drew Newman, great grandson of J.C. Newman, who has. spearheaded this, as well as the renovation of El Reloj, spoke about the history of the building and the plans for the future. It’s refreshing to see their local elected officials getting behind something cigar related. I felt fortunate and honored to have stumbled across this event. It’s my hope that next year I can go down for a game again, and stay at the hotel! I took a few pictures, and have included the local news video below.

Many thanks to the folks at J.C.Newman for the hospitality! I’m glad I got to visit with Bobby, Eric and Drew for a few minutes, and meet Amanda. I’m sorry I missed Sydney. It’s always good to hang out with Kevin!

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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November 28, 2025 · 10:18 am

June 29, 2025 · 8:45 am

A Quick Connecticut Visit, Paper Crane and Outcast Cigars

Last Sunday my wife and I drove up to Connecticut for breakfast, an annual tradition to celebrate her best friend who passed away. While we were in the neighborhood, we paid a visit to Mark Twain’s house in Hartford. I honestly don’t think I even knew that he had lived there. It was an amazing home, and photography was forbidden, but I managed to sneak a pic in his third floor man room. Of course, he smoked 24-40 cigars a day, they must have been either tiny or he didn’t smoke much of them, because I can barely manage a couple. I spend a minimum of an hour smoking a cigar, usually closer to two. There aren’t that many hours in the day! I do recommend the tour. They have chocolate cigars in the gift shop.

On our way home we stopped in New Haven to visit the Owl Shop. I’ll be honest, I confused this with the Owl Shop in Massachusetts, but I certainly wasn’t disappointed. This is a full bar and cigar lounge in the downtown area, with a nice selection of cigars. I grabbed a couple of their 85th anniversary cigars, not surprisingly made by Foundation Cigar Co.. Nick Melillo’s from New Haven, and his family has patronized this shop for decades. If I read right, this came out in 2019, so the 90th anniversary has come and gone, and I assume this is regular limited production for the store and not 6 year old stock. It has the Havana Seed CT #142 wrapper found on the Tabernacle Havana Seed No. 142, Mexican binder, and Nicaraguan fillers from Estelí and Jalapa, offered in a 5½” x 54 Robusto Extra. We sat in the lounge and relaxed with this cigar before heading back to PA, and it was very good. It has some espresso and leather with some spice. I liked it a lot, and the lounge was comfortable, the staff attentive, and I imagine the place is packed at night! It was a long day, but a good one.

I took a few days off this week to get some estate stuff done, and managed to have my first morning cigar of the season on Thursday. The weather has been crazy this year, I’m not sitting on my porch in the cold in the morning! I had picked up a Black Works Studio Paper Crane Corona Gorda when I visited Smoke Inn a few months back, and this was the perfect time to smoke it. This cigar came out in 2024, and has an Ecuador Connecticut Desflorado wrapper, Ecuador Habano binder and Nicaraguan fillers. It was rich and creamy, with a bit of spice. Not a mild cigar, it had some oomph to it, and it was a good kick start to the day. I haven’t really smoked many of Oveja Negra’s Connecticut offerings, but this one is good. James Brown knows how to blend cigars!

I had heard about the Outcast Cigars debut at the PCA show and had some curiosity. This is a new brand from Miami Cigar and Co., Gabriel Piñeres, PR guy to the stars, was kind enough to share a couple robustos with me. This is what the website has to say:

FOR THE BOLD AND UNCONVENTIONAL
Outcast Cigars is built for those who defy the norm and embrace the journey less traveled.

By blending rare and unconventional tobacco, we craft cigars that break tradition and redefine excellence. Like the trailblazers who inspire us, our cigars forge their own path—bold, unapologetic, and destined for greatness.

Outcast Cigars isn’t just a smoke; it’s a statement.

Be unique. Be yourself. Be an Outcast.

I smoked one and I enjoyed it. It has a Brazilian Cubra wrapper, Ecuadorian Sumatra binder and Dominican fillers. It burned perfectly, had a sweet cap, and was aromatic, my wife said the aromas changed from pipe-like to weedy, which I get the pipe analogy but no weed. This is obviously a cigar made with cased tobaccos, and I couldn’t help drawing comparisons to another cigar that is super popular and uses tobaccos traditionally found in pipe tobaccos. I believe it’s made by La Aurora, but if it came out that it was made by a certain Esteli factory I wouldn’t be at all surprised. It’ll be a big hit if it gets the right exposure. It’s a great change of pace cigar for me.

That’s about all I have for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Black Works Studio, cigar, cigars, Foundation, Foundation Cigar Co., Mark Twain, Miami Cigar and Co, Outcast, Oveja Negra, Owl Shop, Paper Crane, Samuel Clemens

March 9, 2025 · 10:15 am

Tobacco Queen Super A, Timeless Supreme and a Couple Cigars at Smoke Inn

A few weeks ago I featured some cigars from Cigar Ambassador in the Tobacco Queen line. This is a company that has been a major leaf supplier to the Asian market out of the DR. I was waiting for the right time to tackle the Tobacco Queen Super A, a 9¼” x 48 actual A size cigar, and that time presented itself this week. Set aside a hair over two hours for this one. I was surprised that this started out with a lot of flavor, many times A size cigars start mild, this one had some spice and cinnamon to start. For such a long cigar, it burned perfectly, and had a reasonable consistent flavor all the way through. It was a fun smoke, it kept my interest throughout, and I’d smoke it again. As long as it keeps my interest, I like a long smoke.

I had picked up a Ferio Tego Timeless Supreme 660 recently because I hadn’t yet smoked anything Ferio Tego branded yet. I don’t know how this happened, I just know that I need to fix it. The Timeless Supreme is a box-pressed Nicaraguan puro, made by Placencia. The 6″ x 60 box pressed doesn’t feel too large, and it smoked perfectly. This cigar was chocolaty with a hint of spice tingle, and I really liked it. Why haven’t I smoked this before? It could easily be a go-to cigar for me, it’s fits my preferences just right. I will need to further explore the Timeless series.

Friday morning I decided to make a Saturday visit to the Smoke Inn Casa de Montecristo in West Palm Beach, Florida. I know, you’re saying “CigarCraig, you live in Pennsylvania, how can this be?” Well, my wife got me a Frontier Airlines Go-pass that allows unlimited flights at short notice. All I have to pay is the taxes, which in the last three trips to Florida are about $30 round trip. Of course, there are limitations: blackout dates, limited destinations and times, stuff like that. One must also be willing to endure the discomfort of a budget airline, and I’ll put up with a lot to save a buck. Anyway I booked flights to Palm Beach International Airport and picked the closest Smoke Inn location to the airport, not realizing that the Headquarters store wasn’t too much further away. That’s how I ended up hanging out at Smoke Inn West Palm Beach for the day yesterday.

This is a beautiful shop, with a complete bar, well stocked humidor and helpful staff. Considering it’s been winter here, and was sunny and 80 there, I sat out on the lanai, as the Floridians like to call a patio. The patio had three TVs, and the music at a barely audible level so one doesn’t have to yell to converse, which I like a lot. The regulars engaged in the ball busting that seems to happen in every lounge I visit. I picked up a handful of cigars I hadn’t seen before and lit up a Micallef Black Box Pressed Toro, a Smoke Inn exclusive. This is a 6½” x 54 with a San Andrés wrapper, Ecuadorian Habano binder, and Nicaraguan fillers. I’m interested to see what Micallef does with this blend in the firecracker format, this is a much better value! I regret not bringing some back with me. It’s about $9, with some spice and cocoa, just the way I like it. I know that next weekend is the Great Smoke, and the stores there are going to be super busy. Would it have been better to go then? Perhaps, but the dates were blacked out and I was happy to hang out there with an old friend from the alt.smokers.cigars usenet days, Don Payne. It was great catching up with him. I was home in bed before midnight. This is two weekends in a row I’ve taken day trips to Florida, next weekend I’m staying home!

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

CigarCraig

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Filed under Review, Stores, Trip Report

Tagged as Casa de Montecristo, cigar, cigars, Ferio Tego, Micallef, Smoke Inn, Timeless, Tobacco Queen, West Palm Beach

March 2, 2025 · 11:06 am

Cigar Circus Grand Opening in Clearwater, Florida

Yesterday I took a little day trip to Florida! I left the house around 4:30 am and got a flight out of BWI in Maryland because I couldn’t get the flight I wanted out of Philly. Got to Tampa around 11 and had a Diamond Crown Robusto No. 4 while I waited for Kevin (CigarProp, Trash Panda) and Jessica, to pick me up. Many thanks to them for the ride and friendship! Additional thanks to Keith for the ride to the airport and keeping me company! Cigar Circus is a new business in Clearwater, Florida. It’s spearheaded by Ryan Gallimore, formerly of Drew Estate and before that Swinger Cigars. This is a Cigar Distribution operation, E-Commerce operation with a large retail showroom and a lounge. Yesterday they held their grand opening celebration, which is why I flew down. In addition to the 150 or so attendees, there were 20 or more cigar company representatives, none of whom were there selling, they were there interacting with the attendees. Generally at multi vendor events there are lines and not a lot of time to just hang out with the, in many cases, faces of companies. This was one of my favorite parts of this event. Every attendee got a cool bag with an ashtray, mug, lighter, cap and a bunch of cigars. Ryan used to buy the swag for Drew Estate, so it was all top notch. There were a bunch of circus performers on hand. Ironically (or maybe not), that part of Florida has a rich circus history. They also had food! Brisket, pulled pork, two different sausages, slaw and potato salad, and there were more than enough coolers with water and soft drinks, and a substantial bottle collection (don’t drink, didn’t look into it any further). This was a really well done event, although one thing Ryan learned from Drew Estate was to have a very loud DJ. I’m old, I don’t want to have to yell at people, unless they deserve it!

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I smoked a few cigars over the course of the day, I didn’t smoke anything I hadn’t smoked before because at this kind of event one doesn’t have a chance to think too much about what one’s smoking! I had an AJ Fernandez New World Dorado Corona and a Diesel Vintage, both very satisfying! After the event I met up with my friend Keith and we went over to Corona for a quick little Tatuaje Cojonu before he dropped me a the airport. It was a great day, glad to see a lot of old friends and meet some new ones.

I have two months left on my Frontier Go-Pass, so if anyone has a suggestion on where I can go for a quick visit, within a couple hours flight from Philadelphia, let me know! That’s all for today, until the next time,

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CigarCraig

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Filed under Events, Trip Report

Tagged as cigar, Cigar Circus, cigars

February 2, 2025 · 9:52 am

Total Products Expo 2025 Recap

I got back yesterday from a Vegas were I had the good fortune of attending the Total Products Expo, formerly the Tobacco Products Expo. This year was a little differe

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nt for me, as I spent the first two days helping out my friends at CigarMedics as a product ambassador, or evangelist, whichever works. It was interesting working that side of the table for a change, and I got to meet some new folks from around the country and educate a lot of folks on the Humidimeter and their other products. I continue to be a big fan of CigarMedics products, and watch for some new items in the future!

The TPE is a huge show, spanning two floors of the south hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Id guess that premium cigars and related items is less than 5% of the exhibitors. Most of it was vape, both nicotine and cannabis, nicotine pouches, “glassware”, and other items that are in smoke shops and convenience stores (we used to call Smoke Shops “head shops” years ago). The vape vendors seemed to have the most elaborate booths, and they seem to have incorporated digital screens and lights in to the devices for some reason. The pouches were a big thing it seemed. Lots of cannabis related stuff too, in which I’m neither familiar nor interested. I ventured off the red carpet (the cigar portion

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is designated by red carpeting) and was very unco

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mfortable. There were some interesting marketing tools and there was plenty of wild stuff to see. The cigar side was more traditional, although since there really weren’t a lot of premium cigar brands there (I counted around 20), there were some large lighter displays and some various accessory companies. Drew Estate’s booth was modest, J.C. Newman, Altadis , Davidoff and Perdomo had sizable booths, but the rest were reasonably simple. It didn’t seem like there were a lot of traditional cigar merchants there doing business, I ran into a few, but not like it’s been in years past that I’ve been to the TPE. Besides it being a more affordable overall trip, I’m not sure I’d go again, if I do it’ll be for one day, and the rest will be personal vacation.

I decided this year I was going to do something a little different from collecting video interviews with cigar brands, I interviewed some of the media in attendance. If you want to hear from the brands, check out these guys, they were all interviewing exhib

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itors, and no doubt, have the same content I would have gotten. My first one was with Patrick from Halfwheel. I’ve known Patrick since 2011, and I chatted with him for a few minutes. I later saw Charlie there and he passed on being interviewed say Patrick was a better interview anyway.

I also ran into Matthew Tabacco (his real name) who was there with his mother, who is also a cigar fan. Check out the Smokin Tabacco podcast and website, they have a good team and are very nice people. Keep an eye open for their annual raffle event benefiting the Cigar Family Charitable Foundation. I always enter, but never win! That’s OK, I have plenty, and the money goes to a great charity!

I met Cigar Show Tim at the 2020 TPE. and run in to him from time to time. He has the luxury of being able to drive the Vegas from California and has quite the professional rig. It’s tough doing video as a one man team, as evidenced be my own, Tim has a tripod on wheels and does a great job. Check out his YouTube channel.

I met Darrell of the Cigars Liquor and More podcast in the media lounge and found him to be a likable guy, and have subscribed to his podcast, but, admittedly, haven’t listened yet. They concentrate on pairings, and tech talk, so except for the booze part, I’m looking forward to adding this podcast into my rotation.

Finally I managed to meet Nick, the Bishop of the Burn, from the Cigar Pulpit Podcast. I’ve been enjoying this show for a few years now, and somehow managed to miss meeting Nick at previous TPE shows. Nick was joined by Noah at the show, a listener and frequent contributor to the show.

Hopefully you enjoy my slightly unusual coverage of the TPE show, thank you to CigarMedics for sponsoring this year’s coverage. If you don’t have a Humidimeter, what are you thinking? Get one! Anyway, it was fun, I’m pretty boring and was pretty much either in my hotel room, ar at the airport whenever I wasn’t on the show floor. Until the next time,

CigarCraig