by | January 22, 2020 · 10:32 am

News: Ventura Cigar Releasing Archetype Master & Pupil Cigars at TPE

Here’s another news piece, this falls into the pre-TPE category. Ventura’s parent company owns the Tobacco Plus Expo, so I will be interested to see if they have any preferential treatment. I have to admit to looking at them a bit of a cynical eye since they made changes to their sales force. There’s enough divisiveness already, I don’t want to go down that road. 

To Teach and Be Taught

Ventura Cigar Company to Release New Archetype Cigars at TPE 2020: Master & Pupil

Unveiling new insights in the Archetype story, Ventura Cigar Company is pleased to announce Master and Pupil, two new cigars that examine strength and transitions through rich tobacco blends crafted by Juan Martinez and Doctor Cuenca from Joya de Nicaragua. The industry will get a first look at Master and Pupil at the Tobacco Plus Expo 2020, held in Las Vegas, Nevada, 1/29/20 – 1/31/20. Customers can expect to see the cigars at fine tobacconists online and across the country soon after.

 

Inspired by the studies of both Sigmund Freud and Ka

rl Jung, who identified common threads and themes of storytelling that transcend both time and culture, Archetype cigars outline the familiar tale of a hero’s journey, with cigars punctuating each crucial stage. Master and Pupil incorporates the essence of Freud and Jung, teacher and student, and tensions uncovered with the reversal of roles and transition of student to teacher.

 

Pupil is mild and relaxed in nature, and features an Ecuadoran Connecticut wrapper, Nicaraguan filler, and a Nicaraguan binder. It will be available as a 6 x 52 Toro.

 

 

The Master is a bold, confident cigar that’s crafted with a Nicaraguan wrapper, filler, and binder. It will also be available as a 6 x 52 Toro.

 

“No matter where you are in life, you are a master or a pupil. And then, one day, you are both,” says Michael Giannini, General Manager of Ventura

Cigar Company. “We are students first, learning from those who came before. And then we find ourselves as the teachers, imparting our knowledge on others just starting their quest. We are never fully done learning, either, so the roles of teacher and student are fluid, always changing. The Archetype Master and Pupil cigars explore these transitions and tens

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ions through blends that offer strength and nuance throughout the smoke. We’ve worked on these for over a year with the masters at Joya de Nicaragua, of whom we are all students. These cigars are solid. If you’re coming to TPE 2020, come by the Ventura Cigar booth to say hi and check them out. And if you’re not at the show, well, keep an eye out.”

 

Master and Pupil are the latest releases to Archetype, a line marked by highly rated cigars that include Dreamstate, Sage Advice, Strange Passage, Initiation, and Axis Mundi, in addition to the 2018 3-cigar mini-series Crystals, Curses, and Cloaks. Master and Pup

il are scheduled to ship immediately after TPE 2020.

 

For additional information, please visit venturacigarcompany.com.

 

About Ventura Cigar Company

Ventura Cigar Company (VCC) is a unique cigar brand born in sunny Southern California that is on a mission to create memorable, complex cigar blends that excite the senses and reward discriminating palates. Their flagship Archetype, Case Study, Project805, and PSyKo SEVEN brands offer multiple award-winning blends that earned 90+ ratings in Cigar Aficionado, Cigar & Spirits, and Cigar Snob. And Archetype’s Axis Mundi won #13 Cigar of the Year for 2017 from Cigar Aficionado. Ventura Cigar Company also distributes Tommy Bahama Luxury Cigar Accessories and the 4th Generation Tobacconist and Comoy’s of London lines of pipe tobacco products, extending its reach and tradition of offering top-quality tobacconist products. Pipes and blends under these brands are cultivated through generations of craftsmanship, making them longtime favorites of pipe tobacco enthusiasts.

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by | · 9:55 am

News: Black Label Trading Company Ships Deliverance Nocturne

Here’s some news from James and Angela and the folks at BLTC. I think I’ve smoked previous iterations of the Deliverance Nocturne, but if I haven’t, I certainly want to. I hope one of my local shops is one of the select retailers who will be getting this. I love some PA Broadleaf, and if sources are correct that we’ll be seeing more of it

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due to shortages of Connecticut Broadleaf, I’m kinda OK with that! This is another company I’m looking forward to catching up with next week at the TPE.

 

Black Label Trading Company (BLTC) is shipping DELIVERANCE NOCTURNE to select retailers this month. Deliverance Nocturne is handcrafted at Fabrica Oveja Negra in Esteli, Nicaragua.

 

“This is the 5th release of Deliverance Nocturne. The Nocturne highlights everything I love about PA Broadleaf. The rich, complex and bold earthiness of the wrapper highlights the unique blend of this cigar,” says James Brown, creator of BLTC and partner at Fabrica Oveja Negra.

 

DELIVERANCE NOCTURNE features a Pennsylvania Broadleaf wrapper with Pennsylvani

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a Ligero and Nicaraguan filler & binder.

Country of Origin: Nicaragua

Wrapper: Pennsylvania Broadleaf

Binder: Nicaraguan Habano

Filler: Nicaragua & Pennsylvania

 

Perfe

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cto – 5 x 56 (20 count) MSRP $10.50

Short Salomon “Snub Nose” – 4 ¾ x 40 x 56 (18 count) MSRP $10.50

Tall Salomon – 6 ¼ x 36 x 56 (12 count) MSRP $12.00

Black Label Trading Company is redefining the standards for cigar making. With a “less is more” philosophy, Black Label Trading Co. creates handcrafted premium ciga

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rs of the utmost quality in small batch, limited quantities.

 

For more information please visit OvejaNegra

Cigars.com. Consumers may search by zip code for retail

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ers nearest them.

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by | January 19, 2020 · 11:09 am

A Visit to W. Curtis Draper and Shelly’s Back Room in Washington D.C.s

Circumstances were such that I found myself on a bus to our nations capital yesterday. My wife wanted to attend the women’s march, I have no problem with that, I think women are great, although I think it sucks that there are so many agendas and negativity distracting from the intent of the whole thing. I can do without people in my face with political agendas and crowds, I’m really uncomfortable in crowds. So, since this whole event was happening around the White House, and W. Curtis Draper’s shop is literally catty corner from the White House. I get the impression that it’s been there for a while, probably since 1887 or so. I figured I’d pop in there and smoke a few cigars. It was freezing cold and rainy too. W. Curtis Draper is a beautiful tobacconist shop, well appointed, plenty of selection, cigars, pipes, humidors, accessories, the works. The staff was attentive, and the shop was clean and smoke free. Yes, smoke free. I come to find that sometime last September the landlord decided that smoking would no longer be permitted in the shop! Apparently the building changed owners and the feeling is that this is a ploy to try to drive them out to be able to lease the space for more money. This threw a monkey wrench into my plans, and I was barely able to thaw my toes. Naturally, I bought cigars anyway, Fratello’s DMV Maryland selection, and worked on my alternative plan. 

 

A few blocks away was Shelly’s Back Room, I’ve been there once many years ago. It’s a classic D.C. Cigar location. Here’s where I have to be very careful not to offend any of my “alternate lifestyle” readers with anything that might be perceived as bigotry or intolerance. I thought it was funny. Like i said, I hadn’t been to this establishment in many years, so when I walked in, being alone, a very white-bread, middle-aged married guy, I noticed that just about everyone in the place looked like the biker in the Village People. What did I just walk into? I’m weighing my comfort levels…outside freezing rain in a huge crowd or inside with a cigar with men who obviously aren’t going to bother me if they know I’m not into what they are into. I know I stick out like a sore thumb but I’m the only one who seems to notice, so I get seated in a corner and order a coffee and a cigar. My next decision is what cigar to smoke. Now, I’m grossly overpaying for a cigar, I understand I’m in a cigar bar and this is how things are, but the practical side of me, the side who knows what cigars cost and has many cigars at home and doesn’t “need” to buy a cigar struggles with over paying. It’s an illness. Looking at the menu I’m deciding which $9 cigar is going to give me $17 worth of pleasure, if that makes any sense. I can’t take chances on a mediocre cigar here, in my mind, the cigar I choose has to be an absolute winner. I have to say, I made the right choice, and they do have a very good cigar selection. I went with the E.P. Carillo Dusk, in the 6″ x 60 Solidos size. I would never pay $17 for this in a shop, but it was worth every penny to smoke under these circumstances. My wife joined me soon after, having grown weary of the march, and made some inquiries about what might be happening there that particular day. She will pretty much ask anyone anything, where I tend to be more reserved. She asked a gentleman wearing a full leather policeman’s uniform and apparently there was something called the Mid Atlantic Leather convention or something like that happening in town and they had their cigar social there. This was confirmed by a Canadian friend, so this must be fairly well known among those who know such things. While I sat there in jeans and a cotton shirt, with the only leather being suede Vans, everyone else was decked out in leather shirts, vests, jackets, pants, kilts, the works. I would not want to be in the hotel where this gathering was happening! There was nobody wearing chaps, before anyone asks, it was a cigar bar, they kept it classy. White-bread me found it odd though, and I’m glad I didn’t wear my leather jacket. We did eat while there also, the patty melt I had was very good, and the food prices are surprisingly reasonable.  I wouldn’t have traded the experience though, who else is going to have that cigar bar story to tell? If you’re in D.C., Shelly’s is a great place to go for a bite and a cigar! They have a bar too! 

 

That’s all I got today, the weather was lousy and I didn’t take many pictures, especially at Shelly’s. As much as I wanted to, I wanted to respect everyone’s privacy. I kept waiting to run into someone I knew…that would have been awkward…anyway, until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | 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:

  1. 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 overa

    ll cheaper products.  

  2. 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.
  3. SDC has been blessed with a growth rate of >100% per year over the last 6 years, a 4% – 5% price increase now w

    on’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.

  4. 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.
  5. 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

Wrapper:  Besuki, Indonesia

Binder:      Habano 2000- Estelí, Nicaragua

Viso:          Piloto Cubano – Dominican Republic, Criollo 98 – Estelí, Nicaragua

Seco:         Habana 92 – Quilali, Nicaragua

Ligero:      Corojo 99 – Jalapa, Nicaragua

Size:

Lancero 7.5×40 (box pressed)

Number of Cigars – 50,000 per size the be released for 2020 

Packaging:  20 count boxes (standard SDC boxes) and a limited number of 20 count refill bundles 

Price – $10.20 MSRP (same price as the robusto size of all core bend cigars) 

Ship Date – April15 & July 15 & October 15, 2020 

Soli Deo Gloria – 

 

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by | January 16, 2020 · 9:23 am

A La Sirena, a Villiger and a Few More Thoughts

I’ve had a lot of thoughts rattling around my head lately. I finally have an interview lined up for a job, with another couple possibilities in the pipeline. Historically, January has been a good hiring month for me, twice in the past I’ve started jobs which have lasted 13 years in January. As long as the companies don’t start with “S” I’m OK (every company I’ve worked for since 1989 has started with “S”, I need a change! Why do you think I haven’t pursued employment with Swisher, Swedish Match, Scandinavian Tobacco, Southern Draw…). It’s been stressful these last few months.  Anyway, I’ve been reading and hearing a lot of divisive talk about the PCA and who’s going and not going and all, and I made my position clear in my last post, but I think there’s a big picture that’s being missed. The cigar industry seems to be mirroring what’s going on in  the country poli

tically with the divisiveness. There’s a whole us versus them mentality where everyone really needs to be united now more than ever. I hate seeing it, it really sucks, and I don’t know the answer, but it’s clear that whoever is pulling the strings here is achieving the desired effect. Divide and conquer. The cigar industry already is too small to stand up for itself as it is, fractured it has no shot at all. I’m on the fence. I love cigars from the largest manufacturers down to the smallest without regard for their politics (there are a few brands I avoid on general principle). I have been to both kinds of factories and seen that cigars are made the exact same way. I know it’ll never happen in the cigar in

dustry, or in the country, but is it too much to ask to just get along and do the right thing?

 

On a positive note, one of the smaller cigar companies which has been a long time favorite of mine is going to me at the TPE show, and I’m looking forward to seeing the folks from La Sirena. I smoked a King Poseidon this week, and my supply is dwindling. This is the 6″ x 60 in the line, made at La Zona (did I recently say I seem to have been smoke a few La Zona made cigars lately?), and is really quite good. Lacking a toro in the line, I am partial to the Churchill (Trident) and this gordo, although the belicoso (Devine) is a great cigar as well. I bet I haven’t had a Robusto since they were making them in the My Father factory! The blend is a Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro wrapper, Nicaraguan Criollo binder and fillers from Jalapa and Condega, including something they refer to as Erik Espinosa’s “magic leaf”. The La Sirena brand, much like CigarCraig.com, celebrated it’s 10 year anniversary in 2019! Did I mention that the La Sirena is among my favorite brands? I love the line, and the King Poseidon smoked beautifully, and had a rich, creamy flavor with some punch! It’s a bold smoke, although the larger ring gauge perhaps less so than the thinner. I’m going to dig out one of my remaining My Father era Tridents one of these days, and I still have some Dubloons, which are large salomon shaped cigars. I can’t wait to see the La Sirena crew at the TPE.

 

One more repeat, this one was another newer cigar from Villiger, their Cuellar Black Forrest. I smoked this back in November and wrote about it, ironically I also included the King Poseidon in that post. Perhaps my selections are more cyclical than I know. To recap, the Black Forrest is not made in the Black Forrest at all, it’s made at Tabacalera Palma in the Dominican Republic, the factory where Jochi Blanco makes a whole bunch of cigars like La Galera, Aging Room, as well as a bunch of other cigars like Señorial, Freyja, Matilde, and probably a ton that none of us realize are made there. This cigar has a San Andrés wrapper, and, as I said before, it doesn’t have the “dirty” taste that that wrapper usually has, but is much more refined and really quite special. There’s a unique spice, and sweetness that’s delicious and wonderful. It has a nice box press and works very well to, so it’s a joy to smoke. It’s a well done cigar. 

 

OK, that’s enough for today, I need to get preparing for interviews, get the suit cleaned up and pick out a tie. 

 

Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

​

 

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