Tag Archives: Best Cigar Pub

May 17, 2026 · 9:33 am

CigarProp 10th Anniversary Cigar and the Smoke-onos Festival

Yesterday I had the great pleasure of attending my 3rd Smoke-onos event hosted by Best Cigar Prices in Drums, PA. But first, I want to talk about the new cigar from CigarProp celebrating their 10th anniversary. A little history: I first heard from Kevin on February 4, 2014. He was trying to get into the cigar tube business, having made some single cigar tubes on his lathe at home. I recall contributing to his Indiegogo campaign, I have no idea how much he raised from that. I’m kinda glad he moved into the prop space, as I don’t find a lot of use for a single tube, as nice as they were, I rarely travel with one cigar. I have a pretty good collection of Cigar Prop prototypes, including a portable prop that Kevin caled the XC, with the C honoring me, for some reason! I have spent many hours with Kevin (and Jessica), over the last dozen years. We differ greatly in a lot of ways, but we have a kinship somehow. The 10th Anniversary is made at Fabrica Centroamericana de Tabaco S.A., the factory that makes Cavalier Cigars. The cigar is a toro (yay!), and is mostly Honduran with an Oscuro wrapper from Jamastrán, what I assume is a Connecticut broadleaf grown in Honduras for the binder, Visos from Copan in Honduras and Jalapa in Nicaragua, Ligero from Jamastran and a Sumatra seco. I’ve smoked a couple, I’m smoking one as I write this rather early on a Sunday morning, and it’s a delightful cigar. It has some sweet chocolate notes, and works very well with my black coffee (a store brand k-cup, I know, I’m a heathen). It’s silky smooth with no spice, although it will build a little spice, but what cigar doesn’t, really? Kevin is also becoming the go-to guy fro 3D printing, and made the boxes for these, available as an add on, in 5 and ten count versions. I was talking to Coleman of Sinistro cigars yesterday about this since Keven made the boxes for their upcoming No Etiendo line. This is a really nice cigar!

Yesterday was the Smoke-onos cigar festival at Best Cigar Prices/Pub in Drums, PA, which is near Wilkes Barre, PA. It’s about an hour and a half drive from my location. The name is a bit of a misnomer, as it’s technically just outside of the Poconos region, but it’s still quite a picturesque spot. This fest fills the void left by the Cigarfests that CI had, which I never attended , 3000 people each day for two days is more than I care to handle. I want to say there were 1500 at this event, and it’s laid out in such a way that it never felt crowded. I took another Craig, the Breadman, Craig Gilpin, who you may recall helped me out on these pages last year when I was otherwise occupied. I made various “two Craigs are better than one” jokes throughout the day. As I have attended events like this solo many times, it was excellent to have a friend along. I honestly hope that they don’t let these get any bigger, as it’s just better for attendees and vendors alike to keep it relatively intimate. I like to go and visit with my friends in the industry, stay on the radar, and catch up.

I had the good fortune to hang out with Terence Reilly while he ate a cheesesteak, and catch up with a ton of other folks. I think it’s kinda funny that folks like Rocky Patel can walk around, but Jonathan Drew (Sann, now) has a line of people waiting for a word and a picture. I did see JD smoking a cigar in person, and managed a wave. Saka was jovial, Jack Torano was grumpy, and I missed some notable folks who I’m sure would rather have been there than home recuperating from illness. I highly recommend this event next year if you can make it. My only complaint, as with every event, it seems, is that the music was too loud, I hate yelling at people. The band they had, Amish Outlaws, was really quite good, and a bunch of guys dressed like the Amish playing dance music is kinda funny. The weather was perfect and it was a great day of cigars and camaraderie. Best Cigar Prices treated us very well, and I thank them very much!

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

CigarCraig

😃+

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Tagged as 10th Anniversary, Best Cigar Prices, Best Cigar Pub, cigar, CigarProp, cigars, Smoke-onos

May 18, 2025 · 8:49 am

Villiger and Mil Dias Cigars and the Smoke-Onos Event

Yesterday I attended the Smoke-Onos event at Best Cigar Prices in Drums, PA, but more on that later. First I want to talk about a couple cigars I smoked this week. First up was the Villiger 1888 Gran Reserva. This is a 6″ x 54 with a San Andrés wrapper, Ecuador Habano binder and Nicaraguan fillers. These are made at the Villiger de Nicaragua factory in Esteli (Until I’m told otherwise, I believe this is a sub-factory within Joya de Nicaragua). I was disappointed that René Castañeda wasn’t at the event yesterday! This cigar is $22, is limited to 1000 ten count boxes, and uses tobaccos aged at least two years with a year of post-roll aging. Of course, the size of the cigar is right, I really liked this cigar. It started with some cocoa and spices which kept going all the way through. This was a really enjoyable smoke, if they were half the price I’d be all over them!

To those who don’t know, Smoke-Onos is a portmanteau of Smoke and Poconos. To those who don’t know what a portmanteau is, go ahead and look it up! The Poconos is a sub-range of the Appalachian mountains located in the north-east part of Pennsylvania. It has nothing to do with Yoko Ono. Best Cigar Prices has their operation, with includes the Best Cigar Pub, in Drums, PA, which is kinda between Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton. Despite being in a relatively remote area, it’s a very popular cigar destination. The Smoke-Onos event covers several days, with events Thursday and Friday evenings, and a large multivendor event Saturday, an afterparty, then something on Sunday. I attended the Saturday event on a press pass, which got me in the door. If you are anywhere near this area, go to this event.

Many of the major players were there, the swag looked very impressive, with a duffle/backpack full of swag and cigars. There was a band that was loud (I was impressed when I heard them playing Hocus Pocus by Focus), the Drew Estate booth, which was smack dab in the middle of the event, was loud, and the crowd was large. I bet there were a couple thousand people there. I’ve been to these sorts of events, and for only the second year, this was up there with the best. I saw a great many friends there, both attendees , other media outlets and exhibitors. Many thanks to BCP for including me!

After getting home, I settled into my usual spot on my porch with a Crowned Heads Mil Dias Maduro Edmundo to watch this week’s episode of Curse of Oak Island. After 15 years they still haven’t found any treasure. The Maduro is a completely different blend than the Habano, with a Broadleaf wrapper, Habano binder and Nicaraguan fillers. This is apparently made in the factory formerly known as Tabacalera Pichardo, TacaNicsa. I really like the Mil Dias Habano, and I was hoping to like this more. It’s a tasty cigar, starts peppery, and the pepper continues throughout. I think I expected more sweetness, and there was some espresso, but no sugar. This might be one of the rare cases where I prefer the Habano over the Maduro, usually Maduro is my jam. Anyway, it was good, the 5 3/8″ x 52 size fit the time I needed it to fill, and I was not unhappy.

That’s all for today. There was another cigar I smoked this week, but I didn’t care for it, so I’ll leave it for another time when I can smoke one again and form a better opinion! Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as 1888, Best Cigar Prices, Best Cigar Pub, cigar, cigars, Crowned Heads, Mil Dias, Smoke-onos, smokeonos, Villiger

May 19, 2024 · 10:05 am

The Smoke-onos Event at Best Cigar Prices in Drums PA

Yesterday I made the one and a half hour drive north to Drums, Pennsylvania to attend the inaugural Smoke-onos cigar event put on by Best Cigar Prices/Best Cigar Pub. I remember when New Global Marketing, the predecessor to BCP took up about three quarters of the Fujipub Listserve. This was a weekly e-mail full of specials from a dozen or so retailers back in the days before social media. I haven’t known what the weather is in the Puget Sound area since it’s demise. I’m sure there’s a couple of my long time readers that will get a chuckle out of this, but it won’t mean anything to most of you. The fact that at least of my advertisers appeared on that e-mail regularly says something about their success. Back

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to 2024, Best Cigar Prices decides to fill a void in cigar events in the region and puts on Smokonos, which is an amalgamation of Smoke and Poconos for those not keeping up. This was a three day event with a dinner Friday night, the main event Saturday, and a brunch on Sunday. If you find

They sold out of these 20″ x 200 cigars…I didn’t buy one.

yourself in the northeast PA area, you have to stop at the Best Cigar Pub for a meal and a cigar, it’s a great place. I

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attended the main event only, and it was very well done. Despite a steady drizzle, 600 attendees enjoyed themselves. They had tents set up in such a way that it was possible to avoid any rain if you wanted to. I think there were 25 or so cigar companies represented, and most of the principle people were there. I was pleased to catch up with many old friends, and even finally met Justin Andrews, who I probably should have met years ago! In addition to all of the cigar brands offering discounted purchases and deals, there was food, beer and live music on hand throughout the day. The attendees received a backpack and travel humidor with their ticket price, along with a coupon book for a cigar (or cutter in the case of Quality Importers) from each vendor.

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bsp;

The one moment I was turned off was when someone, and I don’t know who it was, took the stage to sing the National Anthem (which had been done already at the start of it on electric guitar), and made some editorial remarks that were political in nature. I didn’t see the need to repeat the National Anthem (for the record, the performance of our National Anthem is a pet peeve of mine, perform it as written, or not at all. It’s not a piece that requires personal interpretation. I’d be happy if anything but performance by a military band were outlawed!). This was a place for cigar lovers to get together and smoke cigars and commune and catch up, not a political rally. I don’t attend those for a reason, and I don’t like it when people feel the need to inject their agenda where it doesn’t belong. I feel the same way about religion, just so you don’t think I’m singling out the political zealots! Apart from that incident, it was a great event. Laura Barlau did a great job organizing it. I will share this with her directly, but I saw a lot of people paging through their coupon books for the coupon they needed, and there’s an easy fix. When they print the coupons, they need to put the company logo on the outs

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ide instead of the spine of the booklet. A small thing, but would make things easier for everyone. I skipped out before the bonfire, I hope the rain stopped and they managed to

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get that going! I ran into the owner of another large retailer who used to put on a festival like this. He mentioned that his big mistake was leaving his retail store open and apparently there was quite a lot of shoplifting. Best Cigar Prices/Pub was closed over the three days of the event so they didn’t have this problem. All in all. it was a well executed event, the attendees seemed happ

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y, the vendors seemed happy, it appeared to be a win! Thanks to the folks at BCP for including me.

That’s all for today, sorry the pictures aren’t better. Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Best Cigar Prices, Best Cigar Pub, cigar, cigars, Multi-vendor, Smoke-onos, Smokonos

October 24, 2021 · 11:12 am

A Visit To Best Cigar Pub with The Cigar Hacks and Diesel Sunday Gravy News

Nearly Four years ago when I went to New Hampshire for the Cigar Authority’s 400th show I met Dave, who was launching a new podcast called The Cigar Hacks. They do a panel style podcast, (often large) with a cast of characters which has morphed over time. They concentrate on promoting events and shops local to them in the New Hampshire and Massachusetts areas, along with events at other places they have visited in their travels. They also do a blind review of a cigar just about every week. I find them entertaining, as long as they don’t get too politica

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l. Dave has also managed to get his hands on a stretch limo, which they call the Oscuro III, as there have been others before this one, which the load up into to visit the various shops and lounges in their area. Like Pennsylvania, New Hampshire is loaded with cigar shops, because there’s no cigar tax. This is one of the reasons that the Hacks made a trip to the northern part of my state of PA to visit a few stores. There are also a few friends of the show, and fellow Hacks, I guess, in PA who hosted the New Englanders. These guys like to party too. I decided to drive up to Best Cigar Pub in Drums, PA to surprise them. I beat them there by about twenty minutes, which allowed me time to hit the humidor where I picked up some of the new CAO 60 Torque for some reason. What compelled me to get, and light up, an 8″ x 60 cigar, I can’t tell you, I suppose I wanted something that was going to fill the right amount of time for me, nd it was new and I really couldn’t find anything else I wanted to smoke in the humidor at the time. I really wasn’t paying too much attention to it, but it wasn’t bad, I smoked the second half on the ride home and it was actually quite tasty. More on that cigar another time, but it’s easily a three hour cigar. I ended up being a guest on the podcast episode that they recorded there, which should be released tomorrow, so if Podcasts are your thing, check out The Cigar Hacks where ever fine podcasts are sold. If you’re in the northeastern part of PA, you need to visit Best Cigar Pub. It’s quite the place. They have a full bar and restaurant, along with a well appointed humidor and an outstanding staff. I’d stop in more often if it weren’t an hour and forty minute drive! It was great to finally meet the Hacks from NH/Mass, Joe and his family, and Alex from PA.

There have been some news items that have come across my desk over the last week that I have passed on posting because they were shop exclusives or “just shipped” or stuff like that. I figure others are passing that info along, my readers don’t need to see it here. However, one I didn’t get a chance to pass along, and it was sent kind of late, as the cigar had already started to show up in stores I’m led to believe, is this one:

DIESEL LAUNCHES SECOND “SUNDAY GRAVY” EXPRESSION

Diesel is rolling out the first follow-up to Sunday Gravy with “Pecor

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ino,” a three-country blend that’s just begun shipping to retailers nationwide. Pecorino takes its name from a deliciously rich and flavorful Italian cheese often substituted for a more expensive variety. Here again, the culinary world and the cigar category collide, as Sunday Gravy Pecorino offers a satisfying smoking experience at a surprisingly affordable price.

Blended by AJ Fernandez and Justin Andrews and handcrafted at Tabacalera AJ Fernandez in Esteli, Nicaragua, Diesel Sunday Gravy Pecorino features a Mexican San Andres wrapper over a Cameroon binder and bold Nicaraguan Esteli Habano filler. This is a medium-plus smoke brimming with character. The Mexican wrapper delivers a peppery note and when combined with the subtle sweetness from the Cameroon binder and the boldness of the filler, the experience is unique and dimensional.

Justin Andrews said, “AJ and I had a lot of fun blending Diesel Sunday Gravy Pecorino. And as often happens over Sunday sauce, we brought our opinions to the table. ‘Pecorino’ represents what he and I both believe is the best of our palates: AJ’s nod to a bold smoke is there on the Nicaraguan ligero filler and my style is represented through the complexity and balance of the Mexican San Andres wrapper. This is the perfect cigar to enjoy, share or gift this holiday season and the size makes Pecorino the perfect smoke for any occasion. ”

Pecorino is being released in a robusto gordo size only, which both AJ and Justin agree is the best expression of the blend.

Pecorino (5” x 56); SRP per cigar $4.99

Diesel Sunday Gravy Pecorino will be available nationally from October-December 2021, or until the cigars are sold out. The next Sunday Gravy blend will be released in January, 2022.

Diesel cigars are produced by Scandinavian Tobacco Group and distributed by Forged Cigar Company.

About Diesel Sunday Gravy

Diesel Sunday Gravy launched in August 2021 as a full-time line of seasonally-released, Nicaraguan-forward smokes, blended and handcrafted through Diesel’s winning partnership of AJ Fernandez and Justin Andrews. Blends will be released quarterly, sold until their limited supply is deleted and offered at an unbelievable SRP of less than $5.00 per cigar.

About Diesel

Handcrafted by artisans in Esteli, Nicaragua, Diesel cigars are “bold by design.” The brand challenges the current conventions of the handmade cigar category through the bold, unapologetic style of its Cigar Master, AJ Fernandez. Diesel cigars are unified by their deeply complex flavor which is achieved through AJ’s steadfast adherence to time honored cigar making techniques and his insistence on using the highest quality tobacco. The Diesel portfolio includes Hair of the Dog which was released in 2019; Whiskey Row which launched two expressions, one in 2019 and one in 2018, and Diesel Grind which debuted in 2017. For more information, visit www.dieselcigars.com.

I’m starting to see a p

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attern, are they naming these after tomatoes? I don’t like tomatoes, but I don’t mind a good sauce (my wife’s Italian, I only hear her refer to gravy when turkey is involved). I’m picky, I don’t like chunks or skin in the sauce. I did smoke a couple of the San Marzanos, and they were pretty good cigars. The wrapper is Ecuadoran Habano, the binder is Nicaraguan Esteli and the filler is Nicaraguan Jalapa. These

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are inexpensive cigars by today’s standards and are definitely on the high side of quality when it comes to cigars in that price range. The flavor is fairly linear, not an overly complex cigar, but the flavor is good, thankfully no tomato flavors (which reminds me, I grew some Habano 2000 in the greenhouse this summer and a tomato plant was in there too, think they cross pollinated? Wasn’t that a Simpson’s episode?). If you are looking for a good, inexpensive smoke, pick some of these up. I’ll be looking forward to trying the subsequent releases, which are actually limited, when they are sold out that’s it.

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

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Best Cigar Pub, CAO 60 Torque, cigar, Cigar Hacks, cigars, diesel, Hacks, Pecorino, San Marzano, Sunday Gravy, The Cigar Hacks

June 17, 2020 · 10:24 pm

A Visit to Best Cigar Pub and Best Cigar Prices Exclusive Rare Select Cigars

Pic from PCB’s website

Yesterday my wife and I took a drive to Scranton to pick up a cool cigar lamp that she won in an auction, so on the way back we stopped in to Best Cigar Pub in Drums, PA for lunch. I had visited here briefly over the winter and gotten a tour and had a cigar (you can read about it here), today we enjoyed a meal at the pub. They had just re-opened last Thursday, and were observing all of the precautions we need to become accustomed to. Fortunately it was a beautiful spring day, and they had copious outdoor seating, even extending into the parking lot. My first stop was into the retail shop, masks required, with only three patrons allowed in a a time and no handling the product. Charlie was very helpful, recognizing me behind

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my cigar mask (which coordinated with my shirt, I’m a dork). I picked up some of their exclusive 601 Pennsylvania Toros and joined my wife outside. The Pub has an excellent menu of fresh food, My wife had a Cuban sandwich, and I had a Short Rib with Provolone sandwich and both were delicious served with potato chips made there. I enjoyed one of the 601 Pennsylvanias while we enjoyed the views. Kyle was our server and did an excellent job, everyone there was very friendly and accomodating, although I am having trouble getting used to hearing people speaking through masks. I have enough trouble hearing as it is. I really like the 601 PA Edition, by the way, but it was a bit breezy and I had trouble with the burn, leading to a bit of a tunnel. Best Cigar Pub is a destination, I can imagine when restrictions are lifted it will be a great place for events, or just to hang out and have a nice meal.

Papier-mâché cigar lamp

By the way, here is the cool lamp we picked up. While we were eating, Charlie from the humidor came out and very kindly handed me a bag with one each of their Rare Select series from General Cigar. I selected the CAO Rare Select when I got home for my evening walk. After spending the day in the car I needed to stretch my legs. The CAO Rare Select was a 6″ x 50 toro with a Sun Grown Honduran wrapper, Honduran binder and Honduran and Nicaraguan fillers. I’ll preface this by saying there are some CAO cigars I like, and some I don’t, and the ones I don’t are typically the Criollo and Gold series.

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this cigar performed very well, and was not a bad cigar by any stretch of the imagination. It was a medium bodied cigar, with flavors on the leathery side, not a lot of sweetness. It was a good smoke, and I enjoyed it, and I think if you like cigars that fall more on the floral/leathery side, this is a cigar you’ll like.

Today I selected the Macanudo Rare Select. I was surprised by a Macanudo with a Sumatra wrapper as opposed to a shade wrapper. I wonder about the through process here, I see that green Macanudo band and I expect a Connecticut Shade Wrapper over a Mexican Binder. In this case, we have an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper over a Nicaraguan binder with fillers from the DR, Nicaragua and Jamaica. I was also expecting a milder cigar than I got, this was a medium bodied cigar with some interesting flavors. Again, the construction was right, the burn and draw were perfect. The Jamaican tobacco adds a little something interesting to the blend. I’ve had a Macanudo in the past couple years with Jamaican tobacco, one of the Estate Reserves I think, but prior to that I have to go back to the 90s when I had a box of Price Philips from Jamaica. Considering those had the Connecticut wrapper, there’s no way to make a comparison, not sure why I mentioned it. This was a pretty good smoke!

Tonight I smoked the Punch Rare Select. Looking at this, I knew I was in for a treat. The Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper was dark and oily. It has a Nicaraguan binder, and, get this, fillers from Brazil, Mexico, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic! I didn’t have to light it and the flavor on the lips made me happy. It had a nice, chocolaty taste, and when I lit it those flavors intensified. This is a hearty cigar, loads of flavor and good to the last drop. All those great tobaccos combined to make for a delicious cigar, and the whole Rare Select series is very reasonable priced, making these a great bargain. Punch is another brand that I’ve enjoyed for a long time, almost always in the darker expressions. I can’t tell you how many maduro and double maduro Rothschilds smoked in the 90s. This one competes favorably, and it’s a cigar I’ll smoke again. I smoked it to a finger-burning nub and was sad when it was finished. Thanks to Charlie at Best Cigar Prices shop for sharing these three cigars with me!