I’m trying something a little new here. Ricky kind of encouraged this, I’ve been thinking about it for some time. When I talked to him a few weeks ago he asked to do it, and I had to figure out how. I did, and I think it worked out very well. Rick and I talked for 50 minutes about the company, the cigars, the factory and several other topics. Please give it a watch and let me know what you think. I hope to present some more interviews in this format. Many thanks to Ricky of West Tampa Tobacco Co. for his time and his encouragement. I smoked the Attic Series Attic along with Rick and it was as excellent as ever. I’m looking forward to getting the West Tampa Red when it comes out next month, it’s really good too.
Thank you to Kevin at CigarProp for his technical guidance, and to my friends on the Round Panel for helping me test it and work out the bugs. I have a lot of video content on my YouTube channel. Until the next time,
Mike Szczepankiewicz of Cigar Hustler/Powstanie Cigars is another one of those guys in the cigar industry who’s a triple threat. Mike has a podcast, a store and a brand (the later two co-owned with his brother, Greg). I’ve known Mike for a few years and I find him to be a likable fellow. It’s nice when you find someone who has the same muscular physique (of course, I kid. I haven’t set foot in a gym since high school). After an interesting interaction with Mike, which I may or may not go into some day, we had a brief chat about all of his various projects.
Again, thanks to Ed O’Neal for manning the camera for me. I think the videos he shot look much better than the ones I do solo (the front facing camera has a lower resolution, and the angles are a problem, I need to get a better tripod). Also thanks to Mike and his crew for taking a few minutes and having my back.
That’s all for today, until the next time,
CigarCraig
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Believe it or not, I’m nearing the end of the PCA show videos I took. As I’ve said before, I’m not competing with other media sites, I do things my way. I’ve maintained that I’m a blogger first, not a media site, I just love cigars and write stuff about them. I do enjoy doing the video interviews though, it’s fun talking to my friends in the cigar industry. My approach to the PCA show this year was casual, yet I had some goals and targeted a select few personalities to interview. I hope you’ve enjoyed the videos. This one was with Leo of Platinum Nova cigars, who I first met at the 2020 TPE show. These folks make some really tasty cigars, and their model is one blend/one size, as opposed to having a line with numerous vitolas. It’s an interesting and probably costly way of doing things. The cigars are pricey, but they are really quite good. I like the way this video turned out, I hope you do too.
While I was writing this I decided to smoke the Nova 484 (which I incorrectly described as 4×44 on the video) that Leo gave me after the 2022 TPE show. As the name indicates, it’s 4″ x 48, and comes in a Dominican and Nicaraguan version.The Dominican has an Ecuador H2000 wrapper, Dominican Piloto Cubano binder and Olor Dominicano, while the Nicaraguan Has Ecuador Habano wrapper, Habano Esteli binder and Habano Jalapa filler. My one complaint is that the cigar I am smoking doesn’t indicate which one it is, although I’m fairly confident that it’s the Nicaraguan. It has a nice sweetness and some coffee flavors, and I like it a lot. I am not a huge fan of Olor, which is why I’m confident in my assumption. Some indication, if even on the barcode sticker, would be nice. The cigar burns perfectly, and was about the perfect size for composing this article. As I said in the interview, I’m fortunate to have time to smoke larger cigars, but once in a while I need something short, and this was a great option. At $25 for a 4-pack, I may keep some on hand (and I might try the Dominican!). BTW, Leo, if I’m wrong please spare me the embarrassment and correct me privately! 🙂
That’s all for today, until the next time,
CigarCraig
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Continuing along with the video interviews I did at the PCA show, here’s a few minutes with Lee Marsh of Stolen Throne Cigars. This was my first time meeting Lee in person, I’ve talked to him via video chat plenty over the last year, but our paths finally crossed in the physical world. You may remember that one of my favorite cigars of last year was the Stolen Throne Three Kingdoms, and it remains amongst my favorites. I need to get more! The Crook of the Crown is tasty too. I sampled the new Phantom Queen at the show (while recording this video), and it was really good. I don’t gravitate toward Connecticuts, but this one had some oomph and was very tasty.
Stay tuned for more, I didn’t do many interviews, but I tried to get the best! Until the next time,
Can’t say we’ve had the best week here at Casa Vanderslice. I, naturally, quickly passed the Covid on to my wife, so we are both feeling crappy. I tried a couple cigars, but I think my sense of smell is all but gone, which effects cigar flavor significantly. I expect I’m going to take a break for a while longer. I need to get back to work and get caught up there, as stuff stacked up (literally) last week while i was “on vacation”. Not the way I wanted to use that Paid Time Off. Let’s continue with the video interviews I did at the PCA show. I want to thank Ed O’Neil for helping out with the camera work. He had been at the show with Kevin (CigarProp), and needed something to do on Sunday and generously offered to help me out. My set-up isn’t as fancy as Kevin’s, but we got the job done. I had a nice talk with Eric Newman of J.C. Newman, makers of some of my favorite cigars. In the video he talks about the new El Baton cigars, the Diamond Crown Black Diamond, and the Cuesta Rey made in the Tampa Factory. Of course, their booth featured a cardboard replica of the El Reloj factory in Tampa, which was quite impressive.
Thanks to Eric for taking the time and to Sydney for her hospitality! I was able to finally meet Adria, who has been my contact there for several years, in her last official event with the company. Maybe we’ll see her around Philly sometime! That’s all for today. until the next time,
CigarCraig
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