Here’s some news from J.C. Newman. I’m actually about to light up a 2021 Yagua after I finish writing this. I really enjoy them, they are a special cigar. I really need to make the trip to Tampa to visit the factory one of these days. It’s been on my wishlist for a while, and is especially so now that they have renovated the factory and have tours. I’m a big fan of a lot of J.C. Newman cigars, and have been for many years.
This is the first Yagua release of 2022
Today, J.C. Newman Cigar Co. began shipping 1,250 boxes of its acclaimed Yagua cigars to premium cigar retailers in the United States. This is the first release of Yagua in 2022. A second release is expected around Thanksgiving.
“Yagua is one of the oddest cigars on the market,” said Drew Newman, fourth-generation cigar maker. “Because Yagua breaks all of the rules for how premium cigars should be rolled, it continues to shock me that many cigar enthusiasts love Yagua and that the brand has gained an almost cult-like following.”
Yagua is a recreation of a farm-rolled cigar from Cuba. It is handmade at the J.C. Newman PENSA cigar factory in Estelí, Nicaragua with an underfermented Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper. These special cigars get their unique shape from being tied together with pieces of the Yagua tree. Yagua is a 6” x 52 toro with a suggested retail price of $8 per cigar. Each box contains a Yagua-tree-wrapped bundle of 20 cigars.
“Our factory hates rolling Yagua because it is harder and slower to make cigars like they would have been rolled on a farm,” said Newman. “No two Yaguas are the same. They are truly one-of-a-kind cigars.”
The following is the story of Yagua:
My family has worked with tobacco for many generations. Growing up in Cuba in the 1940s, I spent countless hours with my grandfather in the tobacco fields of Pinar del Río. At our family farm, my grandfather would take fresh tobacco leaves from the curing barns and roll cigars without any molds or presses. To keep his cigars safe, he would tie a handful of them together using pieces of the Cuban royal palm tree, known as the yagua. When he was ready to enjoy his personal cigars, he untied the bundle. He loved how every cigar had its own unique shape. He called these cigars Yagua Palmiche after the palm tree and its bright red seeds. I still remember the rich aroma and taste of my grandfather’s cigars. Today, I’ve recreated Yagua Palmiche, rolling them the exactly how my grandfather did a century ago. These are the Cuban cigars I remember.
Lazaro Lopez, Co-General Manager
J.C. Newman PENSA Cigar Factory
Story as told to Drew Newman
About J.C. Newman Cigar Co.
Founded in 1895 by Julius Caeser Newman, J.C. Newman Cigar Company is the oldest family-owned premium cigar maker in America. J.C. Newman rolls its El Reloj, Factory Throwouts, and Trader Jacks cigars by hand-operated, vintage cigar machines at its historic cigar factory in Tampa, Florida. It also hand rolls its Brick House, Perla del Mar, El Baton, and Quorum cigars at the J.C. Newman PENSA cigar factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. J.C. Newman’s Diamond Crown, MAXIMUS, Julius Caeser, and Black Diamond cigars are handmade by Tabacalera A. Fuente in the Dominican Republic. With its longtime partners the Fuente family, the Newmans founded the Cigar Family Charitable Foundation, which supports low-income families in the Dominican Republic with education, health care, vocational training, and clean water.
Jesse and I did the tour when I was on sanibel in Feb. We bought a box along with a 5 pack of Americanos. Tried 2 so far . Nice