Tag Archives: Black Label Trading Company

by | June 30, 2021 · 6:10 pm

News: Black Works Studio Offers Hive Cigars at PCA Show

It’s Wednesday and I’ll be posting a couple news articles over the course of the evening again.  The first one here is from Black Label Trading Co., and I hope one of my local shops goes to the show and orders these.  We have some bees and they are pretty cool, so I’d love to get some of these cigars, besides the fact that I enjoy the BLTC cigars too. 

 

Black Works Studio (BLK WKS)will be showcasing a new release at this year’s PCA in Las Vegas. HIVE is a small batch release offered on a first-come, first-served basis to BLTC/BLK WKS retailers attending PCA 2021. Shipping will commence in the fall.

 

“We wanted to offer Hive for PCA attendees as a way of showing our appreciation for the retailers who come to support our brands at the show. The HIVE is an idea I’ve had for a few years now. The Killer Bee & Green Hornet lines are some of our most popular and over the years I’ve played with a lot of different ideas for both. HIVE is a mix of some of my favorite Bee & Hornet samples that have yet to be released. For anyone that is a fan of the Killer Bee & Green Hornet, this is a must have!” says James Brown, creator of BLTC and partner at Fabrica Oveja Negra.

 

HIVE

Country of Origin: Nicaragua

Wrapper(s): Ecuador Maduro, Connecticut, Candela

Binder: Honduras HabanoFiller: Nicaraguan

Hive Mix Box (27 count) MSRP $12.50

 

These cigars are an expression of art showcasing the talent, technique and tobacco of our boutique cigar factory; Fabrica Oveja Negra.

 

BLK WKS cigars are available for purchase through OvejaNegra Brands.

For more information visit OvejaNegraCigars.com.

Visit BLTC Booth #755 at this year’s PCA Tradeshow for more information.

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by | May 19, 2021 · 6:12 pm

News: Black Label Trading Ships 2021 Bishops Blend

It’s Wednesday and I’m working on putting together a contest, so in the meantime I’m going to attempt to keep you all busy with some news items. Here’s one from Black Label Trading Company.

 

 

Black Label Trading Company is pleased to announce the shipment of Bishops Blend to select retailers later this month. Bishops Blend is handcrafted in Esteli, Nicaragua at Fabrica Oveja Negra. This is the sixth vintage of Bishops Blend in the Corona Larga and Robusto vitolas. The Lancero vitola was first released in 2020.

 

“We are very excited about this highly anticipated release. Bishops Blend boasts big bold flavors of anise, pepper, raisins and a sweet earthiness on the finish. It is very complex and extremely refined. As with the past vintages, the broadleaf fillers shine at the forefront and are perfectly balanced by the Nicaraguan filler tobaccos,” said James Brown, creator of Black Label Trading Co. and partner at Fabrica Oveja Negra.

 

BISHOPS BLEND will be available at select retailers.

Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Ecuador Habano Maduro
Binder: Ecuador Habano
Filler: Nicaragua, Connecticut & PA Broadleaf
Corona Larga – 6.25 x 46 (20 count) MSRP $11.50
Robusto – 5 x 48 (20 count) MSRP $11.00
Lancero – 7 x 42 (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 cigars of the utmost quality in small batch, limited quantities.

 

For more information please visit OvejaNegraCigars.com. Consumers may search by zip code for retailers nearest them.

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by | February 28, 2021 · 9:42 am

An Illusione HL Candela and Some Oveja Negra News

Yesterday I smoked another cigar that I bought from Scotty’s Cigars, an Illusione ~hl~ Candela.  This is a 7 ½” x 40 Lancero with a pigtail cap and a bright green candela wrapper. It’s a Nicaraguan puro made in Honduras apparently. I’ve smoked the ~hl~ in Maduro and loved it. First I’ll say that I need to smoke more Illusione cigars, I don’t frequent the local stores that have a good selection of them, enough. I love smoking them when I pick them up, and I love listening to Dion any chance I get.  I need to sample more of the lines. Regarding the Candela ~hl~, or Holy Lance as it’s sometimes referred, if you aren’t a fan of candela, this may not be for you. If you are a fan of candela, and I really enjoy it from time to time as a change of pace and palate refresher, this is a great cigar. It’s got that crisp, clean, herbal kind of flavor. You can taste the chloroform chlorophyll and, like I said, it’s refreshing! This example had a great burn and draw and gave me two hours of relaxation on the porch.  I wouldn’t have wanted to take this for a walk on a cold, winders night, but in the comfort of the propane heater, it was real nice. It was a damned tasty smoke.

 

I received a couple news stories this week from Oveja Negra, and I want to comment on the first one, involving the distribution in Belgium and Luxembourg. I usually don’t pass along news items about international distribution, but there was another piece of this that cought my eye. The company that is the distributor in that small part of Europe is called Media Rueda and Halfwheel’s holding company is called Rueda Media (Halfwheel reported on the story and commented on this, saying they had no prior knowledge of the European company until this story). I’m guessing Halfwheel has had the name since it’s inception in 2012 or ‘13 or whenever it was they started, so my question is: will there be a letter sent from the attorneys on this? Is a cigar distributor in tiny Belgium/Luxembourg worth the legal fees, or is it a matter of ego? Am I right in assuming that my readers neither care about international distribution, nor the name of Halfwheel’s holding company or are likely to confuse it with a European distributor? Disregard all of this and check out these two news items from the folks at Oveja Negra, the second of which is probably far more interesting!

 

Oveja Negra Brands is pleased to announce their distribution agreement with Media Rueda™ for Belgium and Luxembourg.

Starting today Black Label Trading Company and Black Works Studio cigars will be available in the Belgium and Luxembourg markets through Media Rueda™.

 

“After entering the German market a couple of years ago, we have been humbled by the incredible reception our cigars have received. We are excited to continue our expansion in Europe by adding Media Rueda™ to the Oveja Negra family.  Pieter and his partners have been amazing supporters of what we do and I’m looking forward to working with him in the Belgium market,” said James Brown, creator of BLTC and BLK WKS, and partner at Fabrica Oveja Negra.

 

“We are excited to bring Oveja Negra Brands to our markets. There is great demand for excellent, hand crafted cigars and we feel honored Oveja Negra Brands put their trust in us to serve our local customers,” added Pieter De Windt, partner at Media Rueda™.

Black Label Trading Company and Black Works Studio create handcrafted premium cigars of the utmost quality in small batch, limited quantities at Fabrica Oveja Negra. 

 

Media Rueda™ bv has the express goal to import and distribute added value, hand-made premium cigars in Europe.  For more information, please visit mediarueda.eu

 

 

 

I look forward to trying this Cameroon wrapped cigar! Corona Gorda and Lonsdale are neat sizes too.

 

Black Works Studio (BLK WKS) is pleased to announce the release of Hyena: Hand crafted in Esteli, Nicaragua at Fabrica Oveja Negra.

HYENA is a Limited Edition that will be shipping to select BLK WKS retailers at the beginning of March.

“Hyena is the latest addition to the BLK WKS portfolio. A truly unique cigar that is focused on showcasing a perfect balance between Nicaraguan fillers and the Cameroon wrapper. The profile is spice forward with white pepper & semi-sweet baking spices blended with herbal notes & cedar. The finish is a blend of bitter cocoa, cream & malt. Hyena is an extremely complex and balanced cigar and is a tribute to my wife’s and my many years of living in Africa,” said James Brown, creator of BLTC & BLK WKS and owner at Fabrica Oveja Negra.

 

HYENA
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Cameroon
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano
Filler: Nicaragua
Corona Gorda – 5 x 46 (20 count) MSRP $12.00
Lonsdale – 6.5×42 (20 count) MSRP $12.50

 

These cigars are an expression of art showcasing the talent, technique and tobacco of our boutique cigar factory; Fabrica Oveja Negra. BLK WKS cigars are available for purchase through Oveja Negra Brands. For more information visit OvejaNegraCigars.com.

 

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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by | December 13, 2020 · 10:07 am

Dissident Bloc and Black Label Trading Co. Morphine Cigars

I had a busy week at work. A little background: In August I started a job as a warehouse manager for a company that delivers durable medical equipment directly to veterans. This was a new location for the company, which contracts with the Veterans Administration. The warehouse was just a big empty space, which the VAs (we work with three of them, whose inventories need to be kept separated), so everything was stacked on the floor. I asked for pallet racks when I started, and the GM took it under consideration. After a few months, the VAs piled in the inventory, and I quickly ran out of room. I am a staff of one, by the way. So a few weeks ago I, once again, made an argument for pallet racks, which included three written estimates for local companies to come in and install what I wanted. The GM ended up getting a great deal on a warehouse full of used racking, and sending me a load last week. So I spent the week moving stuff around and putting up ten foot high by 12 foot long pallet racks (some of it by myself). Now I have a warehouse that actually looks like a warehouse, is functional and efficient, not a pile of pallets that I have to move to get to things, and gets clogged every time I get another truck load of new stuff in. It made me a happy boy. This explains why I kinda phoned in my Wednesday post.  At 57 years old, putting up pallet rack all week, as well as doing all the other stuff I usually do during the day, whipped me. So I went out and bought myself a few new (to me) cigars to smoke.

 

I never claimed to be a hand model.

Oddly, or maybe not, my local shop didn’t have anything new to speak of. So I looked for cigars I hadn’t smoked yet. It’s getting harder to find those. They had some Black Label Trading Company selections, and since I had just posted about the new Morphine release, I grabbed a Morphine Lancero, along with a Dissident Bloc 7 x 43. I got home and decided to take the dogs for a walk with the Dissident. Since my son moved home with his dog, a young mixed breed with a dachshund head, cute dog, Macha has been refusing to take walks for the most part. I think the younger dog wears her out playing during the day. I was quickly reminded how great Macha is on leash! This little dog is all over the place, I’m constantly untangling leashes, getting pulled in opposite directions…nightmare. All the while juggling this really nice Dissident Bloc 7 x 43 BP.  The cigar is made at Oveja Negra, is box pressed with and Ecuador maduro wrapper, Ecuador binder and Nicaraguan and Dominican fillers. I rather wisel let this cigar go out about halfway through the walk when I went to relight it for the third time, so as to finish it in the peace of the porch without distraction. It had some earthy coffee notes, but, for the most part, was a really good tasting, medium bodied cigar. I loved the size, it was easy to deal with given my handful of dogs, and when I got to sit and relax, it smoked well and elt right. Like any smaller ring cigar, it needs to be smoked slower so as not to overheat and turn hot and bitter.

 

Like I said, I also picked up a Morphine. I usually buy cigars in twos, but I’m being budget conscious this time of year, and the shop where I got these is two miles from home, and they had plenty. I knew If I needed more I could get more in a hurry if need be. I’m going to assume that this Black Label Trading Company Morphine Lancero is from the 2019 release. I am guessing this because The 2020 release was just announced, and Steve at the shop said he didn’t have anything new. This was a 7″ x 38 lancero with a San Andrés wrapper, Nicaraguan Habano binder and Nicaraguan filler. Again, small ring gauges need to be smoked slowly. Wrapper to binder ratio affecting flavor is a myth, it’s the heat from smoking faster that makes it seem like it has a stronger or sharper flavor. Slow down when smoking smaller ring cigars. If you don’t believe me, ask Saka, he’s the one who I learned it from, argue with him (I dare ya). This Morphine Lancero is right in my wheelhouse. It’s a espresso with spice, although I did have to relight it a few times. Perhaps I smoked it too slowly. It was rich with some sweet earthiness and I dug it. Is it ironic to use “earthiness” and “dug” in the same sentence? I will probably have to stop in the Frazer CigarCigars shop and snag a few more of these to toss in the Lancero tray for future consumption, and I’ll keep an eye out for the new ones. Do any of those knowledgeable in the ways of BLTC know if they put the year on these annual releases? 

 

You should notice that CigarCraig.com is now a “secure” site. No transactions take place, nor do I ever collect any personal information, but, for everyone’s peace of mind (and Google’s search algorithms I guess), I got rid of the whole “not secure” business in the address bar, and the lock should be there.  That’s all for today, until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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by | December 9, 2020 · 8:18 pm

News: Black Label Trading Co. Announces Seventh Release of Morphine and a Short Unrelated Editorial

I just finished taking part in another roundtable discussion for an upcoming episode of the Kaplowitz Media Podcast. I’ve been enjoying listening to Kap’s podcasts for a while, and am humbled and honored to have been included in the last two episodes. I actually feel rather comfortable among this group, I feel like I can speak candidly, although I may have spoken a bit too candidly on this episode. Kap’s sense of humor aligns with my own and I appreciate his show, especially his segment with Dion Giolito. It’s very entertaining, just, avoid the segments I appear in, I can’t stand the sound of my own voice, which is largely why I abandoned my own podcast.  Now, since I haven’t smoked anything new or notable over the last few days, here’s some news from the folks at Black Label Trading Company. 

 

Black Label Trading Company is pleased to announce its Seventh annual release of MORPHINE: Hand crafted in Esteli, Nicaragua at BLTC’s own factory, Fabrica Oveja Negra.

 

“This is our seventh vintage of Morphine so we wanted to change things up a bit to celebrate. I designed new artwork and each of the three vitolas is wrapped in two wrappers, Ecuador Maduro and Mexican San Andrés. The 2020 vintage is rich and earthy with bold spice on the retro. The key flavors are raisin, black cherry and a big blast of anise on the finish. The dual wrappers work together to make this vintage very unique and one of the best so far,” said James Brown, creator of BLTC and partner at Fabrica Oveja Negra.

 

MORPHINE cigars will be available in limited quantities at select BLTC retailers beginning this week.

 

Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés & Ecuador Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano
Filler: Nicaragua
Corona Gorda – 5.5 x 48 (20 count) MSRP $10.50
Lancero – 7.25 x 42 (12 count) MSRP $11.00
Short Robusto – 4.5 x 50 (20 count) MSRP $10.50

 

Black Label Trading Company is redefining the standards for cigar making. With a less is more philosophy, Black Label Trading Co. creates hand crafted premium cigars of the utmost quality at their own factory in Nicaragua.

 

For more information please visit OvejaNegraCigars.com. Consumers may search by zip code for retailers nearest them.

 

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