A Glimpse Into My Cigar Adventures!

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Tobacco Plus Expo 2020 Experience and Some Cigar Highlights

I’m back from Las Vegas and the Tobacco Plus Expo, and I had a very positive experience.  This was a large expo, probably the size of the IPCPR ( now PCA) show, with tobacco only taking up 30%ish of the floor space. The nice thing about the way they had it set up was that they had it segregated, with red carpet surrounding the Tobacco part, and blue carpet around the Vape/Alternative part, which was larger. I’m working on a video walk through of both, but on the first couple exploratory forays into “the blue”, I found myself running back to the safety of the red
carpet both times. I kept hearing Sean Connery’s voice from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade saying “we’re pilgrims in an unholy land”. It wasn’t that unholy, but it was weird seeing all the hemp, CBD and “glassware”. From a cigar purist standpoint, it was strange. Disposable e-cigs seemed to be a trend I didn’t know about, I’m not sure I like the environmental impact of them though, I’ll have to see how to dispose of them. Tossing in the trash doesn’t seem right. The Vape/Alt side was where all the flashy booths, models handing out literature and hype and excitement was. I felt like a fish out of water.… Continue reading »

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TPE 2020 Day 2: An Interview with David Garofalo

Day two of the Tobacco Plus Expo started out with me reaching out to Dave Garofalo of Two Guys Smoke Shop in New Hampshire, and The Cigar Authority Podcast, requesting a few minutes for an interview. Thanks to Mr. Jonathan for facilitating the connection in a hurry for me. Dave and I met in the Media Lounge during the hour before the show opens when they allow the media in early. This worked out well, we had a nice, quiet place to chat without too much noise or interruption. Dave is a wealth of information on all things cigar, retail, trade shows, among other things, and I thought it would be really unique to get his views on this show and share them with my readers. As I like to do, I though it might be a little different from what other media outlets present from the show. Check it out.… Continue reading »

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TPE 2020 Day 1: Martinez Cigars

I visited most of the booths at the show on the first day of the Tobacco Plus Expo, but one that caught my eye was the Martinez Cigars booth. Martinez is a little cigar factory in Manhattan, I’ve written about their cigars before and visited the factory and it’s a really neat place and they make some really good cigars. Forgive the fact that I cut my head off and tripped over my tongue and check out my interview with David and Jesus. … Continue reading »

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TPE 2020 Day 1: Southern Draw Cigars

As day one at the TPE comes to a close, I wanted to take a minute in the media lounge (thank you TPE) and post a video interview I did with Robert Holt of Southern Draw Cigars. Please note my glorious shirt made by my wife! Robert tells us about the Cedrus Lancero he launched at the show here and I smoked it and it was fantastic!… Continue reading »

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Marchetti Toro Cigar by Danli Honduras Tabaco

It’s no secret that I’ve been in love with most of the cigars coming from Danli Honduras Tabaco recently, the entire Don Juan Calavera line has captivated me and there is a box of each in my humidor, and the Flor Maya line is creeping in as well. I was introduced to a cigar that didn’t seem to fit in, called the Marchetti, and I was intrigued. This certainly lacked any Latin theme at all, it has an Italian name, and comes in a plain black box with a stylized eagle (I guess) band design. It’s very slick and classic, a departure from the dia de los muertos skull design of the Don Juan Calaveras and the rustic look of the Flor Maya. It turns out that the cigar is named after one of the original founders of Danli Honduras Tabaco’s mother, Jenny Marcheti, an Italian who married a Honduran. The cigar is named in her honor. This answers the question of how a Honduran cigar got an Italian name!… Continue reading »

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