I received a whole bunch of interesting announcements and news items this week, and, while I’m sure you’ll see them elsewhere in the blogosphere also, I feel compelled to include some of the more interesting items here today. The fist item comes from Abe Dababneh of Smoke Inn. I’ll be interested to see what they have up their sleeves. The press release reads:
JOIN THE CIGAR EVOLUTION
TRUST. This is the cornerstone of the foundation of Sindicato Cigar Group LLC (“Sindicato Cigars”). Sindicato Cigars was officially launched January 16, 2013 when a group of passionate cigar loving Tobacconists decided to extend their cigar knowledge and experience into making cigar brands. Their goal is to create a cigar company whose mission is to put the tobacco retailer and its customers first. The Tobacconist can trust that Sindicato Cigars will create quality brands that they can whole-heartedly support and that will never work against them. Consumers can trust that the collaboration of the country’s top cigar minds, who have listened to your words day in and day out, will create top quality brands based on the knowledge that those same consumers have provided. Today, Sindicato Cigars wishes to announce the hiring of Jim Colucci as the President/CEO of the company. Sindicato Cigars is very excited and honored to have Mr. Colucci, former Executive V.P. of Sales & Marketing for Altadis USA, at the helm of this new venture. Sindicato Cigars intends to exhibit its first 2 cigar brands at the IPCPR show this year in Las Vegas and looks forward to greeting all IPCPR attendees.
Please stay tuned for announcements regarding the release of Sindicato Cigar’s new brands and any behind the scenes action by following us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
facebook.com/SindicatoCigars
twitter.com/SindicatoCigars
instagram.com/SindicatoCigars
For all inquiries, please contact ask@sindicatocigars.com.
Thank you,
Sindicato Cigars
In other news, the folks at Stogie Boys are having a contest. I will be announcing a contest here sponsored by Stogie Boys Sunday, so there will be all kinds of chances to win stuff from them!
Contest Announcement
StogieBoys.com is hosting a contest! The contest will give 1 Winner, this prize package:
1 Burl 20 count Humidor
5 Erin Go Bragh Cigars
1 StogieBoys V Cutter
1 Digital Hygrometer
1 Humidisk
StogieBoys put together a great giveaway featuring some of their new products such as the Burl humidor and digital hygrometer. StogieBoys is also including the limited time stock of Erin Go Bragh cigars, these are Irish cigars dipped in whisky just in time for St Patricks day. The humidor even comes pre-seasoned and ready for use!
Contestants can enter by going to http://www.stogieboys.com/weekly-cigar-giveaway.html
StogieBoys created four ways to enter. First is to Join our weekly Deals and announcements newsletter. From there visitors can earn additional entries by liking StogieBoys on Facebook, following StogieBoys on twitter and joining StogieBoys daily deals and specials email. Each entry gives you an additional chance to win. Up to four chances can be entered each day giving visitors more chances to win.
This great contest ends 03/12/2013 at Noon EST.
Last but not least, if you happen to be in Vegas in April, look into this event benefiting Cigar Rights of America, brought to you by Stinky, of Stinky Ashtray fame:
Liberating Cigar Night
– Dinner & Cigar Socal:
Join fellow cigar aficionados for cocktails, dinner and fine cigars at the House of Blues Foundation Room. Celebrate your freedom to smoke cigars at this exclusive, members only, private club while taking in the exceptional panoramic views that the pinnacle of Las Vegas night life has to offer.
View and select your dinner entree and dinning time with the pull-down menu before placing your reservation.Your dinner reservation also includes:
* the Cigar Social event from 5:30 to 10:00 PM
Please Note:
Only one person per reservation. If you have a guest(s), place your reservation in the shopping cart and make your additional reservations for each person in your party. Use the “Reservation Name” field for your guest name.
Take your best shot on a winning bid at the silent auction:
• superb cigars by renowned makers
• premium cigar accessories
• gourmet dinners • premium liquors
• golf outings
• spa treatments
• rare sports memorabilia
All proceeds support your right to enjoy cigars via our champions at the Cigar Rights of America organization.
Your Dinner Reservation includes the Cigar Social:
Friday, April 12, 2013
• 5:30-10:00 PM
• House of Blues Foundation Room
Seating is Limited – Reservations & Prepayment Required.
Make your Reservations Now.
All Proceeds Benefit: Cigar Rights of America www.CigarRights.org
Event Location in the House of Blues Foundation Room:
Mandalay Bay Resort – 62ndFloor
3950 S Las Vegas Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89119
http://www.stinkycigar.com/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=61
Enough of the news stuff, let’s get on to the cigars! Sunday I took a walk with a 1502 Black Gold. I was overly impressed with this when I smoked it back in October, and my opinion hasn’t changed. This is a big, box pressed torpedo with a dark, rich maduro wrapper. This manufacturer wraps the wrapper over the foot of the cigar so when you light it you get a blast of flavor. This is a neat little touch that sets this cigar apart. The dark, rich flavors also make this stand out. It’s a terrific smoke. If you see these for sale grab a couple. I know of a few shops in my general area that have them, and I’m sure Enrique Sanchez, the owner of this brand, can point you toward a retailer. He can be found on Twitter at @1502Cigars.
Monday evening my wife and I had a nice dinner at Outback. Sirloin and shrimp, with a little rice and broccoli to chase it down. When I got home I pulled a Partagas Petit Corona Especiale out of the “good” humidor. I figure I need to smoke something out of this humidor once in a while to make sure the cigars aren’t drying out or anything. I bought a box of these a few years ago and have enjoyed many of this little Mareva sized cigar. These are “old school” Havana Partagas, they have a distinctive flavor that you don’t often get in non-Cuban cigars. For a $5 cigar, it’s a treat. Sure, it burned crappy and I had to touch it up a few times, but it was a great smoke after a nice meal.
Tuesday I came across a Drew Estate Liga Privada T52 Belicoso that Steve Saka threw at me at the 2010 IPCPR show. I was astounded when I lit this up and was hit was a flavor reminiscent of Monday evenings Partagas! Remember I said the Partagas had a distinctive flavor? Well it does, but I ran across this same flavor in the T52. which made my day, quite frankly. This shape really was a nice presentation of the T52 line. It was perfectly made, and tasted great. It had a nice long finish that, like the Partagas before it, lasted well into the evening. I really can’t decide if I like the T52 better than the No.9. Know what? I don’t have to decide, because I can like them both the same for different reasons! That’s a beautiful thing about cigars! this T52 was an awesome smoke that I enjoyed until it was about a ¾” little nub.
That’s more than enough for today, until the next time,
CigarCraig
When I got back from Las Vegas I had a package waiting for me from Sindicato Cigars, the company made up of a group of retailers and headed by Jim Colucci, formerly of Altadis. Of the three cigars debuting at the show, I have to say that the Hex intrigued me, so I had to light one of those up first. Vitola-wise it looked just like the Smoke Inn Micro-blend Tatuaje Anarchy Apocalypse, a 5¼” x 52 perfecto with a curly pigtail cap. It very much looked like a cigar I’d love, and I wasn’t wrong. This cigar burned perfectly and was delicious! It was dark and loaded with all the flavors I like, the espresso/cocoa/dark dried fruit types of flavors. It will be hard not to smoke the other sample and dig through the trade show samples in search of more. Seek out the Hex and give it a try.
Next up was the Affinity. This is a Ecuador Connecticut wrapped cigar that I believe Abe described as a Connecticut Shade with some strength to it. Now, I try not to be cynical (I don’t try too hard…) but this has been the theme for the last couple years, the Connecticut shade wrapped cigar that’s not the typical mild shade wrapped cigar. Nish Patel’s Zen, E.P.Carrillo’s New Wave Connecticut, everyone seems to have the Connecticut Shade wrapped cigar that is not your typical mild cigar. Anyway, the Affinity is a really nice cigar, nothing really surprising, but an enjoyable smoke that was quite satisfying and the biggest problem I had with it was the Robusto size was too short! This may not be too different from other cigars out there, but it’s very good. Well made and tasty.
Last night I tried the economy offering, the. Casa Bella. This was a corona sized cigar, which fit well into my schedule. This is a bundle cigar, hand made in the Dominican Republic, with an Ecuador Connecticut wrapper. This has a really low price point, I think Abe says the 6″x60 is under $3.00! It’s mixed filler, but it was a tasty smoke, although I had a little problem keeping it burning in the middle of the cigar. Maybe it was a construction issue, but more likely it was my impatience in lighting it up a couple short weeks off the truck. For a two dollarish cigar it was pretty darned tasty.
