Tag Archives: TPE

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. 

 

 

If you ever visit Manhattan, I recommend a visit to this factory, and pick up a few of their cigars. It’s well worth the time and the cigars are not disappointing. Stay tuned for more from day two. I don’t know what I’ll be seeing or who I’ll be talking to! 

 

Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig 

 

 

 

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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!

 

 

So far the show has been quite interesting! There are many more premium cigar companies here than years past, and many I spoke with were seeing new accounts opened and orders written, so they are having good experiences. More to come in the coming days.

 

Until the next time,

CigarCraig 

 

 

 

 

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News: Casa Cuevas Cigars Adds La Mandarria To Core Line

Here’s some Friday news from Casa Cuevas. This is a company I’m interested in meeting at TPE. I know I’ve smoked cigars that they’ve made, although I have yet to smoke any of their own branded cigars (yet…very soon). I’m pretty sure I know someone who can make introductions at the show 😉.

 

WITH A NEW LOOK, “LA MANDARRIA” BY CASA CUEVAS CIGARS ADDED AS PART OF CORE LINE

Originally a limited-edition brand, LA Mandarria now part of regular production

  

Casa Cuevas Cigars, makers of handmade premium cigars to add the “La Mandarria” (translates to the sledgehammer brand) to their core line up of cigars.  La Mandarria was initially a limited Edition 500 count box run. The brand was born out of the unfortunate burglary which occurred in February 2019 at the Casa Cuevas Cigars distribution center in Miami.  Burglars used sledgehammers to break in and steal over 25,000 units of the Casa Cuevas brands, which included the Casa Cuevas Limited Edition Flaco, and Casa Cuevas core line of cigars. The Cuevas family made the decision to forge ahead and create a cigar, that will mark the era where they faced and overcame adversity.

La Mandarria will also sport a secondary band which elegantly highlights the “La Mandarria” logo.

President of Casa Cuevas Cigars, Luis Cuevas Jr. said;” We were completely overwhelmed by the response for La Mandarria. This brand was a smash hit at the 2019 IPCPR and sales have remained strong. We are grateful to the public for accepting the product with open arms.”

In the original communication, President of Casa Cuevas Cigars, Luis Cuevas Jr. said:” La Mandarria is a testament to the values that my father taught me as a child. He was a fighter who optimized the American dream. As a small cigar company, the robbery was an obstacle, but nothing he hasn’t been able to deal with in his storied past.  The Mandarria represents the principal tool used against us, but also represents the strength and will of my father.”

The Mandarria is a full-bodied cigar that is offered in only one vitola. The 6X52 Toro was chosen as Master Blender Luis Cuevas Sr. felt this vitola was a perfect balance between its strength, which is a representation of the “Mandarria” name, and the cigar’s nuanced flavors.

Wrapped in beautiful Ecuadorean Habano wrapper and featuring a pig tail and shaggy foot, these cigars were the first full-body and full-strength cigars in the Casa Cuevas line-up. MSRP is $12.00 per cigar.

ABOUT Casa Cuevas Cigars:

Casa Cuevas Cigars was established in 2016 but has decades old history behind it. Cuban born Master Blender Luis Cuevas Sr. has been blending cigars from his factory in the Dominican Republic for many popular cigar brands. Now, together with son Luis Cuevas Jr., the Casa Cuevas Cigar brands were created to honor their four-generation cigar heritage. Currently the Casa Cuevas Cigars line of brands include the Casa Cuevas core line, the Casa Cuevas Limited Edition Flaco, the Cuevas Reserva, and the Limited Edition Mandarria.

 

For more information please visit http: www.casacuevascigars.com

Follow Casa Cuevas Cigars on social @CasaCuevasCigars

 

 

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News: Drew Estate Launches Undercrown Corona Pequeña at TPE

Drew Estate Launches Undercrown Corona Pequena Line Extension
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News: Ventura Cigar Releasing Archetype Master & Pupil Cigars at TPE

Here’s another news piece, this falls into the pre-TPE category. Ventura’s parent company owns the Tobacco Plus Expo, so I will be interested to see if they have any preferential treatment. I have to admit to looking at them a bit of a cynical eye since they made changes to their sales force. There’s enough divisiveness already, I don’t want to go down that road. 

To Teach and Be Taught

Ventura Cigar Company to Release New Archetype Cigars at TPE 2020: Master & Pupil

Unveiling new insights in the Archetype story, Ventura Cigar Company is pleased to announce Master and Pupil, two new cigars that examine strength and transitions through rich tobacco blends crafted by Juan Martinez and Doctor Cuenca from Joya de Nicaragua. The industry will get a first look at Master and Pupil at the Tobacco Plus Expo 2020, held in Las Vegas, Nevada, 1/29/20 – 1/31/20. Customers can expect to see the cigars at fine tobacconists online and across the country soon after.

 

Inspired by the studies of both Sigmund Freud and Karl Jung, who identified common threads and themes of storytelling that transcend both time and culture, Archetype cigars outline the familiar tale of a hero’s journey, with cigars punctuating each crucial stage. Master and Pupil incorporates the essence of Freud and Jung, teacher and student, and tensions uncovered with the reversal of roles and transition of student to teacher.

 

Pupil is mild and relaxed in nature, and features an Ecuadoran Connecticut wrapper, Nicaraguan filler, and a Nicaraguan binder. It will be available as a 6 x 52 Toro.

 

 

The Master is a bold, confident cigar that’s crafted with a Nicaraguan wrapper, filler, and binder. It will also be available as a 6 x 52 Toro.

 

“No matter where you are in life, you are a master or a pupil. And then, one day, you are both,” says Michael Giannini, General Manager of Ventura Cigar Company. “We are students first, learning from those who came before. And then we find ourselves as the teachers, imparting our knowledge on others just starting their quest. We are never fully done learning, either, so the roles of teacher and student are fluid, always changing. The Archetype Master and Pupil cigars explore these transitions and tensions through blends that offer strength and nuance throughout the smoke. We’ve worked on these for over a year with the masters at Joya de Nicaragua, of whom we are all students. These cigars are solid. If you’re coming to TPE 2020, come by the Ventura Cigar booth to say hi and check them out. And if you’re not at the show, well, keep an eye out.”

 

Master and Pupil are the latest releases to Archetype, a line marked by highly rated cigars that include Dreamstate, Sage Advice, Strange Passage, Initiation, and Axis Mundi, in addition to the 2018 3-cigar mini-series Crystals, Curses, and Cloaks. Master and Pupil are scheduled to ship immediately after TPE 2020.

 

For additional information, please visit venturacigarcompany.com.

 

About Ventura Cigar Company

Ventura Cigar Company (VCC) is a unique cigar brand born in sunny Southern California that is on a mission to create memorable, complex cigar blends that excite the senses and reward discriminating palates. Their flagship Archetype, Case Study, Project805, and PSyKo SEVEN brands offer multiple award-winning blends that earned 90+ ratings in Cigar Aficionado, Cigar & Spirits, and Cigar Snob. And Archetype’s Axis Mundi won #13 Cigar of the Year for 2017 from Cigar Aficionado. Ventura Cigar Company also distributes Tommy Bahama Luxury Cigar Accessories and the 4th Generation Tobacconist and Comoy’s of London lines of pipe tobacco products, extending its reach and tradition of offering top-quality tobacconist products. Pipes and blends under these brands are cultivated through generations of craftsmanship, making them longtime favorites of pipe tobacco enthusiasts.

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