LA PALINA, KILL BILL!

Cigar Insider
internet only
FEBRUARY 7, 2012
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VOL. 17, NO. 3
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FROM THE PUBLISHER OF CIGAR AFICIONADO MAGAZINE
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IN THIS ISSUE:
FEATURED CIGAR
LA PALINA EL DIARIO
K.B.
TASTING REPORT:
VERTICAL BRAND TASTINGS:
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HONDURAS n PRICE: $8.75
La Palina El Diario [page 2]
Vault By Toraño [page 3]
NEW SIZES:
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n
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BODY: FULL
For a full tasting, see page two.
Arturo Fuente Rosado Sungrown Magnum R
Vitola 44 [page 3]
H. Upmann Half Corona [page 3]
CIGAR NEWS
93
POINTS
BEST CIGARS THIS ISSUE
La Palina El Diario K.B.
Honduras
93
Arturo Fuente Rosado Sungrown Vitola 44
Dom. Rep.
92
Vault by Toraño Toro
Nicaragua
92
H. Upmann Half Corona
Cuba
91
Changing History: Cuba’s New Cigar Bands No
Longer Have Owners’ Names [page 4]
Vault by Toraño Corona Gorda
Nicaragua
91
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Commemorative Fuente Fuente OpusX [page 4]
La Palina El Diario Churchill and Robusto
Honduras
89
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Padrón Making 60 Ring [page 5]
Vault by Toraño Torpedo
Nicaragua
89
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José Seijas Leaves Altadis [page 5]
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Humidipak Changing to Boveda [page 6]
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EOBrands Co-Founder Departs [page 6]
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General’s New Sizes [page 7]
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EPC Short Run: Maduro Plus Natural [page 7]
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Room 101 One Shot, One Kill [page 7]
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Indiana Smoke Ban [page 8]
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LA PALINA, KILL BILL!
THIS CIGAR ALMOST KILLED ITS OWNER.
Prototypes of this tiny smoke were so strong that La Palina
brand owner Bill Paley couldn’t finish it, and half-jokingly
dubbed the size Kill Bill. Officially called K.B., this petit
corona is packed with power. It’s the newest addition to the
La Palina El Diario line, and took our top score of the issue
with 93 points. For details on the brand, see page two.
NEW CUBAN BANDS OMIT OLD COMPANY NAMES
NOTICE ANYTHING DIFFERENT BETWEEN THESE PUNCH BANDS?
They’re both gold and red, and both have the same heraldic design, but there is a difference.
The words “Manuel Lopez” no longer appear on the new version of Cuba’s Punch band (far
left). Lopez owned Punch before the brand was nationalized by the Cuban government, and
Habanos S.A., the worldwide distributor of Cuban cigars, has omitted the name from the
newly minted bands. Punch is not the only one. The Partagás band no longer has the words
“Cifuentes y Cia.,” a reference to the brand’s pre-Revolution owner, and new Romeo y Julieta
bands no longer read “Rodriquez Arguellez y Cia.” The old names have been part of the
design for decades, but Cuba decided it was time for a change. Read our story on page four.
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TASTING REPORT
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GORDO
87 POINTS
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6" x 58
Body: Medium
NEW RELEASE—VERTICAL BRAND TASTING
TORO
Country: Honduras
87 POINTS
Distributor: La Palina Cigars
Filler: Nicaragua
$11.55
A very thick cigar that has a flinty taste at first. As the
draw improves it takes on some cedary flavors and
roasted-meat notes.
LA PALINA EL DIARIO
Maker: Fabrica de Tabacos Raices Cubanas S. de R.L.
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6" x 50
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$10.00
Oily and dark with a neat cap and veiny wrapper, though
difficult to keep lit. Woody, herbal flavors underscore
hints of pepper and straw.
Body: Medium
Binder: Honduras
BRAND SUMMARY: The La Palina cigar brand originated more
Wrapper: Honduras
Release Date: August 2011
K.B.
93 POINTS
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4 1/4" x 40
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$8.75
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Humidor Selection
A powerful, meaty cigar with an open draw that delivers
a lot of bold smoke for such a small size. Concentrated
pepper, cedar and earth lead to an apple-like finish.
Body: Full
CHURCHILL
89 POINTS
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7" x 50
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$11.30
Dark, oily and alluring in appearance, this Churchill
begins with a grassy note that ushers in floral flavors,
spices, licorice and tarragon.
Body: Medium
ROBUSTO
89 POINTS
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5" x 52
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$9.80
This robusto has a notably firm draw, but strikes a
balance between white pepper flavors, woody notes and
a slightly sweet, floral aftertaste.
than 100 years ago, when it was made in the United States from
Cuban tobacco. The vintage mark was created by Samuel S. Paley,
father to veteran broadcaster and CBS founder William S. Paley,
and it was the famous broadcaster’s son Bill who took an interest
in the cigar industry and brought back La Palina in June 2010.
The first version was made in the Bahamas by Graycliff, but it
is quite expensive, with retail prices ranging from $18 to $23.
Bill Paley decided that La Palina needed a more affordable price
reduction, so he created the La Palina El Diario, a line that amped
up the strength while toning down the price. El Diario is made in
Honduras at the Raices Cubanas factory. The blend consists of
a Honduran Corojo ‘99 rosado wrapper, Honduran Criollo ‘98
binder and Nicaraguan filler consisting of Corojo ‘99 and Criollo
‘98. El Diario translates from Spanish to “the daily,” which is
meant to set the tone for the brand, intended by Paley to be an
everyday smoke. The most memorable was the K.B., which stands
for Kill Bill. The smoke was so powerful that it was jokingly
referred to as a cigar that would “kill Bill,” as in the owner. The
name stuck, but on top of packing a punch, the cigar has loads
of flavor, and stood out in this tasting with a score of 93 points.
Average Rating: 88.8 points
Body: Medium
TORPEDO
88 POINTS
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6 1/8" x 52
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$11.35
A dark, veiny torpedo that draws and burns evenly. First
puffs are toasty and earthy with some flinty flavors and
slightly sweet touches of caramel.
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Body: Medium
95-100: Classic n 90-94: Outstanding n 80-89: Very good to excellent n 70-79: Average to good commercial quality
Below 70: Don’t waste your money n N/A: Not Available
Note: Prices are manufacturers’ suggested retail, before taxes.
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ARTURO FUENTE ROSADO SUNGROWN
MAGNUM R
VAULT BY TORAÑO
NEW RELEASE—VERTICAL BRAND TASTING
Country: Nicaragua
Maker: Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia.
Distributor: Toraño Family Cigar Co.
Distributor: Fuente & Newman Premium Cigars Ltd.
Filler: Nicaragua
Filler: Dom. Rep.
Binder: Nicaragua, Honduras
Binder: Dom. Rep.
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Ecuador
Release Date: October 2011
Release Date: January 2012
TORO
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6" x 50
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$7.60
NEW SIZE
Country: Dominican Republic
Maker: Plasencia Cigars S.A.
92 POINTS
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Humidor Selection
Well-crafted with an oily wrapper and no soft spots on
the cigar. The smoke has a creamy texture, as well as a
fairly strong salt-and-pepper character.
Body: Medium to Full
VITOLA 44
92 POINTS
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4 7/8" x 47
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$6.75
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Humidor Selection
There’s a very satisfying sweet spiciness to this cigar
that is built around a savory core of leather flavor. It
smokes evenly from start to finish.
Body: Medium
CORONA GORDA
91 POINTS
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5 5/8" x 46
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$7.20
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Humidor Selection
Gleaming with oils, this solidly rolled cigar imparts a
rich, toasty smoke that develops a dark roasted Sumatra
coffee bean character.
Body: Medium to Full
H. UPMANN
TORPEDO
89 POINTS
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6 1/8" x 52
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NEW SIZE
$7.95
An unusually pointy torpedo with an oily wrapper.
Incense notes on the aroma underscore the strong,
peppery opening. Black pepper notes stay prominent.
Country: Cuba
Body: Medium to Full
Filler: Cuba
Distributor: Habanos S.A.
Binder: Cuba
ROBUSTO
88 POINTS
Maker: N/A
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5" x 52
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Wrapper: Cuba
$7.20
Box Date: July 2011
Cedary and woody with a bit of spice and a firm draw.
It’s an attractive cigar with a richly colored wrapper that
gleams with oil.
HALF CORONA
Body: Medium
91 POINTS
BRAND SUMMARY: Originally a conceptual cigar, Toraño
reopened its files (from the Vault) and updated the blend by adding a second Nicaraguan binder leaf from Ometepe. The Toro
and Corona Gorda benefited most, scoring 92 and 91 points.
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3 1/2" x 44
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£7.07
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Humidor Selection
A dark, oily and short smoke whose first puffs deliver a
bracing shot of up-front salty flavors, which are counterbalanced by walnut notes and hints of orange peel.
Body: Medium to Full
Average Rating: 90.0 points
95-100: Classic n 90-94: Outstanding n 80-89: Very good to excellent n 70-79: Average to good commercial quality
Below 70: Don’t waste your money n N/A: Not Available
Note: Prices are manufacturers’ suggested retail, before taxes.
3
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CIGAR NEWS
NEW CUBAN CIGAR BANDS LOSE
OLD COMPANY NAMES
BY GREGORY MOTTOLA
T
he reds are richer and the golds are glitzier, but since
Habanos S.A. began updating Cuba’s catalog of cigar
bands, something is missing—the old company names.
Before the revolution, Cuba’s cigar brands were privately
owned, and many of the bands adorning the cigars bore
the names of the brand’s founders and principals. Though
each brand eventually became nationalized, the historical
company names remained on the box art and band logos.
A few years ago, Habanos began redesigning its cigar
bands, scaling up the size, punching up the color, sharpening the letters and more clearly casting the embossments. In
doing so, Habanos also eliminated the original, pre-revolution names associated with private ownership, and those
bands can now be found on many Cuban cigars.
The Partagás band, for example traditionally read
“Cifuentes y Cia.” across the top, demarking the name of
Ramón Cifuentes, who owned the Partagás brand in Cuba
before it was seized by the Cuban government. The reference to Cifuentes is now gone, as can be seen in the photo.
Punch’s pre-Castro proprietor Manuel Lopez was erased
from the Punch band in 2009 and replaced with the word
“Cuba” when the new band made its first appearance on
Punch Punch tubos. And Rodriguez Arguelles y Cia., the
company that once owned Romeo y Julieta, is no longer on
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the band, replaced with the words “Desde 1875.” The new
design first appeared in 2006 on Romeo’s Short Churchill.
Changes of this nature take some time to complete, and
there are old bands on cigars that are in store humidors.
But gradually, all the old bands are being displaced in the
market by new ones.
“Habanos is constantly updating all the designs of its
brands, and introduces both new elements of design and
security to improve the logos, bands and boxes so that the
consumer can better identify our 27 totalmente a mano—
totally hand-made—brands,” said Gonzalo Fernández de
Navarrete González Valerio, Habanos S.A.’s marketing
subdirector. “We want to highlight the most relevant things
in their presentation and designs….Concerning Romeo y
Julieta, for example, our consumer studies show that the
introduction of the text “Desde 1875” [since 1875] is relevant to a majority of them in order to help the consumer
identify the long history of the brand.”
Many of the new band designs made their first appearance in the market via the Regional Edition program, a
campaign where limited productions of unique sizes are
made for a specific country. Regional Juan Lopez cigars,
for example, were the first to have the new band, which
no longer bears the words “C. Del Peso y Cia.” While the
logo’s golden crown and laurels are more clearly embossed
with more luster, the name of Juan Lopez’s pre-Revolution
company is no longer referenced.
According to Fernández, Cuba’s band updating process
will continue in the future. n
FUENTE FUENTE OPUSX
CELEBRATES 100 YEARS
BY G. CLAY WHITTAKER
O
CUBA HAS CHANGED ITS BANDS. THE NEW PARTAGÁS BAND (LEFT)
NO LONGER READS “CIFUENTES Y CIA.,” AND ROMEO’S NEW BAND
(SECOND FROM RIGHT) NO LONGER BEARS THE FOUNDER’S NAME.
4
ne of the newest Fuente Fuente OpusX cigars, the
ForbiddenX 13 Torch Bearer 2012, may also be the
one closest to the heart of the company, and of most significance to the family. Everything about the line has roots to
the family’s history, from the names of the cigars down to
the particular land on which the tobacco was grown.
For the Fuentes, it all comes back to the number 13.
Fuente president Carlos Fuente Jr. said 13 holds great significance for his family, and always has. “It’s my father’s
number,” he said, explaining how the otherwise unlucky
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number has a telling frequency for his family. Carlos Fuente
Sr. was born on 13th Street, the company has its Tampa
headquarters at 1310 N. 22nd Street, company founder
Arturo Fuente was 85 when he passed away (the numbers
add up to 13) and the wrapper leaf for the ForbiddenX line
happens to be grown on 13 acres of land. “It’s symbolic to
everything for my family,” said Fuente Jr.
The Torch Bearer 2012 (7 5/8 by 49, $18.00) marks
the centennial of the Arturo Fuente brand, which the
Fuentes will celebrate in November, but the other five sizes
in the ForbiddenX 13 line (which began reaching retailers
in December) also carry weighty significance for the Fuente
brand and the Fuente family. The Fuente Fuente OpusX
ForbiddenX 13 Nacimiento (5 1/8 inches by 43 ring gauge,
suggested retail price $11.75) represents the company’s
1912 founding in Tampa, Florida. The God’s Whisper
(7 1/5 inches by 41, $16) is in memory of the 1924 fire that
put Arturo Fuente out of production for more than two
decades. The Heart of the Bull (5 1/4 by 50, $14.00) commemorates when ownership of the company was transferred to Carlos Fuente Sr. in 1957—Fuente Sr. was born
under the astrological sign of Taurus the bull. The Destiny
(5 3/4 by 52, $15.75) marks the move to Dominican facilities in 1980. A final, forward-looking sixth cigar called the
Keeper of the Flame 2013 (6 1/4 by 49, $15.00) points this
line’s focus forward, pointing to a new generation that will
continue in this company’s traditions.
The cigars come, of course, in boxes of 13.
For more on the Fuente family’s 100-year history, see the
current issue of Cigar Aficionado, now on newsstands. A
rating of the Fuente Fuente OpusX ForbiddenX 13 Torch
Bearer 2012 will appear in the April Cigar Aficionado. n
60 RING GAUGE ANNIVERSARY
PADRÓN NO. 4 COMING SOON
BY DAVID SAVONA
P
adrón Cigars Inc. is adding a
size called No. 4 to its widely
popular and highly rated Padrón
1964 Anniversary Series. But
unlike Cuban cigars bearing the
No. 4 name, which are diminutive
petit coronas, these cigars will be
6 inches long by 60 ring gauge,
among the biggest made by Padrón.
The No. 4 will become the first new
Padrón Anniversary since the Toro,
launched two years ago.
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The cigar gets its name from the December 4 birthday
of Saint Barbara, or Santa Barbara, a Catholic saint held
dear by Cubans. “Cubans feel she is a protector,” said
Padrón president Jorge Padrón in a phone interview.
“When my father was in Cuba, he prayed to Santa Barbara
to help him get out.”
The elder Padrón left Cuba on April 1, 1961, and went
to Spain. He waited several months before finding a way
to get to the United States, and in late November of that
year he set sail for America. “The boat that I came on
arrived in New York on December 4,” said José Orlando
Padrón. “The birthday of this patron saint.”
St. Barbara is not only revered by Cubans. According to legend, she was beheaded by her father in the 7th
century, and he was struck down by lightning after committing his crime. She has long been associated with
lightning and explosions, and is prayed to by soldiers,
particularly artillerymen, and is also known as a patron
saint of miners. José Orlando Padrón worked in a copper
mine as a younger man in Cuba.
The Padrón Anniversary No. 4 will come out in the next
few months. Jorge Padrón said his family aimed to have
it on sale prior to the International Cigar & Pipe Retailers (IPCPR) trade show, which begins in August. He said
pricing for the cigar had not yet been determined.
The size was originally to be called the Patriarch, but
Jorge Padrón later realized that Tabacalera Perdomo makes
the Perdomo Patriarch, so he changed plans.
Padrón has made a 6 by 60 Anniversary before, but it
was a special release for a retail shop. Jorge Padrón said the
box-pressed cigar would have a different blend and taste.
There will be both a natural and a maduro version.
Jorge Padrón said there were no plans to add a 6 by 60
size to the company’s Padrón Serie 1926 line, as has been
reported elsewhere. n
JOSÉ SEIJAS LEAVES ALTADIS
BY DAVID SAVONA
M. Seijas, the man who has run Altadis U.S.A.
José
Inc.’s most important cigar factory for more than three
decades, has stepped down from the company.
Seijas served as vice president and general manager of
Tabacalera de Garcia Ltd. in La Romana, Dominican
Republic, where Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta and many
other handmade and machine-made cigars are produced.
His retirement from Altadis is effective immediately.
“I want to salute the great people of Tabacalera for their
support during all these years,” Seijas wrote in an email to
Cigar Insider.
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This is the second major
departure of an Altadis U.S.A.
principal figure in less than a
year. At the end of the summer, executive vice president
of sales and marketing Jim
Colucci retired.
Dominican-born Seijas is 61
and he started with Tabacalera de Garcia at the age of 24,
José Seijas
hired to analyze crops and perform other quality-control jobs. The factory is located in La
Romana, a town in the eastern part of the country. The
Dominican Republic makes more cigars than any other
country, but most of the country’s myriad cigar factories are
located in Santiago.
Tabacalera de Garcia consists of more than a quarter
of a million square feet of working space and is likely the
world’s largest cigar factory. In addition to the Dominican
versions of Romeo y Julieta, Montecristo and H. Upmann,
the factory also produces many cigars by machine, including the Backwoods brand.
Seijas’s role will be filled by Javier Elmudesi, a 15-year
veteran of Tabacalera de Garcia who will take the title
of factory manager. Elmudesi will report to Antonio
Gutierrez, operations director, cigar division, for Altadis
parent Imperial Tobacco PLC.
In an email to Cigar Insider Javier Estades, general manager of Altadis U.S.A. Premium Cigars, thanked Seijas
“for his many years of service to the company and the
industry.” In a statement, Altadis said, “the management and employees of Altadis U.S.A. wish José, his wife,
Carmen and the Seijas family all the best.” n
HUMIDIPAK CHANGING NAME
TO BOVEDA INC.
H
umidipak Inc., the Minneapolis-based maker of
humidification pouches, bags and humidification
systems, has changed its product name to Boveda, and will
follow with a corporate name change to Boveda Inc.
Bovedas or Humidipaks power humidors. The pouches
not only add, but remove, humidity, and have proved very
reliable and accurate.
“We’re consolidating everything under the Boveda
name,” said Boveda’s chief executive Sean Knutsen.
The name change won’t appear on products for a few
months, and the official filing with the state has yet to
occur for the corporate change. The company will continue
to sell to the music industry under the name Humidipak. n
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EDDIE ORTEGA STEPS DOWN
FROM EOBRANDS
BY GREGORY MOTTOLA
E
ddie Ortega, the man behind such boutique cigars
as 601, Cubao and Murcielago, has stepped down
as president of EOBrands Inc. in order to strike out on
his own.
Ortega told Cigar Insider that he will be leaving EO and
his partnership with Eric Espinosa and starting Ortega
Cigars, a small company headquartered in Sunrise, Florida.
“I’ve wanted to do this for quite some time and now is
the right time,” Ortega said. “Eric is like my brother, but I
wanted to be independent.”
Ortega’s new brand is called
Ortega Serie D, a five-size series
made in Nicaragua at My Father
Cigars S.A. The cigar has a Mexican maduro wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and filler, and will retail
for $6.20 to $7.80. The sizes will
consist of the No. 6 (4 1/2 inches
long by 48 ring); No. 7 (5 by 46);
No. 8 (5 1/2 by 50); No. 10 (a
belicoso measuring 6 by 52) and
Eddie Ortega
No. 12 (5 by 52).
“I have no interest in the so-called limited-release market—plenty of those around. I’d much rather build solid
brands. And I’m not looking to be the next big thing,”
Ortega said. “I just want to open 300 accounts and that’s
it. This way, they can support me, and I can support them.”
Ortega Serie D is scheduled to be released in March.
The cigars from EOBrands are distributed by Rocky
Patel Premium Cigars Inc., which owns 50 percent of the
company. Company founder Rocky Patel confirmed that
Ortega is leaving. The other 50 percent ownership was
split between Ortega and Espinosa who are now finalizing
the details of a buyout deal.
EOBrands started in 2003 as United Tobacco, debuting with a cigar called SerieX, made by Oliva Cigar Co.,
a brand that was soon discontinued due to trademark issues. Soon after, United launched the cigar brands Reo and
Vibe, made by Nestor Plasencia with Rocky Patel. (The
cigars went off the market in 2006.) In 2005, United contracted with José “Pepin” Garcia to launch the 601 brand,
which came in three varieties: Connecticut, Habano and
Maduro (better known as Black, Red and Blue). The
additional Oscuro variety (Green) was added before a distribution deal was penned between Miami Cigar & Co.
and United. The arrangement lasted from 2008 to 2009.
By 2010, United formed a distribution deal and
partnership with Rocky Patel, and EOBrands was born.
Under Patel, the 601 White Label was created, as well as
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the high-octane 601 La Bomba, or Yellow line.
All 601 cigars are still made in Nicaragua at My Father
Cigars S.A., where Ortega Cigars will be made. n
GENERAL CIGAR SHIPPING NEW
SIZES IN POPULAR BRANDS
BY G. CLAY WHITTAKER
N
ew cigars are on their way to shelves from General
Cigar Co. The company has shipped three new sizes
of existing lines in the Macanudo and C.A.O. La Traviata
cigar brands.
The two new sizes in the Macanudo family are both in
the extremely popular 6 by 60 size, the Macanudo Café
Gigante and Macanudo Maduro Gigante. Each will retail
for $7.99, and will be sold in 20-count boxes. The cigars
could reach shops as early as this week. Director of public
relations Victoria McKee said that these sizes are popular
sellers. “It’s a continuing and maybe growing trend, this
larger ring size.”
C.A.O.’s new addition is called the Luminoso, a 4 1/2inch-long, 50 ring gauge version of the La Traviata
Maduro line. Ed McKenna, brand manager for C.A.O.,
said, “C.A.O. La Traviata Luminoso is one of our topsellers, so it was only natural that we gave C.A.O. fans a
new take on one of their favorite cigars.”
The suggested retail for this new cigar will be $5.10, and
they will be sold in 30-count boxes. Look for reviews in
upcoming Cigar Insiders. n
E.P. CARRILLO LINE COMBINES
MADURO AND NATURAL
BY DAVID SAVONA
E
rnesto Perez-Carrillo, the man behind the E.P.
Carrillo brand and the former maker of La Gloria Cubana
cigars, is coming out with a new Short Run cigar. The new
release, which will ship to retailers beginning in two to
three weeks, will combine elements of the company’s New
Wave Connecticut (which features a light-hued natural
wrapper) and the company’s Core Maduro, a dark smoke
wrapped in hearty Connecticut broadleaf.
The new cigar, called E.P. Carrillo New Wave Connecticut Short Run 2012, takes a light Ecuadoran Connecticut
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wrapper (the same found on the New Wave Connecticut)
and combines it with Connecticut broadleaf binder (the
wrapper from the Core Maduro line). The filler is also
from Core Maduro, a combination of Nicaraguan and
Dominican leaves.
There are three sizes in the line: Reinados (6 1/4 by
60, $8.60 per cigar); Invictos (5 7/8 by 52, $7.10) and
Exquisitos (4 7/8 by 50, $6.35). As with previous Short
Run releases from E.P. Carrillo, the cigars will be made in
small quantities. There will be 1,000 boxes of each size,
packed 24 to the box, for a run of 72,000 cigars.
Cigar Insider received a sample of the new cigars this
morning. The Exquisitos smoked more like a natural than
a maduro, with a mild- to medium-bodied creamy flavor,
with some floral elements, and fine balance. The finish
was fairly long, with a nutty flavor. The draw and burn
were superb.
Look for an official blind tasting of the line in an upcoming issue of Cigar Insider. n
ROOM 101 TAKES AIM WITH
ONE SHOT, ONE KILL
BY G. CLAY WHITTAKER
R
oom 101’s newest release, Room
101 OSOK, is shipping to select
cigar stores this week. The brand is a line
of figurados made by one roller at Tabacos Rancho Jamastran, the Honduran
cigar factory that also rolls every Camacho.
Matt Booth, founder of the Room 101
brand, intended this new line as a tribute to Los Angeles photographer Edgar
Hoill, who is responsible for much of the
images surrounding the colorful Room
101 universe. Hoill’s nickname is “One
Shot, One Kill,” or OSOK, which comes
from his keen eye and quality work.
And the OSOK is an ambitious line
to produce. All three sizes in the line are
creatively tapered perfectos of varying
sizes, each with a foot reminiscent of a
Salomon. Since the factory did not want
to reassign all the best rollers to this one
task, Room 101 marketing head Dylan
Austin explained that the entire OSOK production is being
made by one man.
“We actually had one guy roll all of these,” he said,
explaining that the roller crafts 3,000 cigars a month (100
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February 7, 2012
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a day) and will have spent about a year rolling this line by
the end of the process, when there will be 30,000 cigars.
Room 101 OSOKs are blended with Ecuadoran Habano
wrappers, Honduran binders, and a mix of Honduran and
Dominican fillers. Room 101 says the OSOK should be of
medium to full body. The perfectos come in three sizes:
Filero (4 1/2 inches by 52 ring gauge), Trucha (6 1/2 by 50)
and Chingon (8 by 60). Each size comes in boxes of ten,
and they retail for between $8.00 to $12.00 per cigar.
The line has creative packaging, with each cigar rolled in
a paper sleeve printed with the line’s unique artwork. “This
is kind of the Room 101 spin on that traditional Cuban
packaging,” said Austin, who described it as “L.A. meets
traditional Mexican art.”Austin said limited productions
allow creator Matt Booth to flourish.
“The man is such a creator, it’s really important to
give him all access and just let him create.” Austin said
another limited production is coming in the last quarter
of 2012. While he’s keeping most details quiet, he says the
line will be called Daruma after the Zen Buddhist talismans
of luck.
The original limited-edition Room 101, the Room
101 LTD Conjura Edition, scored 91 to 93 points in the
November 9, 2010, Cigar Insider. n
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IN THE NEXT CIGAR INSIDER
Breaking news from around the cigar world, along
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Cigar Insider.
INDIANA SMOKE BAN
BY ANDREW NAGY
F
Your Next CIGAR INSIDER Arrives on Tuesday, Feb. 21.
or the fifth straight year, representatives in the Indiana
House have passed a smoking ban. House Bill 1063,
which was passed by a vote of 62-34 on January 31,
would prohibit smoking within 12 feet of building
entrances, or enclosed places of employment. The bill
has an exemption for cigar bars, tobacco shops, cigar
manufacturing facilities, nonprofit private clubs,
fraternal organizations and some gambling facilities.
According to the Indianapolis Star, Republican senator
David Long has said that he wants the Senate to vote on
the bill before the session ends March 14.
Whether or not to include taverns in the list of exemptions is expected to be debated in the Senate. As of now, the
bill contains language that would afford taverns 18 months
to comply to the ban. The bill also allows municipalities
to pass their own smoking bans, should they want a
stricter prohibition.
The Indianapolis City Council recently passed a smoking
ban proposal, but it fell one vote shy of protecting it from
a veto. Mayor Greg Ballard has said he will veto the ban
because he views the measure’s language pertaining to nonprofit private clubs and veterans halls as unfair. n
8
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February 7, 2012