The story of Johnny Tobacconaut and Room 101 is full of false starts and premature finishes. Room 101 was born in 2003 by Matt Booth as a jewelry company. In 2009 Matt Booth would hook up with Davidoff in their attempt to get younger and cater to the growing boutique cigar market. In 2017, he would not renew his contract with Davidoff and announced he was leaving the cigar industry. That decision was short lived […]
Three years ago I was sitting with a group of cigar smokers from Montana after hours in a cigar shop. The gentlemen were in town for an event and they asked if they could stay after hours and just have a good time with cigars and libations. They ran to the local liquor store as the shop didn’t have a bar. One of the bottles they came back with was Angel’s Envy Rye Finished in […]
The CAO Amazon Basin was originally introduced in 2014 and received critical acclaim. This year the CAO Amazon Basin returns for the first time since 2022. I’ll be honest, I walked into Twins Smoke Shop in Londonderry, New Hampshire and asked the dreaded question of, “What’s new?”. My boy Nick told me the CAO Amazon Basin to which I said no thanks, the last few haven’t been that great. Well, he told me, “This one […]
Miami Cigar & Co. announces that the much-awaited NM80 is how shipping. City Cigar Lounge was tapped as the launching pad for the highly anticipated NM80 cigar brand. The NM80 was created to commemorate Nestor Miranda’s 80th birthday. The event is a sit down 5-course dinner by “Certified Angus Beef Chef of the Year” Carla DiLorenzo. Dinner to take place on February 8, 2024, at 7:00 pm. City Cigar Lounge is located at 41 NW 2nd St, Miami, FL 33128. Argentine open fire cooking has taken the nation […]
Last night, the Nicaraguan Chamber of Tobacco / Camara Nicaraguense de Tabacaleros honored Eric Newman with its Lifetime Achievement Award. This award was presented at the Puro Sabor Festival’s White Dinner, which was held at the J.C. Newman PENSA factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. Newman said that he was very surprised and humbled by this honored, and was very grateful to receive it surrounded by so many friends in the cigar industry.
On Tuesday, January 23, 2024, Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, U.S. Congresswoman Kathy Castor, and the Newman family cut the ribbon to open Cigar Workers Park. This new park is located across the street from J.C. Newman’s historic El Reloj factory in Tampa’s Ybor City National Historic Cigar District. In the presence of El Reloj’s cigar workers, the Newman family dedicated the park to the hundreds of thousands of people who have worked in Tampa’s cigar […]
Jose “Pepin” Garcia along with his children Jaime and Janny, started making cigars in a little factory in Miami, Florida over twenty years ago. At that time, their first private label client was Pete Johnson and his brand Tatuaje. In early 2003, Pete met Pepin at an event in Los Angeles, CA and immediately knew that Pepin was the man that he wanted making his cigars. From that day forward, the Garcia’s and Pete have been working together on […]
The E.H. Taylor Corojo for me seems like a match made in heaven. Cigars and whiskey has long been a pairing for many cigar smokers. For me, I started out with cigars & scotch, before making my way to cigars & rum. These days like countless others I pair my cigars with bourbon. As a bourbon enthusiast it’s frustrating so many brands are difficult to come by and E.H Taylor is one that is increasingly […]
The information about Wild Turkey Rare Breed Barrel proof on the company website is an example of poor marketing as there is a very little information available. What is stated is, “Wild Turkey Rare Breed is a “barrel proof bourbon”, meaning it has no added water to lower the proof or dilute the flavor after it’s been distilled. It’s a unique marriage of Wild Turkey 6, 8, and 12-year-old stocks, giving it a remarkably smooth […]
La Aurora USA, LLC, announces the debut of La Aurora Small Batch Lot 003, a limited-edition cigar created by Master Blender Manuel, at Total Product Expo (TPE) 2024 in Las Vegas. La Aurora Small Batch is a collection of limited quantity cigars created by our Master Blender, Manuel Inoa, who reached back into the aging room pulling out his favorite creations. “We’re excited to kick off 2024 at TPE as we continue to renew our relationship not only with Kretek, but […]