Half Ashed Cigar News Archive

Here at Half Ashed, we strive to be a leading provider of industry coverage for the premium cigar industry. We do this through both written editorial commentary, cigar news and reviews – and, of course, a weekly cigar podcast / live internet radio show. Both written content and the broadcast show cover the latest news, industry happenings, and legislative concerns within the world of premium cigars. We welcome you to browse around the site, join us in the forum – and by all means come by and join us during scheduled recordings every Friday night. We provide a live video stream and chatroom so you can participate with the show. Come on in!

Florida Sun Grown coming to Corona Cigar

June 2, 2016 By Kip Fisher

Drew Estate Announces New Florida Sun Grown “FSG”

On Half Ashed, we’ve been talking about Jeff Borysiewicz’ efforts at re-vitalizing Florida-grown cigar tobacco ever since the first crop in 2013. Those efforts are finally coming to fruition, in the form of a new line from Drew Estate – the first to utilize the tobacco. The cigar maker is now officially launching the line, dubbed “Florida Sun Grown,” or “FSG.” It features leaf grown near Clermont, FL just outside Orlando. The growing operation is spearheaded by Borysiewicz, owner of Corona Cigar Co.

The Florida Sun Grown line will feature four vitolas:

Robusto (5 x 54), MSRP $230/20ct box
Toro (6 x 52), MSRP $260/20ct box
Belicoso (6 ½ x 54), MSRP $280/20ct box
Sixty (6 x 60), MSRP $300/20ct box

The blend for the FSG features the Florida tobacco as an accent, or condiment, tobacco. It purportedly “adds nuance and depth to the blend, but [the cigar] also features select Nicaraguan fillers. The binder is a Habano seed tobacco from Honduras and the cigar is finished off with a lush Brazilian wrapper.”

In addition to the regular production items, a special limited edition “Trunk-Pressed” Toro (6 x 54) will be produced. This limited size will contain a different blend, utilizing a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper over Mexican binder and Florida Sungrown/Nicaraguan/Honduran filler components. The LE will retail for $150 per 10ct. box.

The FSG was blended by Drew Estate Master Blender Willy Herrera over the past two years that the company has been processing the new leaf.

Willy says, “it was a unique challenge working with the Florida Sun Grown tobacco. It was something completely new to me, and it took me numerous blends to figure out how to incorporate it into a blend I really loved. The final blend we’ve come up with is one I’m extremely excited about, and I can’t wait to see what everyone thinks of this special new tobacco.”
Asked about growing this tobacco, Borysiewicz said, “this has been one of the most difficult challenges of my life. Tobacco growing is just as much an art as it is a science, and growing tobacco in this area of Florida was totally uncharted territory. It took a lot of trial and error to get it to where it is today, but we couldn’t be happier with the way it’s smoking.”
Jonathan Drew, of Drew Estate, relates: “My first memorable experience with Jeff Borysiewicz was at 1am in the morning inside the DE factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. We spoke until 3am, while DE’s first seven packaging girls and myself prepared for the launch of ‘NATURAL Cigars by Drew Estate’. It must have been 2000. The next morning, after sleeping only a few hours, I drove a rented car four hours to Managua on that pothole crater-ridden Pan American Highway just to bring Jeff some samples of what would later become ‘Industrial Press Cigars’. Friendship founded, boom, for life. Here we are, now 17 years later and ready to make magic happen again. Florida Barn Smoker and the FSG Label bring me back to the earliest days when we had nothing but a dream.”

The Florida Sun Grown line will land on retailer shelves in June, and will be available exclusively at Corona Cigar Co. To be among the first to try the new Florida Sun Grown blends, attend the Florida Barn Smoker on June 4^th, 2016.

J. Grotto Anniversary line receives extension

June 2, 2016 By Kip Fisher

The J. Grotto Anniversary: A Box-Pressed Double Robusto in Maduro

I’m a little behind schedule as we begin to bring more written content back into the Half Ashed equation. This particular item from J. Grotto came through this past week….

The new J. Grotto Anniversary Double Robusto, now available

Ocean State Cigars has launched an addition to their J. Grotto Anniversary cigar line. The extension is a 5.5″ x 54 double robusto, which comes pressed and adorned with a maduro wrapper.

The new Double Robusto brings the same blend and construction characteristics as the original four vitolas in the line. The wrapper “is a naturally fermented maduro Connecticut-grown broadleaf, while the binder is a Dominican-grown Habano.”

The Anniversary line is being manufactured by Phil Zanghi at the De Los Reyes/Debonaire factory in Tamboril, Dominican Republic. Aside from the factory, the Reyes family of tobacco producers lay claim to supplying the majority of tobacco used by Dominican cigar manufacturers. Proprietor Paul Joyal is a bit secretive about the blend specifics, noting only that it is “Dominican and other Central American tobaccos.” I recently had the opportunity to visit and sit down with Zanghi, and have to admit I was more than a little impressed with the factory’s efficiency, cleanliness and “family” work environment.

Like previous Anniversary vitolas, the Double Robusto is described as medium-bodied, which is a departure from other J. Grotto cigars, which the company markets as medium-full to full-bodied.

Joyal says that, “Although many cigar lovers rave about full-bodied cigars, most buy medium-bodied brands. Make no mistake, Anniversary’s rich flavor is the full equal of highly-touted full-bodied cigars … many of which actually lack flavor, despite their power. Anniversary has earned the term ‘succulent,’ with a classic Connecticut broadleaf sweetness, plus some subtleties like cocoa, coffee and nuts. For smooth smoking, all tobaccos are aged at least 3 years; the finished cigars another 3-4 months.”

Each Spanish cedar box holds 10 cigars and bears artwork reflecting the special nature of the Anniversary line. The line’s original 2014 debut marked a year of special wedding anniversaries for the Joyal family … his parents’ 65th and his 30th. Gold coins in the art also bear the initials of immediate family members. Joyal describes what he thinks is Anniversary’s most appealing feature: “super premium quality and performance at a consumer-friendly price … $8.50.” Like all other J. Grotto cigars, the Anniversary Double Robusto is available only to brick-and-mortar tobacco shops … not Internet and mail-order discounters.

Punch Rare Corojo Returns for 2016

February 17, 2016 By Kip Fisher

2016 Punch Rare Corojo with New Frontmark

General Cigar has announced that the annual return of the Punch Rare Corojo has begun. A new limited frontmark will be added to the lineup, while one of the former sizes is being retired.

This year, an addition comes to the line in the form of the Regalias Perfecto, a 7.25” x 54 perfecto, exclusively available as part of a trade offer. The Regalias Perfecto will come in 10-count wooden boxes and carries a suggested retail price of $7.99 per cigar.

The existing 6.75″ x 48 Double Corona will be retired after this year’s production allotment has been exhausted.

The Rare Corojo line is rolled in Honduras and features an Ecuadoran Sumatra wrapper. This wrapper leaf is grown in limited quantity, and are attributed with giving the Punch Rare Corojo its uniquely smooth taste. The binder is Connecticut Broadleaf, and the filler blend features Nicaraguan, Honduran and Dominican tobacco.

Ed McKenna, senior brand manager for General Cigar’s Punch brand said, “The trend of seasonal cigars started with Punch Rare Corojo, and each year, cigar lovers eagerly anticipate the return of this exceptional blend. Given the range of frontmarks and the addition of Regalias Perfecto to this year’s lineup, we are confident that the limited supply of Punch Rare Corojo will be depleted quickly.”

From General Cigar:

Reintroduced in 2001 after a shortage of wrapper leaves caused the product to disappear at retail for several years, Punch Rare Corojo sold out as quickly as it returned that year. Since then, General Cigar has been able to secure a sufficient amount of the rare Ecuadoran Sumatra wrapper for a limited annual release of Punch Rare Corojo. This year’s allotment is available in nine sizes, ranging in SRP from $4.19 to $8.29 per cigar.

CLE Releases TAA Exclusive Azabache

February 17, 2016 By Kip Fisher

CLE Cigar Releases TAA Exclusive Cigar – The CLE Azabache

Earlier today, CLE Cigar Company announced the impending release of the CLE Azabache – this year’s TAA exclusive offering. The line will be launched at the annual TAA convention in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Azabache (jet) is a dark glossy type of coal often used in the Cuban culture to produce jewelry. The cigar is presented as a medium to full bodied maduro that is “delightfully creamy,” and will be available only through TAA member retailers.

“Last year we released the Asylum Nyctophilia at TAA. This year we decided to showcase a cigar under the C.L.E. portfolio. I can’t wait to get there and show or friends and customers what I have been working on this year. ” says Christian Eiroa, founder of C.L.E. Cigar Company.

The CLE Azabache will be have a production run limited to 320, 25-count boxes for each vitola. The sizes will included 5″ x 50, 6″ x 54, and 6″ x 60. The line will come with a Mexican maduro wrapper, Honduran binder and a filler blend comprised of Honduran, Nicaraguan, and Peruvian tobaccos. The cigars will be box pressed and rolled at the CLE Aladino factory in Danli, Honduras. Each will be wrapped in tissue adorned with both the CLE and TAA logos to showcase their TAA-exclusive availability.

Suggested retail pricing has been set, and ranges from $7.00 – $9.00 per cigar.

The CLE Azabache is the latest of this year’s offerings from CLE and its client companies. Other announced products for 2016 include the Asylum 13 Connecticut, as well as the new Asylum 13 toro. Additionally, CLE is being rebranded and will debut the CLE Prieto and CLE Chele.

CLE and Asylum to Release Asylum 13 Connecticut

February 12, 2016 By Kip Fisher

Asylum 13 Connecticut Coming in February

CLE Cigar Company and Asylum Cigars have announced the upcoming release of a new line – the Asylum 13 Connecticut. The line will come wrapped in an Ecuadoran Connecticut wrapper, and contain Honduran binder and filler blend.

Blend Details

The Asylum 13 Connecticut was blended by Christian Eiroa (CLE) and Tom Lazuka (Asylum), and is being rolled at the CLE “El Aladino” factory in Danli, Honduras. “Asylum cigars are known for being more full bodied and Nicaraguan. We wanted to blend something different and lighter into the portfolio” says Lazuka. The initial offering will include three different sizes: 5” x 50, 6” x 60, and 7” x 70. The two smaller vitolas will come in 50 count boxes, while the 7” x 70 will be available in 30 count boxes. Suggested retail pricing will range from $5.80 to $7.80, depending on size. Orders are currently being accepted, and the cigars should ship at the end of February.

262 Cigars Lets YOU Help Bring a Cigar to Market

February 12, 2016 By Kip Fisher

The 262 Cigars “Internship Program”

262 Cigars wants you to help pick the company’s 2017 line launch. Throughout 2016, the they are giving consumers an opportunity to speak into the process of creating a new line. To date, the 2017 release options have been narrowed down to four blends; they want smokers’ help in reducing that to a single blend.

How it works

During the upcoming year, the company will release 5-packs of the four remaining blends for sale via their website. Buyers can purchase the cigars, record their thoughts about them, and rate them online. The first of the four blends is known as The Search, and can already be ordered. Subsequent test blends will be called The Resume, The Interview, and The Offer. Once ratings have been recorded and tallied, the official blend will be launched next year as “The Intern.” The line will acquire a new name once fulltime production commences. The cigar will be available at 262 retailers everywhere.

Other Information

According to the mailing distributed Tuesday, the company is also “pulling the curtain back on much of what we do behind the scenes here at 262 HQ“, bringing consumers into the loop on how new cigar names, designs, packaging style and other aspects of a brand are determined. Photos and other details from the brand will be published throughout the process as the blends are released.

Sosa celebrates, revives Santa Julia brand

December 16, 2015 By Kip Fisher

Farm workers, some actual Sosa family members, having cafe at the Sosa “Santa Julia” tobacco farm in Cuba.

SANTA JULIA MAKES A COMEBACK

As part of the continuing celebration of 50 years making cigars, Sosa Cigars (Antillian Cigar Corporation) has announced the revival of the Santa Julia brand. The company has previously brought back other older brands from their portfolio with the re-introduction of Imperio Cubano Miami and Macabi USA.

The name “Santa Julia” is taken from the Sosa family farm in Taguasco, Cuba. Don Juan Sosa and son Arturo bought the farm, which spanned more than 900 acres of land, in the 1920’s. They produced sun grown leaf used as binder and filler components. Sosa family members and local tobacco workers maintained the land until it was lost to the Cuban government during the revolution.

Arby Sosa wanted to bring back the brand to celebrate the Sosa family’s’ longevity and consistency in the industry. Interestingly, the line is being made at La Vega Cubana in Clearwater, Florida. The wrapper is Ecuador Habano Oscuro, the binder Honduran and the filler blend is comprised of Dominican and Nicaraguan (Condega) tobacco. Only two vitolas will be produced – a Torpedo (6.5″ x 52) and Toro (6″ x 50). Production is capped at 20,000 total cigars. The first release will come in January 2016, with the remainder being released throughout the rest of the year. MSRP has been set at $9.90 for the Torpedo and $9.60 for the Toro.

About Antillian Cigar Corp:

Antillian Cigar Corporation is the manufacturer of the popular brands of Sosa Classic, 60 by Sosa, Imperio Cubano and Macabi. The Sosa family has been in the cigar business for 4 generations, more than 70 years. The Sosa cigar tradition began at the turn of the 19th century with Don Juan Sosa, a small tobacco grower in the fertile Taguasco region of Cuba. By the 1920’s, that farm was one of the largest tobacco-producing haciendas in Cuba. Over the next 30 years, Don Juan’s son, Arturo, and grandson, Juan, continued growing and selling their tobacco. Exiled from their homeland in Cuba in 1962, the Sosa family opened their first U.S. store in 1964 in Miami, FL. The Sosa’s currently have 2 stores in Florida, including the shop in Downtown Disney. They have their line of cigars in 300 stores across the country. Today, the legacy of quality, handmade cigars made in the Cuban tradition continues with master blender, Juan B. Sosa, alongside his wife, sons and nephews.

Davidoff and S.T. Dupont Announce Partnership

December 8, 2015 By Kip Fisher

S.T. Dupont and Davidoff of Geneva USA announce that they will enter into an exclusive distribution agreement in the United States effective January 1st, 2016.

The newly announced agreement between the companies further solidifies an already strong relationship between the two. S.T. Dupont produces several of Davidoff’s lighters in its French manufacturing facilities, while Davidoff serves as distributor for S.T. Dupont in Switzerland and elsewhere.

According to S.T. Dupont President Alain Crevet, the aim of the partnership for his company is to strengthen its success in the United States with lighter and cigar accessories, while growing its market share in the luxury pen, leather goods, and men’s accessory market.

Davidoff believes the agreement with S.T. Dupont will aid in its goal to be the “indispensable business partner” to retailers, including its network of Appointed Merchants. President Jim Young commented, “We are delighted to add the S.T. Dupont brand to our portfolio and look forward to building the brand together with our colleagues from S.T. Dupont-Paris. This is a great fit, both for the brand line up as well as a great fit culturally between our two companies.”

S.T. Dupont has expressed gratitude to its current distributor Lotus International for its dedication over the past 8 years, and has also announced that the company will continue as its after-sales-service center for the US.

All three companies are jointly committed to deliver high quality products and services to the US market.

About S.T.Dupont

For nearly 145 years, S.T.Dupont master goldsmiths and silversmiths, lacquerers and trunkmakers have created unique and durable objects that are entirely crafted by hand and made in France for exceptional individuals. This legendary and unique know-how, combined with an entrepreneurial spirit true to founder Simon Tissot Dupont, contribute to perpetuating the international aura and recognition of a House that embodies Fine French Craftsmanship. It is with great pride that S.T.Dupont preserves the know-how of its master craftsmen, who are heirs to skills passed down from generation to generation.

About Oettinger Davidoff AG

The CHF 1.23 billion Oettinger Davidoff AG with over 3,600 employees around the world, traces its roots back to 1875 and remains family owned to this day with two distinctly different businesses: one that is focused on FMCG distribution in the Swiss market and one dedicated to the core business of producing, marketing and retailing premium branded cigars, tobacco products and accessories. The premium branded cigar business include Davidoff, AVO, Camacho, Cusano, Griffin’s, Private Stock, Zino and Zino Platinum. The Oettinger Davidoff AG business is anchored in a strong “crop-to-shop” philosophy, having pursued a vertical integration from the tobacco fields in the Dominican Republic, Honduras and Nicaragua to the worldwide network of over 70 Davidoff Flagship Stores which complement a network of strong Appointed Merchants around the world.

Six New Drew Estate Lounge Exclusives Announced

September 14, 2015 By Kip Fisher

Drew Estate Announces New Lounge Exclusives For Corona Cigar

Earlier today, Drew Estate announced plans to release six new exclusive sizes from five different lines for the Drew Estate Lounge at Corona Cigar in Orlando, FL. The cigars will be available this month at the Corona Cigar Sand Lake location, and include vitolas from the Herrera Estelí, Liga Privada No. 9, Undercrown, Natural, and Tabak Especial brands.

All the line extensions are in a 6″ x 50 format, with three of them featuring a soft press and the other three a square box press. Specific details are given below:

Tabak Especial Negra (Soft Press)
Tabak Especial Dulce (Soft Press)
Natural (Soft Press)
Herrera Esteli (Box Press)
Liga Privada No. 9 (Box Press)
Undercrown (Box Press)

When asked about the new cigars, Jeff Borysiewicz, owner of Corona Cigar Company, stated: “The introduction of the world’s first Drew Estate Lounge has been a rousing success at Corona Cigar. We have a large contingent of diehard Drew Estate fans among our customer base and the addition of the new Drew Estate Lounge has caused quite a bit of excitement around the shop. These exciting new offerings from Drew Estate will add another dimension to the cigar smoking experience in Corona’s Drew Estate Lounge and guaranteed to excite our customers. We can’t wait to receive the first shipment this week!”

Drew Estate President Michael Cellucci commented, “Jeff and Corona Cigar Company have been a long-time ally and business partner with Drew Estate. We’re proud to call Corona Cigar home to the first ever Drew Estate Lounge, and we’re looking forward to Corona Cigar’s consumers trying these exclusive new sizes.”

The new Drew Estate exclusive sizes will only be available at Corona Cigar Company’s Sand Lake, FL location at 7792 W Sand Lake Rd, Orlando, FL 32819. To stay up to date on all of Drew Estate’s latest news, follow them @drewestatecigar on Twitter and Instagram.

About Drew Estate

Founded in New York City in 1996, Drew Estate has become one of the fastest growing tobacco companies in the world. Under their mantra “The Rebirth of Cigars”TM, Drew Estate has led the “Boutique Cigar” movement by innovating new elements to the tobacco industry with their unique tobaccos and blending styles that have attracted new and traditional cigar enthusiasts. In their Gran Fabrica Drew Estate, the Nicaraguan headquarters, Drew Estate produces a variety of brands such as ACID, Herrera Estelí, Herrera Estelí Norteño, Kentucky Fired Cured, Liga Privada, MUWAT, Natural by Drew Estate, Nica Rustica, Nirvana, Pappy Van Winkle Barrel Fermented Cigars, Tabak Especial, Undercrown, and Java by Drew Estate.

Cigar News: Miami Cigar Unveils Nestor Miranda Danno

June 4, 2015 By Kip Fisher

Miami Cigar & Co. set to Unveil Limited Nestor Miranda Collection “Danno”

Earlier this week, Miami Cigar announced the upcoming release of the “Nestor Miranda Collection Danno,” a limited edition extension of the Nestor Miranda Collection which pays homage to Miranda’s late son Daniel, who passed away in 2008.

The 2015 NMC Danno will be unveiled through a series of events that follow the recently rebranded Collection. According to the company, “the new visual identity has been well embraced, along with its accompanying tagline #OneLife. The message of the brand has inspired many supporters, to enjoy life and of course, a great smoke.”

Only 3,000 boxes of the Danno will be produced, in quantities of 1,000 boxes for each of the three available wrappers. While the blend components remain the consistent with this year’s brands, the proportions have been adapted in an effort to balance the blend for the Danno vitola.

Nestor Miranda said, “As you all can imagine, the Danno cigar holds a very special place in my heart, and I am very excited to be releasing it under the new NMC brand. This cigar has always been the epitome of my brand, and I am so proud to present you with our newest version.”

The NMC Danno is available in a singular 7″ x 56 vitola, with the following wrappers:

Connecticut: Ecuadorian CT wrapper
Habano: Nicaraguan Habano wrapper
Maduro: Broadleaf Maduro wrapper

Beginning June 12th, Nestor Miranda will host six events in a tour scheduled as follows:

June 12th Sanj’s Smoke located at 419 Broad St, Bloomfield, NJ 07003 Phone :( 973) 743-0693
June 13th Wooden Indian Tobacco Shop and Cigar Lounge located at 95 S Eagle Rd, Havertown, PA 19083, Phone:(610) 449-7001
June 17th Barrister located at 2565 US-22, Union, NJ 07083, Phone :( 908) 964-3000
June 18th, El Humidor located at 1116 Hwy 315, Plains, PA 18702, Phone :(570) 822-3544
June 19th Tobacco Park located at 161-17 29Th Avenue Flushing, NY 11358 United States
718-357-3510
June 20th Two Guys Smoke Shop located at 304 South Broadway (Rt. 28) Salem NH 03079
(603) 898-2221

About Miami Cigar & Co.

Miami Cigar & Co. proudly celebrates its 25th Year in the cigar industry. Founded by Nestor and Mariana Miranda, Miami Cigar & Co. has become one of the premier distributors of premium cigars boasting a portfolio which includes Tatiana, Don Lino and the Nestor Miranda brands. Miami Cigar & Co. also serves as the exclusive United States distributor for La Aurora, S.A and all Viva Republica brands.

Follow Miami Cigar & Company on Social Media here:

Facebook: Miami Cigar & Company
Instagram: MiamiCigar
Hashtag: OneLife