262 Cigars | Half Ashed

Hirochi Robaina HR Habano

From Craig: This stunning Hermoso #4 is a sight to behold. It’s Ecuadorian colorado maduro wrapper sits over all Nicaraguan innards. The first cigar from the Robaina family released outside of cuba, this cigar was originally released and made in a partnership with Cubanacan. Throughout the much covered turmoil that emerged prior to IPCPR 2015 the HR line of cigars was in limbo. The public wasn’t aware of whether the cigar would continue to be made. Questions about its ownership, manufacture & distribution all existed. Thankfully, just this past month the last of the questions was answered and the HR cigars will continue to be manufactured at their original factory, and will still be owned by Hirochi Robaina.

Cigar News

Boutiques United (formerly House of Emilio) picks up a new distribution agreement in Black Label Trading Co. I’m not terribly familiar with BLTC, although I remember being given some samples with the name before the company says it was founded on their website. I wasn’t a huge fan of those, but I understand a great deal of “rebooting” took place before they launched their initial line “officially”. They now have their own factory in Estelí….which, as Cigar Coop pointed out, differentiates them from the rest of BU’s current lineup. It’s probably worth my checking into them some time soon…

262 Cigars launched a campaign dubbed “The Internship” to allow consumers to select a 2017 line. It’s an interesting approach, and the cynic in me thinks it’s probably not a bad way to market some cigars :). They will sell 5-packs of four different blends over this year, with buyers having the ability to take notes and rate them online…the winning blend will become a full-production offering in 2017. The four test blends will be: The Search, The Resume, The Interview, and The Offer. The Search is already available at 262cigars.com, and is available in a corona, robusto and toro.

We mentioned this a couple months ago, but haven’t talked much more about La Galera from Jochy Blanco/Tabacalera Palma. I’ve had the chance to smoke a few of them recently, and found them rather enjoyable. The Habano version (Ec Habano over DR corojo binder & DR piloto Cubano//DR criollo ‘98//DR pelo oro filler) comes in a number of sizes (5”x50, 6”x54, 6.5”x52, and 6.25”x60) and retails for $7-8. The Connecticut version (EC CT wrapper over same internal blend), comes in 5.125”x50, 6”x54, 6.125”x52, 5.25”x60, and 7.25”x50 and retails slightly lower, ranging from about $5-6. There are a couple other sizes available in the European market (and the DR…I’ve been digging the lancero myself). I wouldn’t hesitate to personally recommend giving these a try. They’re a very good deal at the pricepoint. I tend to prefer the habano-wrapped version, but both and worth investigating.

What Else We’ve Been Smoking

Craig

La Pipa!

Kip

La Galera – habano & CT

The PrimerAño from Chogüí came in went here in the DR…and I missed the boat. Almost.

Padilla Artemis

Next Episode

Next episode (139), we will be smoking Unbanded #026, from Kevin Hasselwander. So come by Friday night and hang out with us in the chatroom during the show. If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us via the Contact Page or the following emails: [email protected] or [email protected] Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints. We love to get your emails! Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive. You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), find us on iTunes, or subscribe with any podcast app at our RSS Feed. Video, as always, will be available at the Half Ashed YouTube Channel.

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.

Half Ashed Episode 138: Hirochi Robaina HR Habano