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Episode 022: Ramon Allones Petit Corona

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Ramon Allones petit coronaRamon Allones Petit Corona

Welcome back for another fun-filled, exciting episode of Half Ashed.  This week, we take a look at the 2002 Ramon Allones Petit Corona – one of Craig’s very favorite cigars.  He says,   “Since its discontinuation in 2002 the PC has remained a “special” cigar in my humidor. Its big brother the corona is viewed as one of the most saught after regular production cigars since the mid 90s. Both being made in small numbers, thus always maintaining the quality, both of these cigars are great. The PC is legendary.”  Tune in to the show to get both our full thoughts on this episode’s examples.

Industry News:

  • Oliva is making a machine-made cigar, to be released in various markets during the coming months.
  • As first mentioned last week on Half Ashed when we hosted Terry Johnson of TL Johnson Cigars, the news is out that he is moving some of his operations to Miami – and is partnering with Luis Sanchez of La Tradicion Cubana for a joint venture cigar brand.
  • Dona Flor has announced a special Limited Edition IPCPR release, as well as the fact that the Alonso Menendez line is now available in the US.
  • Yet another 7”X70, this time from Drew Estate.  They’re adding this to the MUWAT line, per Halfwheel.
  • Xikar has divested itself of its HC & Defiance Cigar brands….selling them to CI effective July 1. CI has agreed to current price protections to existing retailers through September 30th.
  • IPCPR starts a week from Saturday.  We’ll be doing….something….during the show, depending on internet connections, travel times, etc.
  • Well wishes and quick healing to Charlie Rutherford of Boveda, who had a terrible motorcycle accident last week.  I know the guys behind Boveda personally, and all are good people.
  • Finally, we held our giveaway for June’s prize packs of Michael Stewart’s home-blended, home-rolled cigars.  Michael Thomas and Steve Dorau were selected by random.org, and will be receiving those prizes.  Congrats, gentlemen!

Wrap:

We covered a good bit more during the show – various topics of interest this week, what we’ve been smoking, etc.  Tune in to get the entire story on those items as well.

Be sure you all come back next week for Episode 023, when we will be attempting to put a show together while Kip is in Vegas for IPCPR.  We will be featuring the upcoming Ezra Zion Eminence as our Cigar of the Week.  That show will likely be recorded outside our normal Friday night timeframe due to travel/show scheduling.  I will tweet/post the exact time and date once we finalize it.  In the meantime, if you would like to contact us, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [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!  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), or find us on iTunes to subscribe.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

News: TL Johnson & La Tradicion Cubana Joint Venture

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TL Johnson La Tradicion Cubana

[NOTE: Many of you who have been following this site for a while know that I am a big fan of both TL Johnson and La Tradicion Cubana (who now produces TL Johnson Cigars for Terry Johnson).  In fact, I have reviewed the TLJ Tempio, the LTC “American Born Cuban,” written a Cigar Spotlight on La Tradicion Cubana, and featured Terry Johnson on a recent Half Ashed Episode.  So, it will come as no surprise that the following news is exciting in my book.  In a move that we discussed on the aforementioned Half Ashed episode, Terry and Luis Sanchez will be partnering in a joint venture cigar brand, of which the name has as yet remained unannounced.]  Read on for full details:

Luis Sanchez of La Tradicion Cigars and Terry Johnson of TL Johnson cigars are excited to debut a new joint venture line of cigars that will release fall 2013. A limited release of the new blend will be available at the 2013 IPCPR in Las Vegas. The name of this blend is currently being withheld until release date.

The new blend will be available thru the Cuban Tradition Cigar Group Appointed Merchant Program only.  Details about the program will be available at the 2013 IPCPR Show.

The first production release will be a 6 x 60 with a genuine African Cameroon wrapper. Other details will be available at the show along with Pre-Purchases that can be made at the IPCPR.

“I am honored to be working closely with Luis Sanchez on our first joint release produced at the La Tradicion Cubana Factory. This is an awesome new blend with a new packaging and marketing format that will stand out in industry. Terry Johnson- TL Johnson Cigars

The Cuban Tradition Cigar Group based out of the 8th Street Miami, Fl. location will house all cigars produced by La Tradicion Cubana including La Tradicion Cubana, Jameson and TL Johnson brands. These current brands make up The Cuban Tradition Cigar Group.

TL Johnson Cigars has begun the transition of moving all operations to the Miami, Fl. location. The main sales office will remain in Colorado and handle sales for the Cuban Tradition Cigar Group.

Sales Contact:
Terry Johnson, President TL Johnson Distributors
[email protected]

2013 IPCPR Booths # 205-206-207-305-306-307

Episode 021: TL Johnson Tempio and Guest Terry Johnson

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Half Ashed Ep. 021: TL Johnson Tempio

Good day and welcome back for another fun-filled episode of Half Ashed.  This week, we host Terry Johnson of TL Johnson Cigars.  Terry sits in for the first hour of the show, while we smoke his fantastic Tempio and talk cigars, flyfishing (TL Johnson also produces fly rods), and other gentlemanly topics.  We then covered a few news items for this week, and some of the usual suspects in show segments.  Thanks for tuning in, and enjoy!

TL Johnson TempioFeatured Cigar

This week, we take a look at the TL Johnson Tempio, a cigar that I reviewed last year and smoke on a regular basis myself.  I had a suspicion that Craig would enjoy it just as much as I.  I was right.  Produced for Terry by Luis Sanchez at La Tradicion Cubana, the Tempio is chocked full of sweet cedar, mild citrus, and toasty oaken flavors.  As is the case with Luis’ other production, the Tempio never disappoints in terms of construction and consistency.  Definitely worth seeking out a retailer that carries the line – or requesting them from your local shop.  It features a Pennsylvanian wrapper, draped around a Dominican and Nicaraguan binder/filler blend – and is fantastically flavorful.

Industry News

  • Legislatively, the only news we cover this week is the recent development for the FDA in beginning to exercise more power in controlling product introduction into the marketplace with regard to tobacco products – denying 4 of 6 requests for new cigarette products.
  • In cigar news, we go through a small portion of the IPCPR news this week concerning new cigars to be launched in the near future – notably, the Casa Fernandez 35th Anniversary and Reserva Maduro, a special release from Espinosa for CHATWEETUP2013, and other offerings from Royal Gold (produced by Drew Estate), Pinar Del Rio, George Rico (GAR), and House of Emilio.
  • We also cover the departure of a familiar face at My Father Cigars, and recent acquisition of Heavenly Cigars by Drew Estate.

What Else Have We Been Smoking?

Craig: Back to some Cuban roots this week

Kip: Sam Leccia’s Black & White

Miscellany

Family time with Craig, and a 3-day jaunt to South Florida for Kip – as well as a couple of listener emails for the week.

Wrap

Be sure you all come back next week for Episode 022, as we get into highgear leading into IPCPR.  That show will likely be recorded outside our normal Friday night timeframe due to the Independence Day holiday.  I will tweet/post the schedule once we finalize the timing.  In the meantime, if you would like to contact us, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Don’t forget to get those emails in this month to be entered in our current giveaway.  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), or find us on iTunes.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

Episode 006: 2012 Oliva Serie V Maduro

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Oliva Serie V Maduro ToroWell, Craig and I managed to put together another show this week, so we proudly present to you Half Ashed Episode 006!  I hope you’ll take the time to listen and/or watch the video, and give us some feedback – you can send your questions, comments, compliments, or complaints to us via email, using either of the following address: [email protected] or [email protected], or reach us by any of the contact means listed on the “Contact” pages here at The Cigarmy.  You can find the video for this show over on our YouTube page as well.  The Cigar of the Week was the 2012 Oliva Serie V Maduro, for which Craig will be posting an Epilogue review in the near future, and we covered a good bit of other news items, in addition to some legislative issues and what else we’ve been smoking over the past week.  Here’s a quick summary of the show:

Half Ashed Cigar of the Week:

As mentioned above, the CotW is the Oliva Serie V Maduro (2012 release).  I reviewed these cigars last year for the 2011 release, and absolutely fell in love with the blend.  I’ve been a fan of the maduro version of the Serie V since it first hit the market in 2008, and continue to buy them up as quickly as I can each December when they hit the shelves.  The 2012 appears to be the same size as the 2011 edition, and is at the least very similar in flavor characteristics.  It seems to possibly have the tiniest bit more “zing” to it, although that may be a factor of 1.)my terrible memory, or 2.)the fact that the 2011 now has an extra year of rest on it, and should not be compared side-by-side.  It’s full of dark chocolate and a sweet earthiness that I find quite pleasant.  I also notice some sweetened coffee in the tasting, although Craig didn’t get that in his experiences.

Industry News:

  1. Federal Cigar Special F Event Cigar from My Father – originally reported here The Cigarmy.
  2. Legislative Items:
    • Arkansas Representative John Walker has proposed a modification of the existing state smoking ban to remove the exemptions for cigar bars & lounges, shops, and outdoor restaurants.  Find the CRA Action Alert here.
    • The proposed outdoor smoking ban in Florida made some progress this week, passing its second committee review in a 6-3 vote.  This ludicrous bill (SB258) and its House counterpart (HB439) seem to have some legs, and must be stopped.  If you are a Floridian and enjoy the freedom of having a cigar in any of our parks, beaches, or other public areas….I urge you to act right now!  Visit the CRA page detailing how you can contact your representatives to voice your concerns.
  3. J. Fuego changes: There were several announced changes at J. Fuego this week, as reported by Halfwheel.
  4. A bit of news from Cigar Coop about Sam Leccia’s impending return to the cigar industry.
  5. News from Gary Griffith about this year’s Draig release – the Cayuquero.

What else we’ve been smoking (listen in for details about each):

  1. Craig – Ambos Mundos
  2. Kip – 2011 Camacho Liberty, Ezra Zion Inception (now Jamais Vu), tons of this week’s CotW, La Tradicion Cubana corona, Joya de Nicaragua Dark Corojo.

Listener email:

  1. We review several emails received this week from listeners, with some questions, comments, and recommendations.  Keep ’em coming!

Giveaway:

  1. Craig gave away his Tatuaje prize pack, including some cool swag as well as several hard to find Tatuaje cigars.  Congratulations to Michael Stewart for winning that.  We’ll be getting the package out to you ASAP, so you can enjoy one of the Tatuaje Mexican Experiments with us during the April 12th show when we feature it as the CotW.

Again, thanks for tuning in everyone.  Be sure to come back next week, when we’ll be taking a look at the My Father Flor de las Antillas.  In the meantime, If you would like to contact us, use the emails above or through the contact page.  Also, don’t forget to go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly above (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes.  Video, as always, will be available on the YouTube Channel.

Cigar Week – a Quick Jaunt through Florida

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NOTE: If you want to skip the narrative and go straight to the pictures, you can find them HERE

This past week, my nephew came down to visit for our 4th annual Cigar Week.  Each year, I take a week off work when he comes down from Tennessee, and we putter around the state of Florida visiting a number of cigar shops, manufacturers, or any other events that happen to be going on at the time.  This year, we managed to work in a visit to Delray Beach, Miami/Little Havana, Ybor City, and a few places around Tampa.  On our way down to Miami, we stopped and spent an evening at Charmed Leaf with Frank and Elissa.  This was the third time I’ve had the pleasure of visiting The Charmed Leaf, and I’m totally enamored with the whole operation.  The focus of The Charmed Leaf is very much on boutique cigars, of which they have a great selection – including many I don’t typically have access to in the Tampa market.  The atmosphere of the place is very lighthearted, friendly, and welcoming.  We even got schooled in playing dominoes while we were there on this trip, which was great fun.  I got so carried away with the cigars and fun that I managed not to get any pictures while we were there – which will be corrected the next time I’m in the area.  With permission, I’d love to feature them in an upcoming series of posts I’m planning to spotlight tobacconists’ I’ve encountered and have a great deal of respect and appreciation for.  If you’re ever in the Delray Beach area, the trip won’t be complete without a stop there.  I highly recommend them.  And, if you’re not in the area, you can always check out their website as well…you just can’t get a domino lesson online [EDIT: This shop has since sold to new ownership.].

The following morning, we continued down the coast to Miami and into Doral to visit the My Father factory, lounge, and distribution/offices.  I had contacted them ahead of time, and John Gonzalez was kind enough to give us a short tour of the operation.  Much of the space at the new site is dedicated to warehouse and distribution efforts, but they have a lounge and a working factory as well.  The lounge stocks My Father products, and is quite comfortable and very nicely furnished.  There were 8-10 torcedores at work while we were there, busily rolling cigars, and several folks working in packaging/shipping/receiving.  Much of their product is now manufactured in Nicaragua, but the Miami factory still produces a few cigar lines, some of which I find quite tasty.

From My Father, we headed over to Calle Ocho for a quick run through Little Havana.  We passed through/by/in/around a number of shops and factories, but the highlight of the visit was a stop at La Tradicion Cubana.  Frank Herrera had recommended we visit LTC, and it proved to be a wonderful experience.  We hung out there with Luis Sanchez, the proprietor, for a couple of hours just smoking cigars and chatting.  This was the first time I had the chance to spend any time with Luis, and I found him to be a very cordial, welcoming facet of Little Havana.  I highly recommend a stop if you’re ever in Miami.  It’s definitely worthwhile – both for the conversation and the cigars.  I smoked one of his LTC “Palmitas” while there, and it was spectacular.  Since the visit, I have enjoyed the Jameson cigars he makes for Brad Mayo as well.  I foresee me stocking a few of these makes in my regular rotation for sure.  Luis is responsible for his own brand (La Tradicion Cubana & Sabor Cubano), as well as Jameson Cigars (including the Red Label, Black, the Southbound Series, and Santos de Miami), Casa Gomez, and La Caridad del Cobre.  We spent most of the afternoon on Calle Ocho, then headed back to points northward.

On Thursday, we had a scheduled tour of the JC Newman factory in Tampa.  When we arrived at our appointed time, we were pleasantly surprised to learn that Eric Newman himself was in town and would give us the grand tour.  Most of the work going on here is in machine rolled cigars and distribution.  The building has been renovated in recent years, and is a spectacular sight.  It has been restored to its past glory, and is such a fun way to spend the morning.  The equipment is impressive as well…each of the rolling machines is capable of producing up to 5,000 cigars per day, and has several thousand moving parts.  But, the highlight of this tour was having Eric give it.  The family stories and proud history of the Newman family’s 117 years in the industry were fascinating.  Eric gave us the entire history of the Newman family’s involvement in the cigar industry…from it’s beginnings in late 19th century Ohio, through the Tampa years, the partnership with the Fuentes, and into current times with the Cigar Family Charitable Foundation and opening of their new Nicaraguan factory.  It’s a wonderful story and if you ever have the chance you should visit – even if not for a tour, they maintain a small museum on the first floor of the tower detailing this history.

We finished out the week with some local stops around Tampa – Ybor City, fishing at the Skyway, and some stops at various brick & mortar cigar shops.  We visited Tampa Humidor, The Cigar Castle, and Clearwater Cigar Company.  Tampa Humidor is my local “go-to” shop.  The majority of my cigar buying is from them.  I had been to Cigar Castle a couple of years ago, but not recently as it’s a bit out of my normal driving patterns.  They have a very nice lounge, and great selection of cigars.  Atul was incredibly friendly and helpful as well.  Definitely worth a stop when in Tampa.  The other tobacconist that we tried for the first time was Clearwater Cigar Company.  They are near the St. Petersburg airport, from whence my nephew was departing.  John Fought, one of our previous giveaway winners, recommended this stop because of its proximity to the airport, and it is one of his hangouts as well.  So, we met John in person for the first time here. This is a newer shop (less than 2 years), run by Leglio Sotolongo.  I’m not commonly in that part of town, so I had never made it over that way.  As has become a pattern in the cigar industry, we encountered nothing but a friendly atmosphere here.  Leglio is a very upbeat, positive, laidback kind of guy.  A perfect fit for the tobacconist trade.  He helped us out in picking some cigars we had not tried before based on what we typically like to smoke, and together with John provided an entertaining afternoon while we waited to head over to the airport.  Some or all of these locations will likely be featured in the upcoming spotlight series as well.  Thus ended this year’s Cigar Week.  If you all ever make your way to Florida, I don’t think you can go wrong at any of the sites we hit this week.  Also, if you’re in Florida and have a favorite spot let me know.  I travel most of this state, and I’m always in the market for meeting new folks in the field…and I spend a lot of time in cigar shop lounges…

Pictures from 2012 Cigar Week