Amendola Family Cigar Co. showed off the first in the upcoming NYC Series “The West Side Story” at the TPE 2023 trade show in Las Vegas. The West Side Story will be the first in a series of cigars that will pay homage to the founders New York roots. The West Side Story is a true New Yorker as it was blended and rolled at the Martinez Cigar Factory based in Manhattan. The West Side Story will have two different blends in the same 20 count box. The two blends are Switch Blades and Baseball Bats and were inspired by the two gangs in the West Side Story film.
Owners of Amendola Cigar Co. Jeffrey Amendola and Christopher Monaco are New York natives who are dedicated to creating brands that represent their roots. Proud Italian Americans who wear their heritage on their sleeves, they felt it was time to create a series of blends which will honor their home state. The decision was making the two blends true born New York cigars.
Martinez Cigar Factory was established in 1974 in Manhattan by Dominican native Antonio Genaro Martinez, now owned by his son Master blender Jesus Martinez. Today it is the oldest cigar factory in New York. The factory is located on the West Side of Manhattan at 171 W 29th St, New York, NY 10001 Aside from Martinez Cigar Factory being in New York the factory holds special meaning to Jeffrey Amendola.
“In 2014 I met Jesus Martinez, at the time I was working to start my own factory in Durham, NC. I reached out to Jesus for advice and guidance. Martinez became monumental in making my dream a reality by introducing me to a cigar roller and gifting to me many tools of the trade that I needed to get my operation running. To this day I am still rolling cigars with chavetas, tuck cutters and cigar molds that Martinez gave me. Chris and I are honored to be producing this project with the whole Martinez Cigar Factory crew. Special thank you to Dave Rivera, (head of product development and marketing for Martinez Cigar Factory).
Jeffrey Amendola
Switch Blades come in a 6×52 Torpedo and sell for MSRP $14. They are described as Medium to medium/full strength, Medium to medium/full body. The blend uses a Brazilian Apirica wrapper accompanied by an Indonesian Sumatra binder and Nicaraguan/Dominican fillers.
Basecally Bats comes in a 6×52 Torpedo and is described as Medium/full to Full strength and Medium/full to Full body. The blend uses a Mexican San Andreas wrapper accompanied by an Indonesian Sumatra binder and Nicaraguan/ Dominican fillers. The West Side Story Baseball Bat gets it name from the strong and hearty flavors. The West Side Story comes in 20 count boxes with 10 of each blend. The MSRP is $14 per cigar. $280.00 per box.