Foundation Cigar Company has announced another brand for the upcoming PCA trade show in Las Vegas, METAPA. Inspired by the birth town of Rubén Darío, a legendary Nicaraguan poet, Metapa pays homage to Nicaragua's rich cultural heritage and the artistry behind its world-class cigars.
After being one of the "Big 4" to holdout of the PCA trade show in 2020, Drew Estate is now returning to the show for the first time since 2019, but not until 2024. The reconciliation did not occur soon enough to get them into the 2023 trade show, which takes place in about two weeks. Of the big 4, Drew Estate, Altadis U.S.A., Davidoff of Geneva USA and General Cigar Co., Davidoff is the only company left yet to recommit to the trade show.
Fratello Cigars has announced the arrival of Sorella in the United States after previously only being available in international markets. The blend for Fratello Sorella uses an Ecuadorian wrapper, Indonesian binder, Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers. The cigars are rolled at the Joya de Nicaragua factory and come in 20-count boxes. It comes in one size, a Toro.
Espinosa Premium Cigars has announce the next version of ther 601 La Bomba Warhead IX (9). The Warhead IX is a Nicaraguan puro blend that uses a broadleaf wrapper and comes in a 6 x 56 Perfecto vitola. This year’s produciton of Warhead IV will be limited to 5,000 boxes. It will retail for $13 MSRP and come in boxes of 10 ($130 MSRP.) The Warhead IX (9) was blended by Espinosa Premium Cigars, and made at the San Lotano Factory in Ocotal, Nicaragua.
The Crowned Heads PCA 2023 Exclusive Le Pâtissier No. 2 is a classic torpedo vitola that measures 6 1/8" x 52. The blend uses the same "broadleaf-based blend" as the rest of the Le Pâtissier line, just in a new size.
Black Label Trading Company (BLTC) has announced the addition of a new vitola to several of its core line products at this year’s PCA trade show in Las Vegas. Royalty, Salvation, Lawless and Last Rites will now be available in a 5 x 50 Robusto Real (Spanish: rreh-ahl) size. The new cigar sizes will begin shipping shortly after the conclusion of the PCA trade show.
Gran Habano Cigars and Laws Whiskey House have teamed up with retailer W. Curtis Draper in Washington, DC to release a special limited-edition cigar. La Pareja Perfecta is a collaboration between Laws Whiskey House and Gran Habano to support Little Puff, W. Curtis Draper’s annual charity event. The 6 x 52 toro cigar has been blended to match the flavors of the whiskey barrel pick by Laws Whiskey House, which will yield only 200 bottles. The blend for the cigar was created by George A. Rico, a master blender with over 27 years of experience in the industry. The bourbon is a 4-grain (60% corn, 20% wheat, 10% rye, 10% malted barley), distilled in the summer of 2015, aged in a medium char new oak barrel before being finished in a port cask. It was proofed back down to its original entry proof of 110 and bottled for this specific project. A once-in-a-lifetime project, “La Pareja Perfecta…The Perfect Pair.”
Foundation Cigar Company has announced two new cigar blends, "Charter Oak Pegnataro-CT Shade and Pasquale-CT Broadleaf." These new cigars are a tribute to the lasting influence and cherished memories of Nicholas Melillo's grandfathers, whose passion for tobacco inspired his own.
For their latest line, Escapade, E.P. Carrillo is jumping on the recent trend of giving consumers input to help Ernesto Perez-Carrillo Jr. blend a cigar. E.P. Carrillo will be hosting a series of Zoom sessions where small groups of consumers will have the opportunity to share their preferences and ideas for the new blend directly with Ernesto.
Favilli cigars announced today that it is ending operations in the cigar industry. The company was formerly known as Mombacho Cigars when it hit purchased the Favilli Mansion in Granada, Nicaragua and hit the cigar scene in the US in 2014. The company saw the resignation of their president and master blender, Claudio Sgroi, in 2021 and has had trouble recovering in the market ever since.