This was another big year for Foundation Cigars at IPCPR. Nick Melillo was showing off two new releases this year, something that not many companies of his size have been able to do. The two new releases are:
The Wise Man (El Güegüense) Maduro
This is a followup to the very successful (including our #1 Cigar of the Year) El Güegüense (The Wise Man). Notice the reversal of the parenthesized words, Nick explains in our interview. The cigars will be available in twenty-five count boxes in five traditional Cuban box press sizes and are being produced at TABSA in Esteli, Nicaragua. The varieties will include a 5 ½ x 50 Robusto, a 5 5/8 x 46 Corona Gorda, a 6 x 56 Toro Huaco, a 7 x 48 Churchill, and a 6 ¼ x 52 Torpedo. The cigars will be priced in the retail range of $9-$13 USD. Read the full press release here.
The Highclere Castle
The Highclere Castle Cigar is hand rolled in Estelí, Nicaragua, using a Connecticut Shade wrapper, and both Criollo and Corojo from the volcanic soils of Jalapa and the island of Ometepe. The binder is made from Mata Fina, a dark tobacco from Brazil. The blend is finalized with an exclusive hybrid seed the company has named Nicadán. The resulting smoke is exceptionally creamy and elegant, with notes of pepper, citrus, leather and fireplace. The cigar will be launched at the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association’s 85 th Annual Conference in Las Vegas this coming July, 2017. The first release will be limited and cigars will be available in select cigar lounges and tobacco shops across the United States by September 1, 2017, followed by availability at Highclere Castle and internationally. Sizes to include Churchill, Toro, Petit Corona, Robusto, and Corona. Read the full press release here.
Collector Humidor
To commemorate and honor the great state of Connecticut and its tobacco tradition Foundation Cigar Company has created for release, a very limited number of Chest Collector “Humidor” Boxes that will be available in stores. “We wanted to honor those predecessors who brought the leaf to the state, worked with different varieties and really put Connecticut on the map with regards to tobacco. We’re talking about hundreds of years of experimentation to arrive at the incredible point where we are today,” said Nick.