Luciano Cigars and ATL Cigar Co have announced the launch of ATL’s fifth line of cigars, the Wise Blood. A press release offers this description:
Inspired by the story of a man’s complex pursuit of truth, Wise Blood invites a reflective smoking experience, encouraging an attention to nuance and an appreciation of the harmony of a paradoxically balanced blend.
The first novel of Georgia author Flannery O’Connor, Wise Blood tells the story of a Southern veteran in the mid-20th century, a man of deep faith who struggles to reconcile his convictions with his lived experience. Comical, and yet profound, the novel’s own contradictions are reflected in a blend that is balanced and sweet. A journey through religious innovation and exhaustion, Wise Blood pulls readers down an array of existential questions, those best pondered with a cigar in hand.
The novel’s complexity is no less satisfying than it is redemptive, and ATL’s newest cigar delivers that very same invitation towards the thoughtful struggle between self-reflection and the convictions we may have about the world around us.
Wise Blood is the third ATL cigar created in partnership with Master Blender Luciano Meirelles (Fiat Lux, Luciano The Dreamer, Maria Lucia) and is the first ATL cigar to be produced and distributed exclusively through Meirelles’ new vertically-integrated company, Luciano Cigars.
Wise Blood is made in four sizes: Lonsdale 6 1/2 x 42 ($9.99), Robusto Extra 6 x 50 ($10.49), Robusto 5 1/4 x 54 ($10.49), and Gordito 4 x 60 ($10.99). The blend uses an Ecuadorian Habano Rosado HVA wrapper, Ecuadorian Connecticut binder, and filler from three Nicaraguan regions. Wise Blood is described as a mild-to-medium bodied cigar.
Flannery O’Connor and her Southern Gothic portfolio have had a profound influence on me. Wise Blood, in particular, helps me wrestle with faith, race, my relationships with my co-founders, and frankly, my place in this world. We are proud to create a cigar that reflects these deep questions and commemorates such an important work and author.
ATL Cigar Co. President Leroy Lamar
Luciano Meirelles adds, “Our partnership with ATL Cigar Co continues from strength to strength, harnessing both companies’ commitment to community and to finding one’s purpose. We dedicate the Wise Blood blend to every aficionado who uses the cigar to contemplate deeper questions and to investigate the nuances that emerge in intimate conversation.”
Wise Blood will launch at the Total Product Expo (TPE) in Las Vegas and ship in March in bundles and boxes of 20.