Windsor, CT – July 5 th , 2017 - Foundation Cigar Company announces the release of The Wise Man (El Güegüense) Maduro, for IPCPR 2017 in Las Vegas, NV. The release provides for a line extension to Foundation’s premier brand released during IPCPR 2015, where the Nicaraguan puro enjoyed a highly successful launch, going on to find inclusion in Cigar Aficionado’s Top 25 list for 2016.
Foundation Cigar Company is refreshing the packaging of their infused Jamaican line, Upsetters. Upsetters was first shown off at the 2016 IPCPR trade show and convention. The brand is inspired by the Jamaica’s musicians and created by Nick Melillo's love for Jamaican tobacco and their culture. These new designs for the Upsetters were done by Foundation's in-house creative laboratory, The ATOL Collective and were inspired by Jamaican album covers from the 1960's.
At the 2018 IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas, Foundation Cigar Company will release the Tabernacle Havana Seed CT #142. Nick Melillo shared the information on social media about this line extension for the Tabernacle. It will be available in four vitolas and prices will start at $9/cigar up to $13/cigar. It uses a very unique wrapper that is grown right in the Connecticut River Valley, along with a Mexican San Andres binder and filler leaves from Esteli, Jalapa, and the Jamastran region of Honduras.
Foundation Cigar Company is adding a Habano version of it's Charter Oak line. The original launch of the Charter Oak came in two blends, Connecticut Shade and Connecticut Broadleaf. The line is value priced, but has always been regarded as one of the best inexpensive cigars on the market.
Foundation Cigar Company has unveiled its latest cigar, The Tabernacle Knight Commander, a 6 x 3/4 x 52 Perfecto with a Connecticut Broadleaf Wrapper. The company says this cigar pays homage to the rich Ethiopian heritage and embodies the spirit of philanthropy.
Foundation Cigar Company has announced an extension to their Tabernacle Havana Seed CT 142 line, a Lancero. In keeping with the tradition of releasing a lancero extension to his new lines the following year, Nick Melillo is bringing this lancero to the 2019 IPCPR trade show and convention.
Foundation Cigar Company rebrands METAPA to AKSUM, inspired by the historic Ark of the Covenant. The blend remains unchanged, offering a tribute to tradition and innovation in premium cigars.
June 12, 2017 Windsor, CT – Experiment Station: There is no question that Foundation Cigar Company is intimately tied to the Connecticut River Valley, but their newest offering has taken this love to the next level. 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 Melillo, President of Foundation Cigar Company.
JR CIgar continues to celebrate their 50th Anniversary with a growing list of collaborators making exclusive cigars. The latest to join the celebration is Nick Melillo and Foundation Cigars for El Güegüense JR 50th. El Güegüense is Spanish for “The Wise Man,” and is also the name of a Nicaraguan dramatic theater piece from the 16th Century. It is one of the oldest indigenous works in the Western Hemisphere. This was Foundation Cigar Company's first release back in 2016. Melillo chose the name in honor of his love of Nicaragua and its people. In 2020, Foundation released a 5th Anniversary edition of the El Güegüense with a slightly tweaked blend and The Foundation El Güegüense JR 50th is based on that special blend.
This year, at the IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas, Nick Melillo will release an extension to his release from last year's The Wise Man Maduro in a lancero format. The cigar scored a 95 in our blind review and earned #1 Cigar of the Year.