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TASTING REPORT:PREVIEWS FROM THE AUGUST 2015 ISSUE OF CIGAR AFICIONADO:n My Father Le Bijou 1922 Box Press Torpedo [page 2]n Padrón Serie 1926 80 Years Maduro [page 2]n Trinidad Vigía [page 2]n Don Pepin Garcia Cuban Classic 1979 [page 2]n Por Larrañaga Picadores [page 3]n Fuente Fuente OpusX Angel’s Share Reserva d’Chateau [page 3]n Partagás Serie D No. 6 [page 3]n H. Upmann Connossieur A [page 3]
VERTICAL BRAND TASTINGS:n Romeo Añejo by Romeo y Julieta [page 4]
NEW SIZES:n Hoyo de Monterrey Edición de Cumpleaños 150 [page 4] n Matilde Renacer Lancero [page 4]
CIGAR NEWSn The Avo Syncro Nicaragua [page 5]n El Centurion Wrapped in Connecticut [page 5]n Montecristo With a Vintage Wrapper [page 6]n Keystone State Looks to Tax Cigars [page 6]n Quesada Cigars Distributes La Matilde [page 6]n Nick Melillo Starts up Foundation [page 7]n Seattle Parks Go Smoke-Free [page 7]n PDR Turns Surplus Tobacco Into A Crop [page 7]n Alec Bradley Sanctum Ships This Month [page 8]
My Father Le Bijou 1922 Box Press Torpedo Nicaragua 93
Padrón Serie 1926 80 Years Maduro Nicaragua 93
Trinidad Vigía Cuba 93
Don Pepin Garcia Cuban Classic 1979 Nicaragua 92
Por Larrañaga Picadores Cuba 92
Fuente Fuente OpusX Angel’s ShareReserva d’Chateau Dom. Rep. 92
ACTOR VINCE VAUGHNHE MIGHT BE KNOWN FOR COMEDY, but Vince Vaughn has a serious side, along with a penchant for cigars. He talks about his career and his taste for a fine smoke in the August issue of Cigar Aficionado. Also, an enlightening interview with Cuban tobacco geneticist Eumelio Espino Marrero.
A BOX-PRESSED AVOAVO SYNCRO NICARAGUA IS NOT ONLY THE FIRST BOX-PRESSED AVO, but the first Avo cigar to incorporate any Nicaraguan tobacco into its blend. It gets its name from the concept of harmoniously synchronizing the Dominican and Nicaraguan tobaccos within the cigar, and will officially debut at next month’s International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers trade show. The musical connotation of the name is, of course, a nod to Avo Uvezian, the musician whom the cigar line is named after. For complete details on the Avo Syncro Nicaragua, turn to page five.
MY FATHER LE BIJOU 1922 BOX PRESS TORPEDONICARAGUA n PRICE: $11.40 n BODY: MEDIUM TO FULLFor a full tasting, see page two.
JUNE 2, 2015 n VOL. 20, NO. 11 n FROM THE PUBLISHER OF CIGAR AFICIONADO MAGAZINE
POINTS93
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95-100: Classic n 90-94: Outstanding n 80-89: Very good to excellent n 70-79: Average to good commercial quality
Below 70: Don’t waste your money n N/A: Not Available Note: Prices are manufacturers’ suggested retail, before taxes.
MY FATHER LE BIJOU 1922 BOX PRESS TORPEDO NICARAGUAA box-pressed torpedo that starts out sweet and woody before picking up notes of black pepper, nuts and salt. The finish smacks of earth and roasted coffee bean. Price: $11.40 Body: Medium to Full
PADRÓN SERIE 1926 80 YEARS MADURO NICARAGUAA double-tapered, box-pressed figurado whose substantial draw leaves rich impressions of coffee and chocolate-covered raisins on the palate. The caramel-like finish is long and luxurious.Price: $31.50 Body: Medium to Full
TRINIDAD VIGÍA CUBAPacked with tobacco, this short, fat pigtailed cigar draws well, showing bold, complex notes of toast and salt interwoven with coffee bean, cacao and vanilla. Box Date: November 2014Price: £20.90 (U.K.) Body: Medium to Full
DON PEPIN GARCIA CUBAN CLASSIC 1979 NICARAGUAA predominantly savory smoke with notes of leather, oak and cumin layered on top of smoked meat and black pepper intonations. Bold and tasty. Price: $7.30 Body: Medium to Full
RING GAUGE: 52LENGTH: 6 1/8"FILLER: NicaraguaBINDER: NicaraguaWRAPPER: Nicaragua
RING GAUGE: 54LENGTH: 6 3/4"FILLER: NicaraguaBINDER: NicaraguaWRAPPER: Nicaragua
RING GAUGE: 54LENGTH: 4 3/8"FILLER: CubaBINDER: CubaWRAPPER: Cuba
RING GAUGE: 50LENGTH: 5"FILLER: NicaraguaBINDER: NicaraguaWRAPPER: Nicaragua
TASTING REPORT: EXCLUSIVE AUGUST 2015 CIGAR AFICIONADO PREVIEWS
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95-100: Classic n 90-94: Outstanding n 80-89: Very good to excellent n 70-79: Average to good commercial quality
Below 70: Don’t waste your money n N/A: Not Available Note: Prices are manufacturers’ suggested retail, before taxes.
POR LARRAÑAGA PICADORES CUBAMade with a flat head and three-seam cap, this is a complex, savory cigar with a core of leather and rock salt buttressed by notes of oaky white wine and nuts. Box Date: September 2014Price: £15.22 (U.K.) Body: Medium to Full
FUENTE FUENTE OPUSX ANGEL’S SHARE RESERVA D’CHATEAU DOM. REP.With a lush, substantial draw, this Churchill leaves tea-like impressions on the palate and becomes more intense with orange peel, gingersnap and earth.Price: $15.50 Body: Medium to Full
PARTAGÁS SERIE D NO. 6 CUBAShort and squat, this little robusto is full of woody, savory notes layered with earth, sweet gingerbread and notable nuttiness, especially on the finish.Box Date: November 2014Price: £13.38 (U.K.) Body: Medium
H. UPMANN CONNOSSIEUR A CUBAWrapped in a speckled, though oily cover leaf, this toro-sized cigar has a core of rich German chocolate framed by herbal and floral notes. The finish is leathery with an underlying minerality. Box Date: June 2014Price: £22.80 (U.K.) Body: Medium
RING GAUGE: 48LENGTH: 5"FILLER: CubaBINDER: CubaWRAPPER: Cuba
RING GAUGE: 48LENGTH: 7"FILLER: Dom. Rep.BINDER: Dom. Rep.WRAPPER: Dom. Rep.
RING GAUGE: 50LENGTH: 3 1/2"FILLER: CubaBINDER: CubaWRAPPER: Cuba
RING GAUGE: 52LENGTH: 5 1/2"FILLER: CubaBINDER: CubaWRAPPER: Cuba
TASTING REPORT: EXCLUSIVE AUGUST 2015 CIGAR AFICIONADO PREVIEWS
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TASTING REPORT
95-100: Classic n 90-94: Outstanding n 80-89: Very good to excellent n 70-79: Average to good commercial quality
Below 70: Don’t waste your money n N/A: Not Available Note: Prices are manufacturers’ suggested retail, before taxes.
ROMEO AÑEJO BY ROMEO Y JULIETA
NEW RELEASE—VERTICAL BRAND TASTINGCountry: Dominican Republic
Maker: Tabacalera de Garcia Ltd.
Distributor: Altadis U.S.A. Inc.
Filler: Nicaragua, Honduras
Binder: Dom. Rep.
Wrapper: U.S.A./Conn. Broadleaf
Release Date: January 2015
PIRAMIDES88 POINTS n 6 1/8" x 52 n $9.25A dark torpedo with a lush draw and even burn. The smoke is woody and sweet with an oakiness balanced by notes of earth, though the finish is overly sweet.Body: Medium to Full
ROBUSTO88 POINTS n 5" x 54 n $8.75An easy draw delivers lots of earthy, woody smoke to the palate. Sweet notes also come through in the form of toffee and nougat before a slightly chalky, mineral finish.Body: Medium
TORO87 POINTS n 6" x 54 n $9.00There are some soft spots to this dark, thick cigar. The draw is airy, delivering some light saltiness, but the finish turns charry.Body: Medium
BRAND SUMMARY: Released in January 2015, Romeo Añejo by Romeo y Julieta is the vintage-specific, aged offshoot of the Romeo by Romeo y Julieta brand, which debuted in 2011. Añejo is Spanish for “old” or “aged.” According to brand owner Altadis U.S.A., the cigar consists of a Dominican Olor binder from a 2008 harvest, Nicaraguan and Honduran filler tobaccos from 2009 and a dark Connecticut broadleaf wrapper from 2010. Romeo Añejos come in 20-count, studded wooden boxes and are manufactured at Tabacalera de Garcia in the Dominican Republic, which is the country’s largest producer of premium cigars. The line is notable for its consistency, with all three sizes scoring within one point of each other.Average Rating: 87.7 points
NEW RELEASECountry: Honduras
Maker: Honduras American Tobacco S.A. (HATSA)
Distributor: General Cigar Co.
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Ecuador
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Release Date: April 2015
NEW SIZECountry: Dominican Republic
Maker: Tabacalera La Matilde
Distributor: Quesada Cigars
Filler: Dom. Rep., Nicaragua
Binder: Dom. Rep.
Wrapper: Ecuador
Release Date: January 2015
HOYO DE MONTERREY
MATILDE RENACER
EDICIÓN DE CUMPLEAÑOS 15089 POINTS n 6" x 54 n $7.99Pressed and chunky with an oily wrapper, this cigar draws evenly, imparting a primarily earthy smoke sweetened by touches of caramel and licorice. Body: Medium to Full
LANCERO90 POINTS n 7" x 40 n $9.00The full, lush draw of this dark lancero fills the mouth with a creamy smoke. Initial waxy notes dissipate to show a rich, bold, nutty character and a rock salt finish. Body: Medium to Full
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A BOX-PRESSED AVO ON ITS WAY TO IPCPRBY GREGORY MOTTOLA
There’s a new Avo brand coming to the International Pre-mium Cigar & Pipe Retailers trade show. Not only is it the
first box-pressed Avo, but it’s also the first box-pressed cigar to ever come out of Davidoff of Geneva’s factory in the Dominican Republic. Aptly named Avo Syncro Nicaragua, it’s also the first Avo to use Nicaraguan tobacco, and these cigars will be intro-duced in July before shipping to retail stores in August.
“Short for ‘synchronize,’ Syncro conveys the harmonious working together of two different things,” said Richard Krutick, director of marketing for Davidoff of Geneva U.S.A. “In the same way that multiple instruments play in synchronic-ity to create a beautiful piece of music, two distinctly different tobaccos must harmonize and synchronize to become the best possible cigar.”
The two different tobaccos Krutick is referring to are the Dominican and Nicaraguan tobaccos within Avo Syncro’s blend, specifically the Nicaraguan filler tobacco from Ometepe and the Dominican tobaccos which include Piloto Cubano, San Vicente and a hybrid of Olor and Piloto. The binder is Dominican as well, but the Avo Syncro Nicaragua isn’t limited to only two countries. There is also Peruvian tobacco in the blend, all brought together by a dark, Ecuador Connecticut wrapper.
The brand will come in four box-pressed sizes: Short Robusto, 4 inches by 52 ring gauge; Robusto, 5 by 50; Toro, 6 by 54 and Special Toro, 6 by 60. They will retail from $7.90 to $10.90 once the cigars hit U.S. shops in August, but the new Avos are not expected to ship globally until 2016.
This new release comes in the wake of a few previous dis-continuations within the Avo range. In December, Davidoff announced the cancellation of the Avo Signature and Avo Maduro lines. The Avo Syncro Nicaragua brings the Avo portfolio to five brands when counted among the Avo Classic, Avo Heritage, Avo XO and Avo Domaine.
The Avo Syncro Nicaragua is rolled at the Occidental Kelner (OK) Cigars factory in the Dominican Republic where all other Avo brands are made. The facility resides on the ground floor of the Cigars Davidoff factory, which produces brands like the Davidoff White Label, Davidoff Puro d’Oro and Davidoff Nicaragua. n
UPCOMING EL CENTURION DONS CONNECTICUT WRAPPERBY GREGORY MOTTOLA
The Garcia family, owners of My Father Cigars, has acquired a hybrid wrapper grown in Connecticut and,
with it, created a new brand: El Centurion H-2K-CT. Scheduled for release at the IPCPR trade show next month, this will be a spinoff of the core El Centurion line.
The new cigar is named after the H-2K-CT Connecticut wrapper type, which the company said is proprietary to El Centurion. But it isn’t a Connecticut wrapper in the usual sense. This isn’t shade grown or broadleaf, but a Cuban-seed strain of tobacco grown in open sunlight and cultivated in the Connecticut River Valley.
“This new creation was a team effort between my father and me,” said Jaime Garcia of My Father Cigars, which produces the El Centurion and My Father brands. “It is a lot different than My Father Connecticut. And different from the regular El Centurion. This new version is a medium-bodied cigar with full flavor, but it’s also box-pressed. We were looking for a blend that is accessible to every palate but different from all our other brands.”
Though the wrapper is grown in Connecticut, the binders and filler tobacco is Nicaraguan. El Centurion H-2K-CT is made in Nicaragua at the My Father Cigars S.A. factory and will come in two box-pressed sizes: Corona, at 5 1/2 inches by 48 ring, and Toro at 6 by 52. They will retail for $7.10 and $8.10, respectively.
The first El Centurion brand debuted as a limited-edition in 2007, but customer demand prompted the Garcias to turn it into a regular-production brand in 2013. The new H-2K-CT line is the first offshoot and is also slated to be a regular-production brand as well.
For a rating and tasting notes on the new El Centurion H-2K-CT cigar, see an upcoming issue of Cigar Insider. n
CIGAR NEWS
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MONTECRISTO VINTAGE CONNECTICUT LAUNCHING IN JULYBY DAVID CLOUGH
Cigar fans with a taste for Connecticut shade wrappers have a new, vintage-dated brand to look forward to.
Altadis U.S.A. Inc., one of the world’s largest premium cigarmakers, is preparing to unveil a new Montecristo cigar next month, just slightly before the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers trade show on July 17. The cigar is called Montecristo White Vintage Connecticut, and it features a Connecticut shade wrapper from a 2008 tobacco harvest, grown under mesh screens in the sandy loam of the Connecticut River Valley.
“We will start selling [Montecristo White Vintage Connecticut] right before IPCPR, and showcase it again during the show,” Yasemin Ozoncul, marketing manager for Altadis said in a conversation with Cigar Insider.
As the brand name suggests, the new cigar has original familial roots in the Montecristo White line of cigars, with a similar blend profile, albeit with a few significant tweaks. The wrapper for in-stance, is more akin to the Montecristo Classic line (Montecristo White uses an Ecuadoran Connecticut seed wrapper, while Montecristo Classic has a Connecticut shade wrapper grown in the United States—but without a specific vintage year). Along with Vintage Connecticut’s 2008 shade-grown wrapper, the cigar consists of a Nicaraguan binder with fillers from the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Peru. It’s made at the Tabacalera de Garcia factory in La Romana, the Dominican Republic, where most Montcristo cigars are produced.
The cigar comes in three sizes: No. 2 Belicoso, a 6 inch by 50 ring gauge figurado; No. 3, a 5 1/2 inch by 44 ring corona size; and Double Corona, at a hefty 6 1/4 by 50. Montecristo White Vintage Connecticut is priced between $10.50 and $14.50 per cigar. The cigars ship in decorative boxes of 20 that depict images of tra-ditional red tobacco barns found in the Connecticut River Valley. n
PENNSYLVANIA EYES FIRST-EVER CIGAR TAXBY ANDREW NAGY
Lawmakers in Pennsylvania, home to some of the largest online cigar retailers in the United States, have symbolically
defeated the governor’s attempt to pass a first-ever tax on premium cigars in that state, but much work remains.
The proposed 40 percent wholesale tax, which would apply to premium cigars, smokeless and roll-your-own tobacco, and e-cigarettes, is part of Gov. Tom Wolf’s 2015 budget proposal that was made public in March. Wolf’s budget calls for an increase in taxes not just for cigars, but natural gas extrac-tion, and both the income and sales tax; all told a total of $4.7 billion in new taxes. Yesterday, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives rejected the bill by a vote of 193 to 0; the unanimity was to demonstrate to the Democratic governor that negotiations are needed before a budget with this many tax changes can be passed.
While this might normally spell the end of the large cigar tax, bills were filed in mid-May in both the state Senate (SB 117) and House (HB 1213) that include the same 40 percent tax hike. Glynn Loope, executive director of the Cigar Rights of America, said it’s not unusual for lawmakers to file separate pieces of legislation as a means to ensure that if one fails, there is a backup.
Pennsylvania is one of only three states (Florida and New Hampshire are the others) that don’t tax premium cigars. n
QUESADA CIGARS TO DISTRIBUTE MATILDE BRANDBY GREGORY MOTTOLA
Quesada Cigars, makers of the Quesada Tributo, Quesada Oktoberfest and Fonseca brands, is taking on a new
project—the company now distributes Matilde cigars.Matilde is the first independently owned cigar line from
José Seijas after he finished his long tenure with Altadis U.S.A. Inc. The brand debuted last year with impressive scores before the Corona earned the No. 19 spot on Cigar Aficionado’s Top 25 cigars of 2014 (92 points).
“The Seijas [family has] been dear friends of ours for many years,” said Terence Reilly of Quesada Cigars. “They want to focus solely on the promotion and development of
Matilde, and the time and effort required for them to operate a warehouse in Miami was preventing
them from doing so.” Matildes are made at Tabacalera La Matilde,
a small factory in La Romana, Dominican Republic. n
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MELILLO RETURNS WITH FOUNDATION CIGAR CO.BY DAVID SAVONA
Nicholas Melillo, previously of Drew Estate, has branched out on his own to form Foundation Cigar
Co. The new company is expecting to debut its first smoke for the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers trade show in July.
“I’m jumping out of my seat,” Melillo told Cigar Insider. The 37-year-old will serve as president and chief executive officer of the new company. “The time has come for me to step out from behind the curtain,” he said.
The first cigar from Foundation Cigar will be a Nicaraguan puro rolled at Tabacos Valle de Jalapa, known as TABSA, which is owned by Aganorsa’s Eduardo Fernandez.
The cigar, which Melillo said will reach tobacconists around September, will retail for around $10 and have five sizes. “It’s really going to express my love for Nicaraguan tobacco,” he said. A brand name will be announced later.
While he won’t be making the cigar in a factory of his own, having control of his production is on his radar for the long term. “I do have plans to open up a fabriquita down the road,” said Melillo, using a Spanish colloquialism to refer to a small cigar factory. “I didn’t want to rush.”
Cigar production is in Melillo’s background, as he for-merly ran production at La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate, one of the world’s biggest cigar factories. Melillo had a hand in blending Drew Estate’s cigars, including the robust and powerful Liga Privada No. 9, which is wrapped in dark Connecticut broadleaf. Melillo began working at Drew Estate in 2003 and spent 11 years there. He was an integral part of the organization as it grew from making a few thousand cigars a day to making approximately 100,000 per day. He left Drew Estate last May and formed a con-sulting company called Melillo International, which still exists to this day.
“I am assembling my team in the Connecticut River Valley, home to some of the finest, best broadleaf tobacco in the world. I am from Connecticut. I started smoking cigars with my grandfather here so to incorporate some of that into what we do is very important for me,” Melillo said.
Melillo added that he would be splitting his time between the United States and Nicaragua. His headquarters for now is in his home of Southbury, Connecticut, and he intends to open up a formal office later in the year in South Windsor, the heart of Connecticut cigar tobacco country. “I’m hoping to be right in the middle of the fields somewhere,” he said. n
SEATTLE BEACHES, PARKS TO GO SMOKE-FREEBY ANDREW NAGY
The parks department in Seattle has approved a new rule that will ban smoking in all of the beaches and
parks located within the municipality.Since 2010, smoking cigars and cigarettes as well as
chewing tobacco within 25 feet of park patrons and beach-goers has been prohibited. Last Thursday, the Seattle Board
of Park Commissioners endorsed Mayor Ed Murray’s proposal to expand the original park-smoking
rule and completely eliminate all smoking in public parks and beaches. The ban is set to
go into effect beginning July 1.According to the park’s department
website, Seattle has 400 public parks and eight public beaches.
Violators of the new rule will not be fined, but instead will be verbally warned to snuff out their cigar. Addi-
tional offenses could mean the violator gets banned from the park he or she is in.Parks Superintendent Jesus Aguirre is expected
to give final approval to the new rule, while the Seattle City Council didn’t formally weigh in on the
new rule because it’s a park rule, and not an official city law. n
PDR CIGARS TURNS SURPLUS TOBACCO INTO A CROP BRANDBY GREGORY MOTTOLA
Abe Flores, owner of PDR Cigars, has found himself with so much leftover tobacco from previous produc-
tion runs that he’s made an entire brand out of it. It’s called A Crop, and it’s a value-priced bundle cigar that uses the surplus tobacco from some of his more expensive lines.
“A lot of times we have to commit to buying more tobacco than we actually need in order to get exactly what we want,” Flores said.
This sometimes means purchasing an entire crop’s worth of leaf, which can often cause a surplus. Now, his surplus has taken a new life as the A Crop. It consists of an Ecuadoran Habano wrapper (Claro or Oscuro), Dominican binder and filler tobacco from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic.
A Crop will be offered in three sizes: Robusto, 5 inches by 50 ring gauge; Toro, 6 by 52; and Gordo, 6 by 58. Though sold in bundles of 19 cigars, the suggested retail price for each breaks down to $2.76 to $3.08 each. A Crops are handmade, long-filler cigars rolled at the PDR Cigars factory in the Dominican Republic. n
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ALEC BRADLEY SANCTUM SHIPPING THIS MONTHBY DAVID CLOUGH
I f the name Sanctum sounds familiar, it’s because Alec Bradley first previewed the brand at last year’s Interna-
tional Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers trade show, but the smokes haven’t been seen ever since. Now that Alec Bradley executive vice president Ralph Montero has finished tweak-ing the blend and finalized the sizes, boxes of Sanctum cigars are headed to the company’s Hollywood, Florida warehouse where they will ship to retailers this month.
Sanctum was never specifically slated for a 2014 release, however, but positioned as a “work-in-progress” set to be released some time in 2015, with no particular date.
In a conversation with Cigar Insider, Clay Roberts, vice president at Alec Bradley, shed some light on the meaning be-hind the brand’s name: “Sanctum is simply about finding that spe-cial time for ultimate personal relaxation and enjoyment. This cigar provides the opportu-nity to be in one’s own inner sanctum, or a time to be relaxed and
surrounded by friends.”The cigar features a Honduran Corojo wrapper, a binder
from Costa Rica and fillers from Colombia, Nicaragua and Honduras. Sanctum comes in four sizes: Robusto, at 5 inches by 52 ring gauge ($7.25); Toro, 6 by 52 ($7.75); Gordo, 6 by 60 ($8.50); and Double Gordo, 8 1/2 by 60 ($9.99). A hefty 770 vitola—which was on display at last year’s IPCPR as a potential size—did not make the final cut.
“Alec Bradley ultimately chose to keep the line limited to four sizes,” Roberts said. “This keeping in-line with what both consumers and retailers are requesting.”
Roberts says that Sanctum is considered something of a departure from the traditional Alec Bradley blends, as the cigar is intended to be less earthy in style and medium- to full-bodied. According to Roberts, the desired effect was achieved by blending tobacco from four different countries in the cigar.
Alec Bradley Sanctum cigars will ship in 20-count boxes and are manufactured at Nestor Plasncia’s Tabacos De Oriente factory in Danlí, Honduras. n
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IN THE NEXT CIGAR INSIDERBreaking news from around the cigar world, along with ratings on hot new cigars. Read about it first in Cigar Insider.
CIGAR AFICIONADO’sBIG SMOKE 2015 SCHEDULE
November 13–15LAS VEGAS • THE MIRAGEBig Smoke evenings scheduled on Friday and Saturday, as well as cigar and lifestyle educational seminars on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
December 3NEW YORK CITY • PIER 92
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Editor and Publisher Marvin R. Shanken
Executive Editor David Savona
Senior Contributing Editor Gordon Mott
Senior Editor Gregory Mottola
Associate Editor/Manager, Cigar Aficionado Online Andrew Nagy
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Director of Research Frank C. Walters
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