DUNHILL VINTAGE CIGARS

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IN THIS ISSUE:
TASTING REPORT:
VERTICAL BRAND TASTINGS:
n Diamond Crown Maximus [page 2]
n E.P. Carrillo Cardinal Maduro [page 3]
n L’Atelier [page 3]
CURRENT SIZES:
n H. Upmann Majestic [page 2]
CIGAR NEWS
n Arturo Fuente’s Casa Cuba Brand
Hitting Retail Next Year [page 4]
n E.P. Carrillo Releases Edición Limitada [page 4]
n New Dunhill Uses Vintage Tobacco [page 4]
n Second Name Change for Mild La Flor [page 5]
n Camacho Makes Brand for Mike Ditka [page 5]
n INSIDER EXCLUSIVE: Q&A With Oliveros’s
Rafael Nodal [page 6]
n Correction to Previous Nicaragua Story [page 8]
n Top 25 Online Countdown Schedule [page 8]
DECEMBER 11, 2012 n VOL. 17, NO. 23 n FROM THE PUBLISHER OF CIGAR AFICIONADO MAGAZINE
FEATURED CIGAR
L’ATELIER
LAT56
NICARAGUA n PRICE: $10.00 n BODY: MEDIUM
For a full tasting, see page three.
BEST CIGARS THIS ISSUE
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94
POINTS
L’Atelier LAT56 Nicaragua 94
L’Atelier LAT52 Nicaragua 92
L’Atelier LAT54 Nicaragua 92
H. Upmann Majestic Cuba 91
Diamond Crown Maximus Churchill No. 2 Dom. Rep. 89
Diamond Crown Maximus Toro No. 4 Dom. Rep. 89
E.P. Carrillo Cardinal Maduro Cardinal 56 Dom. Rep. 89
DUNHILL VINTAGE CIGARS
A NEW DUNHILL CIGAR will be showcasing some
10-year-old tobacco in its filler. The limited-edition Dunhill
Aged Reserva Especial 2003 has been rolled and warehoused
for a year but will be released later this month. Owned by
tobaccogiant British American Tobacco, Dunhill cigars are
made and distributed by General Cigar. To read more about
the release, see page four.
BEST CIGARS OF THE YEAR
THE COUNTDOWN HAS BEGUN FOR THE BEST CIGARS OF 2012. In less than
one month, the best cigars of 2012 will be revealed at www.cigaraficionado.com. Determining the
cigar of the year is not an easy process. We start by looking back at all the cigars tested throughout
the year in both Cigar Aficionado and Cigar Insider—more than 700. Then we focus on the topscoring
smokes, and from there begin the blind tasting process all over again. Our tasting coordinator
heads out to the retail shops, purchases the cigars, removes the bands and orchestrates an entirely
new tasting. After multiple rounds, we arrive at a list of 25 and eventually the No. 1 Cigar of the Year.
Quality and consistency are crucial factors. For a schedule of the Top 25 unveiling, see page 8.

2
TASTING REPORT
DIAMOND CROWN MAXIMUS
VERTICAL BRAND TASTING
Country: Dominican Republic
Maker: Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia.
Distributor: J.C. Newman Cigar Co.
Filler: Dom. Rep.
Binder: Dom. Rep.
Wrapper: Ecuador
Purchase Date: November 2012
CHURCHILL NO. 2
89 POINTS n 7" x 50 n $15.80
Hickory and some spice are the predominant flavors of
this cigar, which has a sweet and nutty finish. The wrapper
is dark and oily.
Body: Medium to Full
TORO NO. 4
89 POINTS n 6" x 50 n $13.30
Gleaming with oils, this near-black cigar has an even
draw that delivers rich, creamy smoke with touches of
sweet cedar and wood.
Body: Medium
DOUBLE BELICOSO NO. 10
88 POINTS n 6 3/4" x 54 n $17.80
Notes of dried orange peel, licorice and some hints
of wood come through on the airy draw of this long
torpedo.
Body: Medium to Full
DOUBLE CORONA NO. 1
87 POINTS n 8" x 50 n $18.30
This double corona has an even draw. Though it is a
slow starter, the cigar warms to impart toast, wood and
some sweet licorice flavor.
Body: Medium to Full
PYRAMID NO. 3
87 POINTS n 6 3/8" x 50 n $17.30
Heavy notes of toast dominate this torpedo, which also
carries hints of nougat. Toasty flavors recur on the finish
as do touches of almond.
Body: Medium to Full
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DOUBLE ROBUSTO NO. 6
87 POINTS n 5" x 56 n $12.00
The ash splits as this robusto is smoked. Some sweet
nutty notes initially come through the airy draw, but the
flavors dissipate.
Body: Medium to Full
ROBUSTO NO. 5
86 POINTS n 5" x 50 n $10.80
The flavor of this dark, oily and veiny cigar is overwhelmingly
oaky and charry. Although the burn and draw are even,
it leaves an ashy aftertaste.
Body: Medium to Full
BRAND SUMMARY: Owned by Newman brothers Eric and Bobby,
the Diamond Crown Maximus line was born in 2001 as a fullerbodied
follow-up to the 1995 Diamond Crown release. It features
a dark, sun-grown wrapper from Ecuador grown by Oliva Tobacco
Co. Five sizes in the Maximus line have a relatively narow 50 ring
gauge, save two—the Double Belicoso No. 10 at 54, and the new
and significantly fatter Double Robusto No. 6, which measures 5
by 56. That size was released a little over a year ago, but only to
Diamond Crown’s exclusive lounges, and has since expanded to
the regular market in recent months. The standouts for this tasting
were the Churchill No. 2 and the Toro No. 4, which both
received 89 points in our test.
Average Rating: 87.6 points
H. UPMANN
CURRENT SIZE
Country: Cuba
Maker: N/A
Distributor: Habanos S.A.
Filler: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuba
Box Date: January 2012
MAJESTIC
91 POINTS n 5 1/2" x 40 n £8.80 n Humidor Selection
A gutsy and bold smoke that imparts lots of flavor for
such a small cigar. It offers notes of cedar, earth and
leather before a long cocoa finish.
Body: Medium to Full
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.
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3
L’ATELIER
NEW RELEASE—VERTICAL BRAND TASTING
Country: Nicaragua
Maker: My Father Cigars S.A.
Distributor: L’Atelier Imports
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Ecuador
Release Date: October 2012
LAT56
94 POINTS n 6 1/2" x 56 n $10.00 n Humidor Selection
The burn and draw are superb on this beautifully balanced
cigar. Notes of chocolate and wood build on the palate
before taking on touches of vanilla and earthy truffle.
Body: Medium
LAT52
92 POINTS n 4 3/4" x 52 n $8.00 n Humidor Selection
A gorgeous, pigtailed robusto. This cigar’s lush draw
imparts copious wood and leather flavor before mellowing
to cocoa, nuts and a hint of salty taffy.
Body: Medium
LAT54
92 POINTS n 5 5/8" x 54 n $9.00 n Humidor Selection
Red pepper and cayenne spices punctuate this otherwise
creamy, attractive smoke. Hints of earth and floral notes
add to the complexity.
Body: Medium to Full
BRAND SUMMARY: Pete Johnson’s new Florida-based company
L’Atelier Imports is off to an impressive start with its flagship
line of the same name. L’Atelier is rolled at My Father Cigars in
Nicaragua from all-Nicaraguan filler and binder and wrapped
in Ecuadoran cover leaf. The sizes are a take on the Cohiba
Behike BHK trio launched by Cuba in 2010. “[The company is] a
chance for me to expand my footprint in the cigar industry without
adding to the Tatuaje portfolio, which is already at capacity,”
said Johnson in a Cigar Insider interview. The entire L’Atelier
line performed remarkably, with one of our highest averages of
the year. The LAT56 stood out, scoring 94 points.
Average Rating: 92.7 points
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E.P. CARRILLO CARDINAL MADURO
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NEW RELEASE—VERTICAL BRAND TASTING
Country: Dominican Republic
Maker: Tabacalera La Alianza
Distributor: EPC Cigar Co.
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Wrapper: U.S.A./Conn. Broadleaf
Release Date: November 2012
CARDINAL 56
89 POINTS n 5 1/2" x 56 n $8.75
A spicy backbone of red and black pepper is balanced by
hints of mint and earthy coffee on this dark, matte veiny
toro, which draws evenly.
Body: Medium to Full
CARDINAL 52
88 POINTS n 5" x 52 n $7.25
Dark and bold with plenty of raisin character, this wellmade
robusto has a solid core of wood with touches of
pepper. A very hearty smoke.
Body: Medium to Full
CARDINAL 54
88 POINTS n 6" x 54 n $8.25
A dark, toothy cigar that smokes evenly. The upfront
blast of black pepper mellows into charry notes with a
hint of licorice on the finish.
Body: Medium to Full
BRAND SUMMARY: Cigarmaker Ernesto Perez-Carrillo claims
that Cardinal is the strongest, most full-bodied cigar in his entire
coterie of brands. “We wanted to round out the E.P. Carrillo
portfolio with a full-body cigar,” said Perez-Carrillo. “It is a
blend of tobaccos from three different farms in Nicaragua.”
Cardinal comes in two varieties: natural, which is made with an
Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, and maduro, with a darker Connecticut
Broadleaf wrapper. The name came when the Carrillos saw the
first box for the line and its striking scarlet label reminded them
of a cardinal. A test of the maduro line yielded very consistent
flavorful smokes across the board.
Average Rating: 88.3 points
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.
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4
CIGAR NEWS
FUENTE TO RELEASE CASA CUBA
BRAND FOR 2013
BY GREGORY MOTTOLA
An elusive Fuente brand called Casa Cuba has been on
hold for over a year. Blended by company patriarch
Carlos Fuente Sr., samples of these cigars were passed out to
a select few at the 2011 IPCPR and elsewhere—but no one
has heard much about them since. Carlos “Carlito” Fuente Jr.
recently spoke with Cigar Insider for a status report on this
little-known brand.
“This is my father’s cigar,” said Fuente Jr. “He blended
it to his taste. They were all ready to go last year, but right
before they shipped I took one look at the band and said
‘No way.’ It needed to be redesigned. The packaging just
wasn’t up to my standard.”
According to Fuente Jr., about 600,000 Casa Cuba cigars
have been sitting in storage for over a year in the Dominican
Republic just waiting for new bands and boxes.
The blend consists of an Ecuadoran wrapper around
Dominican binder and filler tobacco.
It’s an old brand that Fuente Sr. wanted to resurrect.
Casa Cuba was originally a Tampa-made cigar made from
imported Cuban tobacco before the embargo. Though the
Fuentes acquired Casa Cuba in the 1970s, they didn’t do
much with the trademark until recently.
“I always resisted using
the word Cuba in anything
I made,” said Fuente Jr. “I
wanted to move past that
and concentrate on the
identity of the Dominican
Republic. I compare [the
Dominican Republic] to
Napa. No one took them
seriously as a wine producer
in the beginning and now
they make some of the best
Carlos Fuente Sr.
wines in the world.”
Fuente Jr. doesn’t expect
the Casa Cuba cigars to hit retail shelves until late summer
or early fall 2013, concentrating his efforts on other releases.
“I really don’t know very much about the cigar,” Fuente
Jr. said. “My father is the one who made this. It’s very old
fashioned.” n
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E.P. CARRILLO RELEASES EDICIÓN
LIMITADA 2012
BY GREGORY MOTTOLA
Cigarmaker Ernesto Perez-Carrillo has put out this
year’s E.P. Carrillo Edición Limitada cigar, but he’s
ventured into new blending territory with the 2012 release,
as it features a Nicaraguan Corojo tobacco that he’s never
used before.
“With the Corojo, I get a very different taste,” said
Perez-Carrillo. “I can’t necessarily describe the flavor, but it
is very unique and adds a new level of complexity.”
The cigar is a hefty 6 inch by 54 ring gauge smoke that
uses two different types of tobacco from two different areas in
Nicaragua—one in Jalapa (Corojo) and one in Estelíi (Criollo).
Perez-Carrillo knew that he wanted the cigar to showcase the
Corojo—which accounts for 25 percent of the filler—so, after
some trial and error, wound up using an Ecuadoran Sumatra
binder and Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper from the 2009-
2010 harvest.
“We started this project in November of last year. I tried
different Brazilian wrappers but it wasn’t until we tried the
Broadleaf that it really tasted right.”
The cigars were eventually rolled in March and went to
market about three weeks ago. Only 1,500 boxes of 10
were rolled, or 15,000 cigars total. “There wasn’t a lot
of the Corojo tobacco,” explained Perez-Carrillo. “I only
had enough for this project. When you find tobacco that’s
unique you ask yourself ‘How can I blend it with tobacco
that I already have?’ ”
Each cigar retails for $15.00. Like all E.P. Carrillo cigars,
the Edición Limitada 2012 is made in the Dominican
Republic at the La Alianza factory. n
VINTAGE SMOKE FROM DUNHILL
BY DAVID SAVONA
Dunhill is poised to release a cigar made with some
10-year-old filler tobacco, a first for the brand. The
Dunhill Aged Reserva Especial 2003, debuting later this
month, is a limited-edition smoke rolled with a component
of 2003 Dominican filler, plus each cigar has been aged for
an entire year before release.
“The Aged Vintage Limited Edition is very special to us,
as it represents the starting point of many exciting things
we are planning in 2013,” said Yves Politi, the head of
Dunhill Cigars for British American Tobacco International,
the company that owns the Dunhill brand.
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The new Dunhill is made with a filler blend of Dominican
and Nicaraguan tobaccos, including Dominican piloto
Cubano from the 2003 harvest that has been aged in tercios
for some ten years. Tercios are large bales made of palm
bark, also known as yagua, that were used extensively in the
Cuban cigar industry in the old days of the cigar business.
They are quite rare today.
The blend is completed with a Connecticut Broadleaf
binder, and wrapped in Connecticut-shade tobacco grown
in the northeastern United States. The cigars were rolled
at General Cigar Dominicana for Dunhill. As with every
Dunhill Aged cigar, after rolling they were stored for a
year in aging rooms lined with Spanish cedar to allow the
cigars to mature. The blend has been rolled in one size only,
called Robusto Grande, measuring 5 1/2 inches long by 54
ring gauge.
There won’t be many Dunhill Aged Reserva Especial
2003s. Dunhill is capping the run at 35,000 cigars, presented
in 3,500 boxes, each containing 10 cigars. The cigars all
wear a secondary band, in gold, and come in classy white
boxes. They will retail for $15.00 per cigar in the U.S., and
9.80 Euros in Germany. They should be on sale in a week.
Dunhill’s idea for this cigar is to present a fine smoke
much in the way that companies in the beverage industry
present fine wines.
“The Aged Series is aiming at reviving and celebrating
vintage years of tobacco like a grand cru for wines,” said
Politi. “We are aimed at reviving and celebrating vintage
years of tobacco.” Dunhill said the 2003 Dominican piloto
harvest, in particular, was an exceptional year for that type
of leaf.
Dunhill has been part of the cigar business since 1907,
when Alfred Dunhill opened a tobacco shop in London.
Cigars were first sold under the Dunhill name in 1980. The
brand is now owned by British American Tobacco, one of
the world’s largest tobacco concerns. n
5
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SECOND NAME CHANGE FOR
MILD LA FLOR
BY DAVID SAVONA
The mildest La Flor Dominicanas have their second
name change in less than a year. La Flor Dominicana
Light, previously known as La Flor Dominicana Premium,
has been renamed La Flor Dominicana Suave.
“It was a screwup,” said brand maker Litto Gomez, who
co-owns the brand with his wife, Ines Lorenzo-Gomez.
“We can’t use the name light.”
The word light was prohibited in tobacco packaging
after the passage of the Family Smoking Prevention and
Tobacco Control Act, which was passed in 2010 and put
the FDA in control of the U.S. tobacco industry.
The cigars have a new name but the same blend, and sport
lightly hued Connecticut shade wrappers. Some retailers still
had references to La Flor Dominicana Light cigars as this
issue was published, while others still had references to La
Flor Dominicana Premium. n
MIKE DITKA CIGARS LAUNCHING
THIS MONTH
BY G. CLAY WHITTAKER
Camacho is less than a week from finally releasing its
limited-production/limited-edition line, the Mike Ditka
Kickoff Series, a brand of cigars named for famed football
coach and player Mike Ditka. The Ditka brand will actually
include three different lines, called The Player, The Coach
and The Hall of Famer.
A No. 1 draft pick in 1961 for the Bears, Ditka was a
tight end for the Chicago team for more than six years
before being traded to the Eagles. After retiring in 1972,
Ditka began coaching with the Cowboys before returning
to the Chicago Bears in 1981. He was inducted into the
hall of fame in 1988 and retired from coaching in 1999.
The Player is wrapped in an Ecuadoran Connecticut
wrapper, the binder is Honduran, and the filler is a blend of
tobaccos from Honduras and the Dominican Republic. The
Coach has a Brazilian binder, fillers from Nicaragua and
the Dominican Republic, and a Honduran criollo wrapper.
The fuller-bodied Hall of Famer is a blend of Nicaraguan
and Dominican filler tobaccos, a Honduran binder, and a
wrapper of San Andrés maduro from Mexico. All of the
cigars are rolled at the famed Tabacos Rancho Jamastran
in Honduras, home of Camacho Cigars.
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All three have very different blends, but each will come
in four sizes: Robusto (5 by 50), Toro (6 by 50), Torpedo
(6 1/4 by 54) and 60x6, (with its namesake measurements).
The prices vary slightly between the three blends, with The
Player ranging from $8.00 to $9.50, The Coach ranging
from $8.50 to $10, and The Hall of Famer costing between
$9 and $10.50 per stick. Within each blend only 1,000
individually numbered boxes will be produced across the
four size formats.
Each box will hold 10 cigars, every one of which will
be housed in an individual coffin. Only 30,000 cigars are
being rolled across the three blends.
The cigars will have their formal debut in a little less than
a week at Mike Ditka’s Steakhouse in downtown Chicago. n
INSIDER Q&A: RAFAEL NODAL,
HABANA CUBA CIGAR CO.
When Cuban-born Rafael Nodal came to the United
States as a teenager, cigars were the last thing on his
mind. Decades later, Nodal has established himself as a
player in the premium cigar business, but it wasn’t easy.
Failed brands and over-ambitious marketing strategies finally
forced him to reassess his philosophy. Success has started
to come his way, most notably by earning a spot in Cigar
Aficionado’s Top 25 cigars of 2011. Cigar Insider’s Gregory
Mottola caught up with Nodal and talked about his company’s
change of direction.
MOTTOLA: You grew up in Cuba, after the revolution?
NODAL: Yes, I was born in 1964 in a small town called Ciego
de Avila, right in Camaguey. I lived there until I was 16.
Q: Did you smoke cigars or work with tobacco?
6
Rafael Nodal
A: No. The area was known
for citrus, not tobacco.
Q: Did you go to school?
A: Yes. And every day from
the first grade to the 10th
grade we had something
called “revolutionary hour.”
It was an outdoor assembly
and the whole school was
required to attend. Some-
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one would get on a loudspeaker and talk about how great
Communism and Socialism was, that the American Yankees
were going to invade any day. It was a daily indoctrination.
Q: When did you come to the U.S.?
A: In 1980. I came over with my parents as part of the
Mariel boatlift. We stopped in Key West, but pretty much
went straight to New York City. I played violin and had
been playing since I was six years old.
Q: What were you doing right before you were in the cigar
business?
A: I was an associate director of finance at a Florida hospital
and continued in healthcare until I became executive
director of a national psychiatric company.
Q: Were you a cigar smoker then?
A: No.
Q: What made you interested in cigars?
A: At work, I met Hank Bischoff, a mental health therapist
with tremendous love for everything Cuban, especially
cigars. At the same time I hired a psychiatrist as my medical
director—she’s now my wife, Dr. Alina Cordoves Nodal.
Alina is originally from San Juan, Pinar del Río and her family
has been in the cigar-growing business for two generations.
Her father used to distribute La Aurora cigars in Tampa
before Miami Cigar took the national distribution. I have to
thank Hank and Alina for the introduction to the leaf.
Q: How did you first get into the business?
A: In 1998 Hank and I had an online cigar business and I was
able to meet a lot of cigar manufacturers. We were the main
distributor of the Oliveros brand. Shortly after, Hank and I
became consultants to Oliveros’ distributor—the Habana
Cuba Cigar Co. Due to family problems, they closed the
business and in 2002 Alina, Hank and I took it over.
Q: Are you the sole owner of the company?
A: No, Hank and Alina are my partners. I would have not
been able to do anything without them.
Q: What was the first premium cigar you released after you
bought Oliveros?
A: It was called the Habana Cuba Premier Selection.
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Q: Where was it made?
A: In Nicaragua by Nick Perdomo. It was the first release
outside of the Oliveros brand, however, the Oliveros lines
were being made in Santiago, Dominican Republic.
Q: When was the last time Perdomo made a cigar for you?
A: Perdomo made the Premier Selection and another cigar
called the Oliveros Gran Reserva until approximately
2004. By that time we had already started making cigars
in a new factory in Tamboríl and all the production was
moved there.
Q: Do you only make premium cigars?
A: No. Oliveros was known primarily during the boom as a
flavored cigar line. We continue to make the Oliveros flavored
lines, but our concentration has been on premium cigars.
Q: What percentage of your business would you say is
flavored?
A: This year the flavored cigar lines represent 11 percent of
our total sales by volume.
Q: In 2005, you released a very thick line of cigars called XL
For Men, but the brand was discontinued. What happened?
A: The XL For Men was not a successful line. I designed
it to appeal to new smokers, gave it a great
multi-country blend and had it made in big
ring gauges. Perhaps it was ahead of its time,
although the name was a problem and we
did have issues with consistency. I think that
in order to learn we have to make mistakes.
Let’s just say that we have learned a lot from
the XL and other releases. It has prepared
me for what I am doing now. From that
point of view, it was a success.
7
Q: You mentioned your first approach, trying
to appeal to the masses. What was your
basic business philosophy?
A: I was not producing the cigars I wanted
to make but was trying to make cigars for
everyone. I was trying to compete with big
multinational companies and trying to reach
as many smokers as possible.
Q: Recently, you formed a new subsidiary
called Boutique Blends. Is this a reflection of
a new business outlook?
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A: Boutique Blends is not only the name of our new
distribution company, it is also our new philosophy. I am no
longer trying to make cigars for everyone, but introducing
new blends for educated consumers who are seeking
complexity and character in their smokes.
Q: Your Aging Room Small Batch M356 brand scored very
well last year and even earned a spot on Cigar Aficionado’s
Top 25 list. Did this change things?
A: The Aging Room Small Batch M356 allowed us to
produce small batches of hard-to-find tobacco. We knew
from the beginning that we had something special, but
having it appear on the Top 25 definitely changed things.
Q: How?
A: First, it was a validation of our new vision. Second, it has
helped us in getting the word out to retailers and consumers
alike, not only here in the U.S. but around the word.
Q: Who is your main supplier of tobacco for your premium
cigars?
A: José “Jochy” Blanco. He has been an integral part of my
Boutique Blends project.
Q: What makes his tobacco special?
A: His method of preparation of the soil and growing have
created excellent tobacco. He likes to “desbotonar” (remove
the flower of the tobacco plant) early in the growing process,
in order to have stronger leaves with more oil and vitality.
This translates to more flavor, aroma and stronger body. I
think one of the key factors of the quality of his tobacco is
the aging process. With Jochy, there is no rushing nature and
no artificial methods of curing the tobacco.
Q: How many brands do you have now?
A: We continue to make the Oliveros brands, including the
King Havano, Sun Grown, Sun Grown Reserve and the
Oliveros Flavors, in addition to the Swag Puro Dominicano,
the new Swag Sobe Edition (South Beach), Aging Room
Small Batch M356, Aging Room Haváo and the new Aging
Room Small Batch Quattro F55 [which scored exceptionally
well in the last issue of Cigar Insider.]
Q: Which is your best-selling brand?
A: Aging Room Small Batch, followed by the Swag.
Q: Overall, how many cigars do you produce a year?
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A: Close to 2 million cigars. However, I purposely limit the
growth of the Small Batch in order to maintain quality and
consistency. I am looking for quality not quantity.
Q: Do you consider yourself a boutique cigarmaker?
A: Absolutely, I am a boutique cigarmaker. I tried once to
be a producer of cigars for everyone.
Q: What’s your definition of a boutique cigar? Is there a
certain production number where the cigar is no longer
boutique?
A: It is hard to put a number on when a brand is no longer
a boutique brand. I think that a boutique cigar is as much
of a philosophy as it is a number. My idea of boutique may
be different from other manufacturers. I like to keep the
blend unique but once the tobacco for that blend is finished,
I move to another blend and do not substitute the tobacco
to continue the perception that it is the same cigar. That is
my idea of boutique.
Q: Do you think that the cigar industry is under siege?
A: My father and mother brought me to this country
searching for freedom and opportunity and that is what I
found in this great country. But lately, I see our freedoms
as individuals, especially as smokers, being violated more
and more. The unfair taxes, the over regulation and the
intrusive non-smoking laws are, in my opinion, the major
current threats to our industry. It is coming to a point that
smoking a cigar is a patriotic act. n
CORRECTION: NICARAGUA
T he story on Nicaragua’s cigar shipments that appeared in
the November 27 Cigar Insider had incorrect numbers
for cigar exports in 2012. Nicaragua’s shipments were down
slightly for the seven months ending July 2012, decreasing
by 3.2 percent compared to the same period in 2011, while
Dominican cigar shipments rose 14 percent during that time.
If these estimates hold, the Dominican Republic will retain
its position as the No. 1 exporter of premium cigars to the
United States, with Nicaragua as a close second. The growth
in Nicaraguan cigars over the past several years remains the
greatest success story in the premium cigar business, with
shipments more than doubling in volume over the past
six years. n
8
Cigar Insider
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