halfwheel

Press Release: Espinosa Premium Cigars Presents the 601 La Bomba Challenge

January 9, 2013 (Miami, FL) — Can you handle the STRONGEST cigar around? Think so? Well take the 601 La Bomba Challenge today! Espinosa Premium Cigars announces the promotion for the 601 La Bomba Challenge, where cigar enthusiasts take a BEFORE and AFTER picture of their smoking experience with the 601 La Bomba cigar and [...]

Weekly News (October 15, 2012)

Editor’s Note: We changed how the RSS feed works, here’s why. Liga Privada Único Serie Velvet Rat Comes to Chicago This Week — Story here. 601 & Murcielago Move Factories — Exclusive here. CAO Hurricane Scheduled for November — Story here.  Tatuaje HCS Maduro Coming Later this Month — The above via Holts’ Anthony Mazzola. [...]

News: 601 & Murcielago Production Move to Two New Factories

It’s been three months since Erik Espinosa took control of the 601 and Murcielago brands after the dissolution of EO Brands, and he’s now confirmed to halfwheel that the popular 601 and Murcielago brands will now be made at his La Zona Factory in Estelí, Nicaragua, as well as Tabacalera Villa Cuba S.A. (TAVICUSA), the [...]

News: Espinosa & Ortega Split Up EO Brands

Erik Espinosa and Eddie Ortega are back in control of the 601, Cubao, Murcielago and more—but EO Brands is officially done. Two weeks after Rocky Patel informed retailers the company would no longer be handling distribution of the EO marks, United Tobacco/EO Brands has been bought back by the duo, divided and dissolved. Espinosa and [...]

Weekly News (July 2, 2012)

Editor’s Note: Yesterday marked six months of halfwheel. Brooks and I still haven’t spoken at all about the relatively minor anniversary, but given each member of our staff once ran a cigar blog – six months is oftentimes a lot longer than most of these last. Over the next few weeks, particularly leading into IPCPR, [...]

News: Rocky Patel Ends Distribution of EO Brands

Rocky Patel has informed retailers that July 2 is the last day it will be distributing EO Brands. Patel took over distribution nearly two years ago after taking a stake in EO brands. Since then, Eddie Ortega has left United Tobacco/EO Brands to start his own brand and Erik Espinosa has launched his own cigar [...]

News: Erik Espinosa Launches Espinosa Premium Cigars

Orestes “Erik” Espinosa has a new cigar company. Earlier this week, Espinosa Premium Cigars began appearing on a variety of social media platforms. Espinosa is most famous for being the E in EO Brands/United Tobacco, a partnership with Eddie Ortega the pair founded in 2003. Over the past decade the company has put out numerous cigars [...]

News: 601 Black Returns as West Coast Cigars’ Evil Clown

The 601 Black is back with a new name and a new location. West Coast Cigars of San Jose, CA is the store and Evil Clown is the name. The cigars arrived at the store Saturday morning, prompting owner Bill Davis to post these photos on the store’s website, saying that he “feels like a [...]

IPCPR 2011: Rocky Patel

And the most buzzed about cigar on the trade show floor…? The Rocky Patel 50th. It’s a bit shocking even to me given what else was released, but the combination of relative secrecy prior to the show, a high price tag and the Rocky factor seemed to combine into what was a barrage of people [...]

Weekly News (June 27, 2011)

Busy week, slow week, busy week, slow week. Or at least that’s how I’d like to think of it. The reality is the weeks keep getting busier as we now sit (less than) three weeks out from the IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas. Companies are beginning to announce the last of their show plans, [...]