Patrick Vivalo, one of the more well-known sales executives at Rocky Patel Premium Cigars and the creator of the Vivalo Serie Exclusivo cigar line, has announced that he will be leaving the company on Feb. 27 and formally launching his own cigar brand, Vivalo Cigars, on March 1. The announcement came Wednesday afternoon via his personal Facebook account.

In a post addressed to friends and family, Vivalo said expressed thanks to his mentors and said that he knew from the day he started working in the cigar industry in 1997, he knew he wanted it to be a life-long career.

Vivalo was most recently in charge of in-house sales for Rocky Patel. He joined the company in 2002.

“I have always waited for the day to do my own thing and the day is finally here,” said Vivalo to halfwheel. “I just want to make great cigars for people to enjoy. After that, I don’t know much else to say except that I hope people enjoy my creations!”

On the cigar side, it was a cigar that he had blended for himself at the company’s Honduran production facilities that caught the attention of two retailers, Tinder Box of Waldorf, Md. and Dan’s Cigar Lounge in Rosadale, Md. Vivalo often led factory tours and it was after trying it on a visit to the factory, the two shops contacted the company about carrying the cigar as an exclusive, and Nish Patel approached him about making it happen. The release was announced in April 2013, and while Rocky Patel Premium Cigars produced the Vivalo Serie Exclusivo, Vivalo retained the rights to his name.

In September 2014, his eponymous cigar line went national and expanded to a total of five vitolas, as the original Vivalo Serie Exclusivo Lonsdale (6 x 44) was joined by a 5 1/2 x belicoso, 4 7/8 x 50 robusto, 6 x 60 gordo and 5 1/2 x 54 robusto grande, all of which are sold in boxes of 20.

The cigars are a blend of a Jalapa Colorado shade wrapper from Nicaragua, binder from Estelí, Nicaragua, and Nicaraguan filler from Estelí and Jalapa.

 

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Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.