The Killer Bee Connecticut, a new limited production from Black Works Studio is on its way to retailers.

The cigar, a 4 1/2 x 46 corona, was offered exclusively to retailers who attended the 2018 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show in July. It’s a spin on the company’s existing Killer Bee, notably with the use of an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper highlighted by strips of Ecuadoran maduro tobacco used to create a swirl cap and closed foot. The binder is a Nicaraguan habano leaf, while the filler is all Nicaraguan.

“The Connecticut wrapper gives an added creaminess and changes up the spice components quite a bit,” said James Brown, creator of BLK WKS and partner at Fabrica Oveja Negra, via a press release.

It is offered at an MSRP of $10 per cigar or $200 for a box of 20 cigars, which are made at Fabrica Oveja Negra in Estelí, Nicaragua. A total of 700 boxes are being produced.

The original Killer Bee was released as one of the first three cigars under the Black Works Studio header, which is also stylized as BLK WKS, and is a project of Black Label Trading Co. launched in 2015 to show off the artisan aspect of the factory and its people. It uses an Ecuadorian maduro wrapper and also comes in a 4 1/2 x 46 vitola, with a closed foot as well as a linear cap, which uses another layer of wrapper to create a contrast and additional flavor profile. It has since grown to include a Box Pressed Robusto vitola, as well as a variant called the Green Hornet, which adds candela stripes of tobacco to the wrapper, as well as the Green Hornet Kato and Green Hornet Lonsdale, both initially released as event-only cigars.

Shortly after this story, the company confirmed production numbers, which have been added to this story.

Image courtesy of Black Works Studio/Black Label Trading Co.

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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.