For the second year in a row, Crowned Heads’ release for the Tobacconists’ Association of America retailers will be called The Lost Angel.

The Lost Angel 2022 is a 5 3/4 x 52 robusto extra that will use an Ecuadorian habano wrapper over a Mexican San Andrés binder and fillers from the Dominican Republic and two regions in Nicaragua. Crowned Heads says the wrapper’s color is between Colorado and oscuro. Like The Lost Angel 2021, it will be made at Tabacalera Pichardo in Estelí, Nicaragua.

It will have an MSRP of $12.75 per cigar and is limited to 1,000 boxes of 20 cigars. It will only be sold at retail stores that are members of TAA.

“For the second consecutive year, we’ve taken our TAA Exclusive to our Tabacalera Pichardo family for production,” said Jon Huber, co-founder of Crowned Heads, in a press release. “The 2021 Lost Angel was arguably one of our most highly-regard TAA releases to date, and I strongly believe that the 2022 version will continue on that path. We’ve selected an all-new blend for the series and I think it checks all the boxes for intensity, structure, flavor, complexity, and balance.”

The TAA is a fairly small group of some of the country’s top tobacconists, about 80 retailers, as well as 40 or so manufacturers. The association gathers annually to discuss issues facing the industry and retailers, as well as to have its annual trade show, a unique event that works on a group buying format in order to secure exclusive deals for these generally high-volume merchants.

During the event—which takes place March 20-24 in Cabo San Lucas—the organization holds two selling events, one known as the Dream Machine where the retailers collectively order to secure larger discounts, while the other is a more traditional trade show. Typically, around a dozen manufacturers release new exclusive cigars for the retail members of the organization under the TAA Exclusive Series Program banner. Those manufacturers agree to give a portion of the proceeds to the organization, a minimum of 50 cents per cigar.

This is the eighth TAA release for Crowned Heads, the first six were all called “The Angel’s Anvil,” which was based on a story developed by Huber that mimicked his own path in the cigar industry. Previously, he’s said The Lost Angel “explores the darker side of the story’s protagonist,” serving as a prelude to before the angel meets the black and regains his wings, first the angel must fall from heaven:

Unlike the heavens above, the earth can be a dark space, and the spirit of The Lost Angel brand is born from darkness Lest we never forget though, the tiniest of seeds needs to be submerged in dirt, covered in darkness and it is only then that the seed will struggle to reach the light.

The Lost Angel 2022 is expected to begin shipping in late May.

Overall Score

Avatar photo

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. I previously co-founded and published TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry for more than a decade, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. In addition, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff here at halfwheel. I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.