Nicholas Melillo is very proud to be from Connecticut and while he’s already got one release using Connecticut broadleaf, he has another cigar coming out that pays tribute to the state.

The Charter Oak was a large tree in Hartford, Conn.. believed to have stood from the 12th century all the way until the 1850s, when it was destroyed in a storm. The tree was mentioned by the Dutch explorer, Adrian Block, in 1608 and according to legend, the Connecticut Royal Charter of 1662 granting the colony independence was once hidden in the tree so the English could not seize it.

In more recent times, the tree was featured on the back of Connecticut’s state quarter.

As for the cigar, it will be offered in both Connecticut shade and Connecticut broadleaf variants with fillers from the Estelí and Jalapa regions of Nicaragua. The Connecticut shade version uses a Sumatran binder, while the broadleaf version has a Nicaraguan habano binder from Estelí.

Charter Oak Poster

“Charter Oak also pays tribute to my grandfather, who while earning a modest salary working for the Winchester Repeating Arms factory after WWII, smoked exclusively broadleaf cigars manufactured by FD Graves on State St., while, no joke, Rick Ardito’s grandfather, a guard at Winchester, also smoked FD Graves’ biggest selling broadleaf, Muniemakers,” said Melillo in a press release.

“I wanted to create an economy-minded, everyday smoke for connoisseurs; something tasty and delicious but didn’t break the bank.”

Charter Oak Feature

Charter Oak is offered in five sizes: Toro (6 x 52), Lonsdale (6 1/4 x 46), Grande (6 x 60), Petit Corona (5 1/4 x 52) and Rothschild (4 1/4 x 50). Pricing is $4-6 per cigar

It is being produced by Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A. and will be distributed by Foundation Cigar Co.

Charter Oak will debut at the 2016 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show which begins July 25 in Las Vegas.

Davidoff is the official sponsor of halfwheel's coverage of the 2016 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show.
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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.