Griff and Dave’s Vanguard Goes on Sale

The newest release from Griff and Dave Cigars is now on sale.

Vanguard is a 5 1/8 x 48 robusto made with an Ecuadorian habano oscuro wrapper covering a filler blend of tobaccos grown in the Estelí and Jalapa regions of Nicaragua. In addition, the filler blend includes a quarter leaf of medio tiempo tobacco. Medio tiempo is a priming, a section of leaves in a tobacco plant. Most plants are divided into three primings with ligero as the highest priming from a vertical perspective. Most tobacco plants won’t produce medio tiempo leaves, but a minority of plants will sprout leaves at the very top, which are exposed to even more sunlight and tend to be even stronger than a ligero. Vanguard is made at the La Corona Factory in Nicaragua.

The new cigar’s MSRP is $12.50 each and Vanguard is sold in 10-count boxes. According to the company, it will be released once per year. For 2024, that is happening now. The cigars went on sale today via the company’s website and will begin shipping to retailers on Monday, May 20.

“As two friends deeply passionate about this industry, crafting cigars that we genuinely enjoy smoking is our ultimate goal,” said Griff Howie, co-founder of Griff & Dave, in a press release. “The incredible tobaccos utilized in Vanguard, including those graciously provided by Tony and Carson Serino at his ‘home factory’ of La Corona, truly reflect the depth of our friendship and dedication to quality.”

The two met in 2013 at the University of South Alabama and later worked together at CigarClub.com. They began making cigars for friends and family members and, last year, launched their own company.

“The reception to our blends has been nothing short of exciting, motivating us to take the plunge and develop a core line of cigars that enthusiasts can enjoy consistently,” said Imber. “Vanguard marks the beginning of an exciting chapter for us. When we started this thing, we were making ultra-small batches of bundled cigars and limited packaging. Now, here we are over a year later releasing our first cigar with a fully branded and boxed experience.”