Gurkha Unveils Ghost Connecticut, Grand Age II at TPE 2023

At this week’s Total Product Expo (TPE) in Las Vegas, Gurkha released a pair of new lines, the Gurkha Ghost Connecticut and the Grand Age II.

The line uses an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper, Mexican-grown binder and fillers from Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, and the U.S.A. It is being produced at PDR Cigars in the Dominican Republic and offered in three sizes:

• Gurkha Ghost Connecticut Shadow (5 x 52) — $8 (Box of 21, $168)
• Gurkha Ghost Connecticut Asura (6 x 54) — $9 (Box of 21, $189)
• Gurkha Ghost Connecticut Exorcist (6 x 60) — $10.50 (Box of 21, $220.50)

The Gurkha Ghost Connecticut joins the original Ghost line as well as the Ghost Gold, which was released in 2018 and got a packaging update in 2021. It is scheduled to get its official release at The Great Smoke, an annual consumer event put on by Smoke Inn, a retailer in South Florida before it will begin shipping to brick-and-mortar retailers in mid-March.

Also new at this trade show is the Grand Age II, a follow-up to the original Grand Age that has been on the market for several years. It keeps the same treasure chest packaging design but with better organization of the three blends inside: a Connecticut, a habano and a maduro. All of the wrappers come from Nicaragua, while the binder and filler are undisclosed. Production is handled by the Las Villas Cigars cigars factory in Nicaragua.

Each of the three blends is offered in a 6 x 54 toro vitola priced at $6.50. They are expected to begin shipping to stores by the end of March.

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, the G-League's Valley Suns, and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for Major League Baseball, 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.