After a few years of a lot of new product from Arturo Fuente and J.C. Newman, the two family-owned companies seemed focused on things other than the new cigar products. For Fuente, the 100th anniversary celebrations are now over and so the companies returns to some bit of normalcy, which likely means less new product. For the Newmans, it was all about one thing—preserving the company’s Tampa-based cigar operations. Saving Cigar City was largely the talk of the town in Las Vegas, highlighted by an article in The New York Times, which ran in the middle of the trade show. As is the case most years, Arturo Sandoval, a good friend of the Fuente family, joined the booth in the closing hours of day four, playing his trumpet as the trade show wound down.

Save Cigar City

Save Cigar City
For the cost of a signature, J.C. Newman would gladly hand you a button. It’s a reference to the tobacco strippers, who literally strip the veins out of the tobacco.

The company is working hard to make sure that it’s Tampa factory is included in a potential exemption regarding FDA regulation. The proposed definition for “premium cigar” does not include the machine made cigars made at the company’s factory, as such, regulations would remove a significant part of the company’s U.S. workforce and potentially shut down the factory, the last such one remaining in Tampa, commonly known as cigar city. For more information, click here.

Arturo Fuente Anejo Reserva No 8 8 8

Arturo Fuente Añejo Reserva No. 8-8-8
These were handed out at this year’s Cigar Family Charitable Foundation event in the Dominican Republic. It’s essentially a slightly fatter lancero with a torpedo cap. Expect them to arrive in November.

Brick House The Traveler

Brick House The Traveler
A new size for Brick House. More details shortly.

Casa Cuba

Casa Cuba
They are still on track to be a regular production item. They’ve shipped without prerelease bands in Florida, the first market to receive them as a regular item, and are heading to the rest of the country shortly.

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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.