Eddie Ortega kept a pretty relaxed vibe at his booth, with the attention focused pretty squarely on his new Ortega Serie D Black, which has already begun shipping to retailers.

Ortega Booth IPCPR 2014

The cigar comes in three sizes: robusto (5 x 50, $8.95), toro (6 x 50, $9.10) and belicoso (6 x 52, $9.45). Like the rest of the line, the Ortega Serie D Black is being at My Father Cigars S.A. in Estelí, Nicaragua. It will be sold in 20-count boxes, and is made by My Father Cigars.

Ortega Serie D Black

Ortega HeavyDuty has been out for a few months, but is another fairly recent release that was on display.

Ortega Heavyduty IPCPR 2014

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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 and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, 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.