IPCPR 2016: La Flor Dominicana

La Flor Dominicana’s booth will look familiar to those who have followed the trade show in recent years; it has both a clean design and functional space with a decent amount of display space to show off the four new products that will be arriving at retailers as early as the week after the trade show.

The company has several hundred boxes of each new cigar on hand ready to ship out, with a full rollout coming in the near future. In addition to the new products, the Colorado Oscuro returns in the No. 2, No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5 sizes.

La Flor Dominicana Andalusian Bull

While traveling through southern Spain, Litto Gomez came across an interesting looking and clearly well-used cigar mold at a local shop. After acquiring it and bringing it back to the Dominican Republic, he had copies of it made as the original wouldn’t have held up to making cigars. The cigar pays tribute to Spain’s famous toreros with the green and gold band, while the green is also a nod to the Andalusian flag.

It’s a limited production, meaning that it will be available on an ongoing basis, but not as regularly as the company’s core lines. The blend features a dark Ecuadorian corojo wrapper that marks the first time this particular priming has been used, with a binder and filler grown at Estancia La Flor de Palma, the farm shared by La Flor Dominicana and Tabacalera Palma.

• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
• Binder: Dominican Republic (Estancia La Flor de Palma)
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Estancia La Flor de Palma)

• La Flor Dominicana Andalusian Bull (6 1/2 x 52-64) — $15 (Box of 10, $150)

Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016.

Production: Limited production.

La Flor Dominicana Petite La Nox

This time last year, La Flor Dominicana was showing off La Nox, a 6 1/2 x 50 toro extra that would go on to earn the #2 ranking in halfwheel’s Top 25 Cigars of 2015.

This year, La Nox gets significantly smaller by going to a 5 x 40 vitola that comes in five-count packs, though I am told that retailers can sell them individually as well. If the original was simply too much cigar, or you don’t have the time to enjoy one properly, this new size should certainly do the trick.

• Wrapper: Brazilian Cubra Maduro
• Binder: Mexican San Andrés
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Estancia La Flor de Palma)

• La Flor Dominicana Petite La Nox (5 x 40) — $7 (Box of 5, $35)

Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016

Production: Regular production

La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial

This line that debuted in 1997 returns with three new sizes and updated packaging that features a good amount of white space on the lid and side to accommodate new FDA regulations as well as branding featuring a silhouette of Litto Gomez that will begin appearing in more places in the not-too-distant future.

Since its launch, the El Jocko size never went out of production, according to Jon Carney, vp of sales for LFD, even when production of the line scaled back significantly in 2013. It’s the same blend as the original, hailed as “Connecticut the La Flor way” with both flavor and power that pushes into the medium bodied and strength range. The Gran Robusto, Super Corona and Toro sizes are all new.

• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
• Binder: Dominican Republic (Estancia La Flor de Palma)
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Estancia La Flor de Palma)

• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial Belicoso (5 1/2 x 52) — $8.80 (Box of 24, $211.20)
• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial Churchill (6 7/8 x 49) — $9 (Box of 24, $216)
• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial El Jocko Maduro (4 1/2 x 32-54) — $7.50 (Box of 24, $180)
• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial El Jocko Natural (4 1/2 x 32-54) — $7 (Box of 24, $168)
• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial Figurado (6 1/2 x 32-54) — $9 (Box of 24, $216)
• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial Gran Robusto (5 1/2 x 60) — $9 (Box of 24, $216)
• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial Robusto (5 x 48) — $8.50 (Box of 24, $204)
• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial Super Corona (7 x 60) — $9.50 (Box of 24, $228)
• La Flor Dominicana Reserva Especial Toro (6 x 54) — $9 (Box of 24, $216)

Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016

Production: Regular production.

La Flor Dominicana Salomon Ünico

The Salomon Ünico was certainly the most eye-catching new release in the LFD booth, if not on the entire show floor. One roller at Tabacalera La Flor has created approximately 100 designs that he adds to the standard La Flor Dominicana Salomón. Then the cigars are placed into distinct boxes that also feature the new Litto logo.

Each box will have a mix of designs, which range from relatively simple to incredible intricate, and it’s safe to say with near certainty that no two boxes will be alike. The first 200 boxes are ready to ship, and the company is shooting for a total of 4,000 boxes to be produced in the coming months.

• Wrapper: Mixture
• Binder: Dominican Republic (Estancia La Flor de Palma)
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Estancia La Flor de Palma)

• La Flor Dominicana Salomon Ünico (7 x 64) — $30 (Box of 10, $300)

Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016

Production: 4,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (40,000 Total Cigars)

Football Edition, TCFKA ‘M’, Baseball Edition

Carney said that there are plans for all of these to return throughout the next 12 months and beyond, though specific details aren’t yet available.

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.