With all of the color, sound and chaos that is the Drew Estate booth, it would be easy to miss the Joya de Nicaragua booth tucked to the left hand side, and that would be a mistake. Although smaller than Drew Estate, the company’s creations are no less impressive, and this year’s releases include a more widely available version of halfwheel’s number one cigar of 2018.

Tucked away inside the Drew Estate booth as it has been for the past few years, Joya de Nicaragua nevertheless makes an impact and was busy almost from the first moment the trade show floor opened, with three new releases on display.

Joya de Nicaragua Antaño CT

The first new release is a variant of the company’s Añtano blend, but replaces the normal Connecticut shade wrapper with an lighter Ecuadorian Connecticut leaf, both in terms of color and strength.

  • Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
  • Binder: Nicaragua
  • Filler: Nicaragua
  • Joya de Nicaragua Añtano CT Belicoso (6 x 54) — $9.90 (Box of 20, $198)
  • Joya de Nicaragua Añtano CT Toro (6 x 50) — $9.70 (Box of 20, $194)
  • Joya de Nicaragua Añtano CT Robusto (5 x 52) — $8.45 (Box of 20, $169)
  • Joya de Nicaragua Añtano CT Corona Gorda (5 1/4 x 46) — $8 (Box of 20, $160)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: July 2019

Joya de Nicaragua Cinco Décadas Fundador

Last year, Joya de Nicaragua debuted the Cinco Décadas line as part of the company’s 50th anniversary in two different sizes. This year, a third vitola is being added, named the Fundador, which is a 6 x 54 soft-pressed toro extra priced at $20 that is only being offered in the U.S. to stores that are part of the Drew Diplomat Retailer Program.

  • Wrapper: Undisclosed
  • Binder: Undisclosed
  • Filler: Undisclosed
  • Joya de Nicaragua Cinco Décadas Fundador (6 x 54) — $20 (Box of 10, $200)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: July 2019

Joya de Nicaragua Número Uno

The aforementioned number one cigar of 2018 on halfwheel was originally reserved primarily for world leaders and been handed out as gifts by Nicaraguan ambassadors, but is being released as a limited edition later this year. Although it had been given out on a very limited basis last year as an event-only release in the U.S., the new release will be sold only through Drew Diplomat Retail Program brick-and-mortar retailers.

  • Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
  • Binder: Nicaragua
  • Filler: Nicaragua
  • Joya de Nicaragua Número Uno (6 5/8 x 44) — $15 (Box of 25, $375)

Production: 1,500 Boxes of 25 Cigars (37,500 Total Cigars)

Release Date: Fall 2019

Joya de Nicaragua Cuatro Cinco Reserva Especial

Finally, Joya de Nicaragua was showing off the Cuatro Cinco Reserva Especial, a limited, event-only size of the popular blend that debuted in 2015. The new 6 x 54 box-pressed torpedo will be limited to just 1,000 boxes of 10 and will be sold only through Drew Diplomat Retail Program brick-and-mortar retailers.

  • Wrapper: Nicaragua (Jalapa)
  • Binder: Dominican Republic
  • Filler: Nicaragua
  • Joya de Nicaragua Cuatro Cinco Reserva Especial (6 x 54) — $14 (Box of 10, $140)

Production: 1,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars (10,000 Total Cigars)

Release Date: June 2019

Overall Score

Davidoff is the official sponsor of halfwheel's coverage of the 2019 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show.
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Brooks Whittington

I have been smoking cigars for over eight years. A documentary wedding photographer by trade, I spent seven years as a photojournalist for the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star Telegram. I started the cigar blog SmokingStogie in 2008 after realizing that there was a need for a cigar blog with better photographs and more in-depth information about each release. SmokingStogie quickly became one of the more influential cigar blogs on the internet, known for reviewing preproduction, prerelease, rare, extremely hard-to-find and expensive cigars. I am a co-founder of halfwheel and now serve as an editor for halfwheel.