IPCPR 2019: Southern Draw

Southern Draw made it clear a few months ago: the 2019 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show would be a big one for the company. On May 22, Robert Holt emailed the media with a press release that he described as the first of “five or six” press releases. As it turns out, the company had eight different lines that are either new or receiving extensions.

As it turns out, the easiest way to make your booth look busy is to make sure that it’s not bigger than it needs to be. I gather Robert Holt and Christian Eiroa have the same approach to this: make the booth about 10 percent smaller than it probably needs to be. Yes, you can walk around the Southern Draw booth, but like the CLE booth, it’s cramped. There probably was less than 15 people in the Southern Draw booth when I was there, but it felt like the busiest booth on the trade show floor—with 15 people.

Southern Draw Kudzu LUSTRUM

This cigar celebrates the fifth anniversary of Southern Draw. The plan is to release LUSTRUM every five years. There’s also a 6 x 52 toro in this blend that is available exclusively at JR Cigars/Casa de Montecristo.

• Wrapper: Nicaragua (Ometepe Medio Tiempo)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua

• Southern Draw Kudzu LUSTRUM (5 1/2 x 52) — $11.89 (Bundle of 10, $118.90)

Production: 2,500 Bundles of 10 Cigars (25,000 Total Cigars)

Launch Date: July 10, 2019

Southern Draw IGNITE Private Blend #1 Connecticut

The follow-up to last year’s IGNITE Series is actually three different cigars, each offered in a single size. IGNITE is Southern Draw’s charitable cigar series and for this release75 cents per cigar will be donated to the Navy SEAL Foundation. There will be a total of 50,000 cigars released under the IGNITE Series in 2019 meaning the donation should be $37,500.

• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua

• Southern Draw IGNITE Private Blend #1 Connecticut (7 1/2 x 50) — $9.99 (Jar of 10, $99.90)

Production: 800 Jars of 10 Cigars and 300 Bundles of 10 Cigars (11,0000 Total Cigars)

Launch Date: June 2019

Southern Draw IGNITE Private Blend #3 Habano

This is described by Southern Draw as medium.

• Wrapper: Ecuador
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Brazil & Nicaragua

• Southern Draw IGNITE Private Blend #3 Habano (7 1/2 x 50) — $9.99 (Jar of 10, $99.90)

Production: 800 Jars of 10 Cigars and 300 Bundles of 10 Cigars (11,0000 Total Cigars)

Launch Date: June 2019

Southern Draw IGNITE Private Blend #4 Corojo

The Corojo is the strongest of the trio according to Southern Draw, described as “medium-plus” in flavor.

• Wrapper: Honduras (Corojo 99)
• Binder: Nicaragua (Corojo 99)
• Filler: Honduras & Nicaragua (Corojo 99)

• Southern Draw IGNITE Private Blend #4 Corojo (5 x 50) — $9.99 (Jar of 10, $99.90)

Production: 800 Jars of 10 Cigars and 300 Bundles of 10 Cigars (11,0000 Total Cigars)

Launch Date: June 2019

Southern Draw Jacobs Ladder Brimstone

There’s a broadleaf wrapper, a broadleaf binder and three ligero fillers. Normally, that would sound like a recipe for something that would not burn, but it burns great according to Holt. It’s limited to 150,000 total cigars annually, which is technically limited but also a rather large production of cigars.

• Wrapper: U.S.A. (Pennsylvania Broadleaf)
• Binder: U.S.A.
• Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua

• Southern Draw Jacobs Ladder Brimstone (6 x 56) — $11.99 (Box of 20, $239.80)

Production: Regular Production

Launch Date: July 2019

Not pictured.

Southern Draw 300 Hands Connecticut

The 300 Hands/Manos project gets its third blend in the form of a Connecticut. I’m a bit curious to see how this gets merchandised, as the original 300 Hands cigars are made to be displayed in a singular display tray.

• Wrapper: U.S.A. (Connecticut)
• Binder: Peru
• Filler: Nicaragua

• Southern Draw 300 Hands Connecticut Petit Edmundo (4 3/4 x 52) — $5.99 (Bundle of 10, $59.99)
• Southern Draw 300 Hands Connecticut Coloniales (5 1/4 x 44) — $6.19 (Bundle of 10, $61.99)
• Southern Draw 300 Hands Connecticut Corona Gorda (5 5/8 x 46) — $6.29 (Bundle of 10, $62.99)
• Southern Draw 300 Hands Connecticut Piramides (6 1/8 x 52) — $6.39 (Bundle of 10, $63.99)
• Southern Draw 300 Hands Connecticut Churchill (7 x 48) — $6.49 (Bundle of 10, $64.99)

Production: Regular Production

Launch Date: Aug. 2, 2019

Southern Draw Cedrus Extensions

Southern Draw’s Cedrus line gets three new sizes this year.

• Wrapper: Indonesia (Sumatra Besuki TBN)
• Binder: Nicaragua (Habano 2000 Estelï)
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Piloto Cubano Viso) & Nicaragua (Criollo 98 Viso Estelí, Nicaraguan Habano 92 Quilali and Nicaraguan Corojo 99 Ligero Jalapa)

• Southern Draw Cedrus Robusto (5 1/2 x 54) — $11.99 (Box of 20, $239.80)
• Southern Draw Cedrus Toro (6 x 52) — $12.49 (Box of 20, $249.80)
• Southern Draw Cedrus Gordo (6 1/2 x 60) — $12.99 (Box of 20, $259.80)

Production: Regular Production

Launch Date: Aug. 2, 2019

Southern Draw Rose of Sharon Desert Rose

As a nod to the trade show’s location in Las Vegas, the company is adding the Desert Rose to the Rose of Sharon line. It’s a box-pressed torpedo that features a new filler blend that makes this vitola more robust than the original. While it’s an ongoing production, the company is producing 75,000 cigars this year before upping that amount to 150,000 cigars in both 2020 and 2021.

• Wrapper: Ecuador
• Binder: Nicaragua (Condega Habano)
• Filler: Dominican Republic (Piloto Cubano) and Honduras (Corojo 99)

• Southern Draw Rose of Sharon Desert Rose (5 1/2 x 52) — $11.99 (Box of 10, $119.99)

Production: Regular Production

Launch Date: July 2019

New Packaging

Southern Draw will be introducing new packaging, like the above, for its lines. It says that it faced a patent dispute regarding the split top boxes it previously used for lines like Cedrus.

The new packaging will begin shipping to retailers this month.