Noel Rojas has made no secret of his preference for small ring gauge cigars, and his newest line is doubling down on both that and his ability to make them.

Rojas recently told halfwheel that on March 1 he will be releasing a new project called KSG, which stands for King of the Small Gauge. It is a 7 1/2 x 38 lancero that features tobaccos from a developing region of Nicaragua called Somoto, about 55 miles northwest of Estelí near the Honduran border. Rojas is using the tobacco for the binder and filler, with additional Nicaraguan tobacco in the filler, all wrapped in a five-year-old Ecuadorian maduro leaf. The cigar is being made at the Flor de San Luis factory in Esteli, Nicaragua.

Pricing is still being confirmed, but Rojas said it will be between $7.95 and $9.95 per cigar. It will also be offered in 14-count boxes, a departure from the 20-count boxes that his other two lines, Rojas Bluebonnets and Rojas Statement, are currently offered. Production is being limited to 5,000 cigars, which works out to just over 350 boxes.

Update (March 25, 2020) — Rojas told halfwheel that the release of these cigars has been delayed until mid-April, citing delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pictures courtesy of Noel Rojas/Rojas Cigars LLC.

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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, 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.