PCA 2021: Rocky Patel Premium Cigars

A couple of days ago I saw someone who works at Rocky Patel. He apologized for not responding to my emails about what new products the company was planning for the trade show. His explanation: one of our products is going to cause so much controversy the company needed to have all of the ducks in a row.

While many booths look and feel a lot different, one of the notable exceptions is the Rocky Patel Premium Cigars, Inc. booth. The tried and tested combination of a grid of display cases surrounded by lots of seating areas is back. It’s the same basic concept I’ve seen from Rocky Patel at every single PCA Convention & Trade Show I’ve been to, and I think it remains the most efficient booth for medium and large companies, both in money and time.

Rocky Patel A.L.R Second Edition Bala Humidor

The 5 3/4 x 58/50 perfecto size that is known as Bala is offered as part of a limited edition humidor. Interestingly, this cigar was offered earlier this year as a limited release for Smoke Inn, though not in humidors.

• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua

• Rocky Patel A.L.R Second Edition Bala (5 3/4 x 58/50) — $24 (Humidor of 100, $2,400)

Production: 250 Humidors of 100 Cigars (25,000 Total Cigars)

Release Date: August 2021

Rocky Patel Disciple

If there’s a new release that is going to get lost in the shuffle, here it is. This is yet another release that uses Mexican San Andrés wrapper over a Nicaraguan binder and Nicaraguan fillers and is rolled at the TAVICUSA factory.

It’s described as “medium-to-full bodied” and is a bit more affordable than the Sixty by Rocky Patel, which is also the same basic tobacco descriptions, though not the same blend.

• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua

• Rocky Patel Disciple Robusto (5 x 50) — $10.50 (Box of 20, $210)
• Rocky Patel Disciple Toro (6 x 520) — $11.50 (Box of 20, $230)
• Rocky Patel Disciple Bala (5 3/4 x 58/50) — $12 (Box of 20, $240)
• Rocky Patel Disciple Sixty (6 x 60) — $13 (Box of 20, $260)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: September 2021

Rocky Patel Number 6 Humidor

Unlike the other humidors in the booth, this doesn’t come with cigars. The humidors are the same size as the Sixty and the Golf Humidors, designed for up to 125 cigars.

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: August 2021

Rocky Patel White Label

On April 20, Rocky Patel’s trademark for “White Label” was published for opposition. Somehow, it appears that no one managed to get this successfully opposed, though I—not an attorney—imagine Viaje could have had something to say about this.

The Connecticut-wrapped, white-banded cigar at the $19-21 price point is going to likely set off a nerve at Davidoff and probably to a lesser degree Altadis U.S.A. This also means Steve Saka’s prediction of  Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust having the “most controversial cigar of the trade show” has been proven wrong.

This is also being produced at TAVICUSA.

• Wrapper: U.S.A. (Connecticut)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Honduras (Jamastran Valley), Nicaragua & Undisclosed

• Rocky Patel White Label Robusto (5 x 50) — $19 (Box of 20, $380)
• Rocky Patel White Label Robusto Toro (6 1/2 x 52) — $20 (Box of 20, $400)
• Rocky Patel White Label Robusto Churchill (7 x 48) — $20 (Box of 20, $400)
• Rocky Patel White Label Robusto Sixty (6 x 60) — $21 (Box of 20, $420)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: October 2021

Sixty by Rocky Patel

Earlier this year Rocky Patel, the person, celebrated his 60th birthday. As he’s done for his 50th and 55th birthdays, that meant a new line of cigars to commemorate the occasion. Like the rest of his new cigars, this is coming from the TAVCIUSA factory.

There is also a humidor that comes with 100 of the Toros. The cigars are the same as the regular version, though there’s a bit of an added cost for the humidor as the MSRP for the total package is $2,500.

• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua

• Sixty by Rocky Patel Robusto (5 1/2 x 50) — $16 (Box of 20, $320)
• Sixty by Rocky Patel Toro (6 1/2 x 52) — $17 (Box of 10, $340)
• Sixty by Rocky Patel Sixty (6 x 60) — $18 (Box of 10, $360)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: August 2021

Tubeaux

This is a new concept from Rocky Patel, Altadis U.S.A., Drew Estate and Oliva. Retailers can pick between four different humidor display options, which will allow from 4-16 different SKUs to be displayed. As the name implies, it’s made to display tubos.

Some of the Rocky Patel cigars offered as part of the Tubeaux program are actually exclusive, like the Rocky Patel Sixty Toro Tubo.

For retailers, the upside here is that the humidors allow for more lines to be displayed in a much, much smaller footprint than would otherwise be possible if these cigars were being sold in traditional trays or countertop humidors.