PCA 2022: Elie Bleu

Like S.T.Dupont, the Elie Bleu booth is one of my absolute favorites to visit as a spectator, but covering the booth is challenging, hence why this will be my last booth published from PCA 2022. It’s actually quite similar to my experience at S.T.Dupont, another luxury French cigar accessory company: there are a lot of new items, detail elements to worry about, and some of the new items aren’t really designed for the American market, meaning they may not be completely new, but just making their first American appearance. The sheer number of new products and the different prices and ship dates for those items means that my normal approach these days is to photograph what I’m told is new and then contact Rëyns International, Elie Bleu’s U.S. distributor, after the trade show to get more details. Unfortunately, I waited until the last minute to send that email, so it’s my fault some of the information is missing. I’ll update this post when I hear back with the details.

The Elie Bleu booth hasn’t changed in years and I’ve come to appreciate it as a photographer. While there’s a sharp difference in lighting between the smaller accessories that are in cases with very blue LED lights and the humidors that sit on top, it’s probably for the better. Most years Elie Bleu has a showpiece that is exciting partially due to the surprise; this year’s showpiece was less surprising given that Elie Bleu announced it last year: the OpusX 25 Cabinet Humidor.

If you are hoping for more collaborations from Elie Bleu—which has worked with Altadis U.S.A., Arturo Fuente, Boveda, My Father and Oliva in recent years—there will likely be more. During my booth visit, Tatuaje’s Pete Johnson was talking to Micahel Reynolds of Rëyns Internation about an anniversary humidor.

360 Scissor by Elie Bleu

This is a new cigar cutter design called “360 Scissor” which refers more to the action than mimicking the design of a traditional pair of cigar scissors. You place your fingers into the handles like you would a pair of scissors, open the handles, which move like Pac-Man’s mouth. The end result is that it’s basically a double guillotine cutter, except that there’s a hinge on the side of where the blades meet, hence the Pacman comparison.

One thing I was concerned about when I saw this cutter announced was whether the resistance would be too loose when opening and closing the blades. Elie Bleu says it worked on finding the right resistance and it felt great in the hand. The obvious next question is how it will hold up over time.

It’s offered in four finishes, though one of the cutters pictured above isn’t going to be a production version. The cutter on the right side doesn’t appear to be part of what will ship to stores, instead, there will be a silver-version of the vertical line model.

MSRP: $290

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: September 2022

Elie Bleu Alba EBC-4 & J-14

The Alba collection, which Elie Bleu has used on humidors for years is now making its way onto lighters and cutters. The J-15 lighter is a single-flame lighter that is ignited by triggering the lid. There’s an optional leather case for $60.

It’s also coming to the EBC-4 cutter, a double guillotine cutter that can cut a 54 ring gauge cigar in half and handle cigars up to 60-64 ring gauge.

MSRP: $230 (EBC-4) & $240 (J-15)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: August 2022

Elie Bleu Casa Cubana Cabinet

I don’t think the Casa Cubana Cabinet is new, but I’m told that the inside of the cabinet now features a painted piece, which is new for this year. The humidor measures 12.2 x 8.66 x 17.72 inches, which Elie Bleu describes as good enough to hold 150 cigars, which seems a bit conservative at least per the normal humidor math. It comes with two humidifiers.

Please note, for some of these items I’ve used the prices listed on Elie Bleu’s European website. They may not be the same as the actual U.S. MSRPs.

Est. Price: €12,500 ($12,775)

Production: Limited to 88 Pieces

Release Date: On Sale Now

Elie Bleu Casa Cubana El Secadero (2022)

The El Secadero humidor is not new, but there are some minor updates for 2022. For example, the color of the leaves are now green instead of brown, and the dog’s collar is a different color. The humidor measures 11.81 x 8.27 x 7.28 inches, rated for 110 cigars. It comes with two humidifiers and a hygrometer.

Est. Price: €3,317 ($3,390)

Production: Limited to 99 Pieces

Release Date: On Sale Now

Elie Bleu Haute Couture Limited Edition Casa Cubana J-14

The J-14 single-flame lighter gets a special colorway that includes not only Casa Cubana artwork but also a black ion plating finish, which means the black finish should not chip or fade over time.

MSRP: $550

Production: Limited to 159 Pieces

Release Date: October/November 2022

Elie Bleu Casa Cubana Blue/Yellow Accessories

The single-flame J-15 lighter and EBC-4 cutter are now offered in both blue and yellow Casa Cubana finishes. Unfortunately, I don’t have details about pricing and ship dates.

Elie Bleu Red Tiger Humidor

This is one of three tiger-themed humidors, presumably in celebration of 2022 being the year of the tiger on the Chinese zodiac calendar. This humidor measures 19.1 x 10.6 x 4.1 inches, rated for 110 cigars. It’s a stunning piece in person with a bright red bird’s eye maple wood with the tiger added in marquetry.

I am not sure exactly when this debuted, but it’s already on sale in Europe. There is also a black version of this humidor at the same price.

Est. Price: €3,806 ($3,890)

Production: Limited to 88 Pieces

Release Date: 2022

Elie Bleu Tiger Walnut Flamed Humidor

I’m not sure what “French flame walnut” is, but it’s a very pretty wood on this humidor. This is substantially larger than the red humidor, measuring 22.9 x 12.7 x 5.7 inches, which is rated for 250 cigars. It’s so big that there are three included humidifiers, that’s more than the aforementioned Casa Cubana cabinet. The walnut has a pattern that mimics the stripes of a tiger and like the red humidor, there’s a tiger in marquetry.

Est. Price: €5,630 ($5,750)

Production: Limited to 88 Pieces

Release Date: 2022

Elie Bleu / Fuente Fuente OpusX 25 Humidor Cabinet

This is the final piece in the collaboration between Elie Bleu and Arturo Fuente to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Fuente Fuente OpusX, which took place in 2020. Last year, this particular humidor was just a rendering but now the humidor is here in person. There are a lot of ways to describe it, but if I had to pick one word, it would be “dramatic.” The size of this humidor—24 inches tall x 15 inches in length and 15 inches in width—and the materials used—particularly the bronze accent pieces—make it impossible for you to ignore the humidor. It’s big and bold.

Material-wise, it’s made of red gum and uses marquetry extensively. Michael Reynolds told me that Rëyns actually makes the accent pieces in the U.S.—the company is also involved in the jewelry business—and sends the pieces to France where they are applied.

I’m not sure this will matter for any of the potential buyers, but the price increased by roughly $9,000 compared to when the humidor was announced last year with an MSRP of $70,000.

One thing I’m a bit surprised by is that the interior still has some exposed cedar. Given the fact that most of the surfaces you see when the humidor doors are open are finished, I’m surprised the rest of it wasn’t finished for a cleaner appearance. I have an old Altadis U.S.A. humidor that is also a cabinet and the humidor is fully finished so that when you open it up the wood is the same as the exterior though once you pull the drawers, it’s mostly Spanish cedar. I think it makes a big difference in terms of appearance, but maybe that’s just me.

Each humidor comes with 144 Fuente Fuente OpusX 25 cigars along with the Elie Bleu OpusX 25th accessories (lighter and cigar scissors). Those cigars are only available for sale in either this humidor, the other OpusX 25 humidor that Elie Bleu sold last year, or I suppose the ultra-limited Impossible Collection sampler that Fuente has sold for charity. The humidor was designed by Elie Bleu and Manny Iriarte.

The bottom drawer has specific foam trays for said accessories. Also down there in the back is a compartment that is designed for the included Cigar Oasis electronic humidifier.

And then on the back, there’s a finished port for the power cable.

MSRP: $79,000

Production: 25 Humidors

Release Date: TBA

Elie Bleu J-11 New Finishes

There are two new finishes for the J-11. The most notable change is that it’s a single color scheme now because most of the top section is in the same color as the rest of the body. The earlier versions of this lighter have used a chrome piece where the “Elie Bleu” text is; now that’s painted and just the very top piece remains chrome.

This is a single-flame lighter that works by pushing down on one side of the lid, which activates the piezo and lights the torch flame.

Elie Bleu J-12 New Finishes

I think all of these finishes may be new for the J-12 lighter, which has traditionally be sold in a dual-color scheme for the most part. Unfortunately, I haven’t gotten that confirmed and don’t have more details, but I’ll update the post when I get more information.

The J-12 is a flat flame lighter that has a bit of a deceiving appearance. It looks like the lighter has a flip-up lid, but it doesn’t. Just activate the side ignition and a very wide flame emerges. It also has a fuel window on the side.

Elie Bleu J-14 Diamond Jetflame

The J-14 lighter gets one of the more sinister finishes you’ll see. This was not the easiest lighter to photograph. Once again, when I get more details I’ll update the post.