PCA 2023: Blackbird Cigar Co.

I have to admit that when I walked by Blackbird Cigar Co.’s booth the first time, it didn’t strike me as a cigar booth. The trussing, lighting, TV screens and banners made me think more of something I’d see at the NAMM Trade Show, which is geared towards music stores.

But yes, there were cigars inside, a new line of three cigars that was born out of a mistake made at the factory.

Blackbird’s booth was located along two of the main aisleways of the trade show this year, leading to a lot of foot traffic walking by and what seemed to be a fair amount of attention caught by the booth’s truss-based design, an aesthetic that I also saw utilized by West Tampa Tobacco Co.

Blackbird GLITCH Claro

As the story behind the GLITCH line goes, Papo El Caballo—the nickname of Blackbird’s blender—was away from the factory and returned to check in on a blend. He smoked it and found that the blend was not correct. As it turns out, a new employee had written the wrong codes on two different types of tobacco. When the blend was being put together, one tobacco was mistakenly used for the other, and the end result was a different cigar than what was intended. Hence, a glitch in the process occurred, but those who smoked the mistakenly blended cigars thought they were pretty good, so some refinements were made, and a new cigar line was born.

• Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut)
• Binder: Mexico
• Filler: Dominican Republic & U.S.A.

• Blackbird GLITCH Claro Robusto (5 x 50) — $6.10 (Box of 20, $122)
• Blackbird GLITCH Claro Toro (6 x 52) — $6.60 (Box of 20, $132)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: June 1, 2023

Blackbird GLITCH Habano

This blend swaps the Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper found on the Claro for an Ecuadorian habano leaf, while keeping the sizes and prices the same.

• Wrapper: Ecuador (Habano)
• Binder: Mexico
• Filler: Dominican Republic & U.S.A.

• Blackbird GLITCH Habano Robusto (5 x 50) — $6.10 (Box of 20, $122)
• Blackbird GLITCH Habano Toro (6 x 52) — $6.60 (Box of 20, $132)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: June 1, 2023

Blackbird GLITCH Oscuro

Rounding out the trio, the GLITCH Oscuro uses a Mexican San Andrés wrapper leaf, while the binder differs from the other two in that it is from the Dominican Republic. Despite the changes, pricing remains the same as the other two variations.

• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Dominican Republic
• Filler: Dominican Republic & U.S.A.

• Blackbird GLITCH Oscuro Robusto (5 x 50) — $6.10 (Box of 20, $122)
• Blackbird GLITCH Oscuro Toro (6 x 52) — $6.60 (Box of 20, $132)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: June 1, 2023