Rocky Patel Ships The 1865 Project

The first of three new Rocky Patel lines for 2022 is heading to stores this week.

It’s the Rocky Patel The 1865 Project, a project that benefits the The Juneteenth Foundation, a 501(c)3 charity that seeks to not only celebrate the federal holiday of Juneteenth but also help Black Americans in other ways through events, scholarships and other programs. The cigar uses a Mexican San Andrés wrapper dual binders from Honduras and Nicaragua and fillers from Nicaragua. It is rolled at the company’s factory in Estelí, Nicaragua, Tabacalera Villa Cuba S.A.

• Rocky Patel The 1865 Project Robusto — $12 (Box of 20, $240)
• Rocky Patel The 1865 Project Toro — $13 (Box of 20, $260)
• Rocky Patel The 1865 Project Sixty — $14 (Box of 20, $280)

A portion of the proceeds from the sale of these cigars are donated to The Juneteenth Foundation, a charity that Patel is involved with personally. The charity is a reference to June 19, 1865, a day when a U.S. Army general proclaimed to slaves in south Texas that they were free. The day is celebrated as the time in which the last slaves were informed of their freedom, albeit, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Last year, President Joe Biden signed into law a bill making June 19th a federal holiday.

The company had hoped to ship the cigars to stores earlier but Hurricane Ian hit Rocky Patel Premium Cigars, Inc., which is based in Naples. While the company’s headquarters initially lost power, Nish Patel, the company’s executive vice-president, told halfwheel that its operations are back to normal though some employees are without internet or television.