As David Ortiz enters the final months of his career as a professional baseball player, he is about to enter the first month as the namesake for a new line of premium cigars.

Well known by the nickname “Big Papi,” Ortiz has teamed up with El Artista Cigars to bring a new cigar called Big Papi to retail shelves. The cigar uses an Ecuadorian habano claro wrapper, criollo 98 binder and fillers from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. El Artista calls it a medium bodied smoke with notes of pepper, chestnut and cream. The cigar comes in a 6 x 54 toro vitola, with the band bearing a silhouette of Ortiz pointing to the sky in his hallmark tribute to his mother.

Tabacalera El Artista Big Papi feature 2

“We are honored Mr. Ortiz selected us to make his cigar with him,” said Radhames Rodriguez, president of El Artista Cigars via a press release. “David Ortiz is a true believer of the thought that celebrations keep friends together; we know the blend for Big Papi will bring together fans of David Ortiz with friends of fine cigars”.

Jonas Santana, marketing manager for El Artista, added that “this is an exceptional blend of tobaccos for an exceptional ball player.”

Pricing and production numbers have not yet been announced, but are expected to be prior to the launch of the cigar at the 2016 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show in Las Vegas, which runs July 25-28. The cigar will ship immediately after the trade show and is expected to be available in retail stores as of Aug. 1.

Davidoff is the official sponsor of halfwheel's coverage of the 2016 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show.
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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 and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, 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.