Tony Bellatto’s latest project isn’t coming out under the La Barba header, but he says that shouldn’t lead to any doubts about the quality of Siempre Tambroil, a project he describes as a happy accident.

In the summer of 2014, Bellatto was on a trip with several friends to Tabacalera William Ventura in the Dominican Republic with the intent of beginning the blending process on the company’s Purple line, the second in the La Barba portfolio which was released in the second half of 2014. Henderson Ventura introduced the group to a crop of tobacco they weren’t expecting to work with and which they soon realized a cigar needed to be based around.

Siempre Tamboril uses an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper and a blend of Dominican corojo ligero and Dominican Habano Vuelta Abajo seco, Bellatto says the cigar could easily be an everyday choice for any smoker.

Bellatto is limiting the release to just a handful of retailers, and while the cigar isn’t limited, he is only producing it in batches of 2,000 cigars in each of the four sizes so he can maintain a high level of quality control. He says he would like to keep each run under 10,000 cigars.

Siempre Tamorbil sizes

The first run is available in four vitolas, a 4 x 42 Perla ($4.50), a 5 x 50 robusto ($6.95), 6 x 50 toro ($7.50) and 6 x 60 double toro ($7.95). The first run is being shipped without bands or boxes, but the second batch will be banded. Boxes remain a possibility, though Bellatto said he didn’t want to have to increase the price, so the discussion remains an ongoing one.

Bellatto Siempre Tamboril cigars

The cigars began shipping to retailers in March, and a pair of stores — Fine Ash Cigars in Avondale, Ariz. and Havana House West in Bath, Ohio — will soon be getting an exclusive corona vitola with a yet-to-be finalized price.

 

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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.