Weekly News (January 16, 2012)

Editor’s Note: So those eighteen posts were what could be described as the first normal week at halfwheel. I am happy to announced that we have added Patrick Lagreid to the halfwheel team. All of us are pleased to have Patrick here and we think he is going to be a perfect fit for what we are trying to do at halfwheel. If you haven’t checked out The Consensus: 2011 Awards, I definitely would, it’s a rather interesting article to say the least. As for the rest of the industry, sales meetings are in full swing through next week, so expect things to be busy. And no, we are not posting the Snoop Dogg press release. — el niño diablo.

• Tatuaje Little Monsters — Pete Johnson announced that he would be releasing the Monster Series in smaller sizes later this year, details are here.
• Viaje Drops Regular Production — The explanation of what moving to only “small batch” means is here.
• Viaje Super Shot — Shotgun Shells got its formal name, more details here.
• Room 101 OSOK Update — Blend info and updated release date were part of Brooks’ review.
• Viaje Platino Samurai Rereleased — The first Viaje of the year landed at BURN Premium Cigar Specialists, you can read about it here.
• La Aurora 107 Puro Vintages Heads to Production — Miami Cigar & Co. announced that this would become a limited release. You can read the review here.
• Chaveta Corona Gorda — According to brand owner Mark Just, expect to see the new size in February.
• Quoroum Gets Double Gordo — Press release here.
• J.C. Newman Debuts New Bundle Brand — Details about Tampa Trolleys here.
• Oliva Raises Prices Again — Details of their second consecutive price increase here.
• The Corona Project Details — I’d expect this to become an ongoing news item, but The Corona Project leaked a bit more details via their Twitter account. Expect a “simple” black and white band, closed foot, no cellophane and some dark and oily wrappers.
• Sen. Mitch McConnell Visits J.C. Newman Factory — The press release of his visit and meeting is here.
• 262 Releases “Revolution” Song — You can listen and download here.
• Update to Corporación Habanos/Xikar Lawsuit — Frank Herrera posted the trial brief for Habanos S.A. in their case against Xikar’s use of Havana Collection.

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. I previously co-founded and published TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry for more than a decade, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. In addition, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff here at halfwheel. I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.