Weekly News (September 19, 2011)

Editor’s Note: Quietly, there are a few people beginning to wonder about the IPCPR show in Orlando next year. The main reason for the concern is that Orlando’s City Council (and Mayor) have been on anti-smoking crusade as of late. The IPCPR published this press release days before Orlando’s City Council unanimously passed a resolution encouraging residents from not smoking in public places. It should be clear, it does not ban smoking in public places, but that’s largely because the city doesn’t actually have the authority to do so. That’s why the City Council has asked the state to grant them that power. Jeff Borysiewicz, the owner of Corona Cigar and largely the reason why the trade show is going to Orlando, is one of the best when it comes to following legislation and has been featured in numerous local news stories, but there’s still room for concern amongst some. — el niño diablo.

• Viaje Shotgun Shells — These are coming in January 2012, nothing more than that at this time.
• Tampa Sweetheart’s New Lounge — Later this year, Tampa Sweetheart’s will be opening up a new lounge in Tampa, FL. This is somewhat big news as Tampa Sweetheart’s is connected to the Fuente family. There’s still no word on an exact opening date, but the lounge will be located in historic Ybor City. The Fuente family has connections to two other retailers, Casa Fuente at the Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace and Holt’s in Philadelphia.
• H. Upmann Royal Robusto & Cohiba 1966 Ship — That is at least the word from Habanos S.A. More info, here.
• Habanos S.A. 2012 Releases — Trevor Leask has a pretty good list of the 2012 Habanos releases, Romeo y Julieta Churchill Reserva, anyone?
• Changes at AVO, Griffin’s & Winston Churchill — Info here on who is taking over the positions held by Edward Simon.
• Casa Fernandez Moves Production — I spoke with Paul Palmer earlier this week who broke down the changes. All Casa Fernandez production has been moved to their new Miami factory, which contains a handful of Level 7 (or higher) rollers. Casa Fernandez Arsenio production is just starting and the Casa Fernandez Lancero, which is as of this moment still made at Raíces Cubanas, will be rolled in Miami by the end of the year.

• Gran Habano Zulu Zulu — The limited edition Lanceros are scheduled to ship this week.
• Crowned Heads Four Kicks Packaging — It’s officially official via Michael Trebing. These are scheduled for November.

Andre Farkas took to Facebook to clear up some things regarding Skull and Bones:

There seems to be a lot of misinformation out there regarding S & B, so lets clear a few things up. Skull & Bones was created for those demanding something on the STRONGER side of the spectrum. So, in response I developed S & B White. After the release of Daisy Cutter we received emails, calls, requests, etc. from some of you asking if S & B White was my best shot at strength. In other words, the cigar was strong, but not strong enough. A taunt if you will. So, up to the challenge I started blending S & B Red. This quickly silenced those needing their strength fix. Side note; Those that find S & B Red’s strength overpowering shouldn’t be smoking that cigar. It was designed to be STRONG. Little Boy is 4.25 X 52 and Fat Man is 4.25 X 56 despite what has been written. Why the smaller format? Because anything bigger would be overkill. Same rationale for S & B White and Zombie. S & B Red will be released in one form or another every year, but not at the IPCPR. Jumping ahead, MOAB will no longer exist in Red, but will be available in White next year. Reason – MOAB is non nuclear. S & B Red is nuclear only. In addition, Fat Man & Little Boy will always be released together as part of the Manhattan Project. S & B ? Mystery with glow in the dark bands will be released annually in October, although this years release will see a new addition. Why Mystery? Because the October release will feature a mystery shape each year. I hope this helps. Done and done.

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.