CigarCoop

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was the third one for Ferio Tego. This year Ferio Tego did not have any new products being showcased a the Trade Show. At the same time, this still was a busy past 12-months for Ferio Tego. Timeless Panamericana and Timeless Prestige both received line extensions. Meanwhile Ferio Tego introduced its first eponymous regular production offering with Summa. This gave us a good opportunity to catch up with Michael and also gave Michael a chance to participate in "Let's Get Pairing". PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-szX

In a lot of ways, the theme for Rocky Patel Premium Cigars at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show picked up where last year left off. Gone are the days where Rocky Patel would release half a dozen new vitolas each year and now the company is focusing on a couple of releases. Like last year, there was one premium cigar released coming in around the $10 to $13.00 range with Gold Label. Meanwhile, there is an ultra-premium release with Year of the Dragon. While the ultra-premium release isn't close to the price point of the $100.0o Rocky Patel Conviction, it still comes it at a $35.00 price point. The other thing that has not changed is that Rocky Patel himself always makes time to talk to our team, and he is showing no signs of losing his passion for the cigar industry. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-szS

After being a part of the Sutliff Distribution booth the past three years, Matilde Cigars was in its own booth for the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. The booth highlighted several bold colors which have become a staple of Matilde's packaging. Owner Enrique Seijas has certainly been active releasing a new core line (Serena Maduro) and the small batch Limited Exposure series. This year, Seijas gave attendees a preview of another small batch series, the Matilde Special Edition and introduced a new fresh pack sampler. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-szb

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was the third one form Joshua and Cynn Coburn as the owner of Dissident Cigars. The brand was a part of the Oveja Negra Brands booth since Dissident was resurrected back in 2019. Meanwhile, as Dissident has done the previous two years, the Coburns came into PCA with a limited edition cigar. This year's limited edition is Dissident Plasmatic, a tribute to the late trash-punk rocker Wendy O. Williams and her band the Plasmatics. The whole punk rock theme of the Williams and Plasmatics was a perfect theme with the rebellious nature of the brand. The boys from Let's Get Pairing caught up with brand owner Joshua Coburn. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sz1

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show again saw Plasencia Cigars as one of the busiest booths. This is no surprise, as the booth has been one of the most popular ever since Plasencia Cigars launched its brand at the 2017 IPCPR Show. In fact, the booth was named PCA's Best Medium-Sized Booth. In addition, the Cigar Coop team recognized Plasencia's booth as one of the top booths. This year, Plasencia showcased a new line extension to its Plasencia 149 line called Cortez. It's a line that CEO Nestor Andrés Plasencia says not only allows his family to showcase some of the best tobacco but puts the spotlight on Honduras as well. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-syp

HVC Cigars had three new offerings at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. It's been almost two years since HVC opened its own factory, Fabrica de Tabacos HVC S.A. Not only has the factory proven in a short time it can deliver quality products, but it has allowed HVC to expand its horizons in terms of the tobaccos it is using. There is the new HVC Hot Cake Fresh from the Oven Broadleaf which as the name suggests brings a Broadleaf wrapper blend to the Hot Cake line. In addition, there is the new HVC Selección No. 1 Connecticut Shade - which is the second Connecticut Shade line in as many years for HVC. Finally, last year's Connecticut Shade line, the Hot Cake Golden Line gets a new size in the form of a Half Corona. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sy0

Visiting the Cavalier Genève booth is always fun; the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was no exception. The past three years have been quite busy for Cavalier Genève. The company has made moves toward vertical integration by opening its own factory and setting up its own distribution. New brands have also been formed, such as Inner Circle and Tres Delincuentes. This year has seen Cavalier turn its focus back to its core eponymous brand. The company came into the 2024 PCA with two new line extensions to its core lines. While sometimes line extensions can be mundane, Cavalier Genève's new ones are anything but that. The company has taken the time to introduce two new sizes that are pretty different from its other offerings. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sxB

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show is the eighth one for JRE Tobacco Co. Every year, the booth is one of the busiest at the Trade Show, and 2024 was no exception. JRE's focus has been innovation over the past four to five years. JRE used the PCA Trade Show to launch two new innovative lines: the Aladino Fuma Noche and Aladino Cameroon Reserva. In addition, a sixth size was introduced to the Aladino Maduro. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sx9

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was special for Topper Cigars. For starters, the company is celebrating its 130th anniversary. As such, Topper is releasing the Topper 1894 to mark the occasion. However, it's more than just marking an anniversary milestone. Recently, Chris Topper, President of Topper Cigar, found historical documents confirming the company’s inception traces back to 1894. As a result, Topper is established as the longest-standing family-owned cigar company in America, solidifying the company's rich history in U.S. tobacco. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-swr

Chazz Palminteri was at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show with his A Bronx Tale brand. 2023 saw Palminteri team up with Epic Cigars’ Dean Parsons and La Casa Grande’s Paul DiSilvio for the first A Bronx Tale release. The original Bronx Tale release was a limited edition. This year, Palminteri and company are launching a new line at PCA 2024 – A Bronx Tale Calogero. While it’s still being done in conjunction with Parsons and DiSilvo, the big difference is Calogero is a full-time regular production line. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-svV

Casa de Sueños would celebrate its 5th anniversary at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. Casa de Sueños was formed in 2018 by a group of cigar enthusiasts based in California called the LG Cigar Club. They hooked up with the De Los Reyes factory in the Dominican Republic to produce their brands. The name “Casa de Sueños” translates to House of Dreams, which is appropriate for this group that fulfilled a dream of launching a cigar company. Casa de Sueños was a part of the De Los Reyes booth at PCA 2024 and unveiled a special limited edition cigar to mark the milestone. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-svx

At the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, Gran Habano Cigars had one of the most unique themes at this year's Trade Show - leather. Gran Habano showcased three unique offerings this year - each presented in a beautiful leather case. One of the offerings was the long-awaited Corojo No. 7. At the same time, there are also some new twists on some Gran Habano favorites, which are also packaged in leather. 2023 was undoubtedly a banner year for Gran Habano, capped off by winning the El Oso Fumar #1 Cigar of the Year with the 20th Aniversario El Sueno. Based on what we saw for 2024, the sky is certainly the limit for Gran Habano. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-svc

Altadis U.S.A. was a busy booth at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. Plenty of new or newly released products were showcased. Leading the way was the ultra-premium Montecristo 1935 Anniversary Edición Noble Diamonte and a special release celebrating the 180th anniversary of H. Upmann. At the same time, there are projects among many of the other brands under Altadis U.S.A. It should be no surprise that Altadis U.S.A. got off to a fast start, given its banner year in 2023. Consequently, this resulted in a 2023 Large Company of the Year award for Altadis and its parent company, Tabacalera USA, and a 2023 Person of the Year award for Vice President of Product Capability Rafael Nodal. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-suu

Tonight on Prime Time Episode 302 we celebrate our seven year anniversary and welcome Klaas Kelner back to the show. Klaas comes from one of the world’s most renowned families when it comes to tobacco. Last year, Klaas took the step into opening his own factory. We’ll discuss how that story and much more. Plus, we have our FSG Beef Segments, Altadis USA’s Ties the Bind, Alec Bradley Live True, Espinosa This Day in Sports History, and, of course, the Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust Deliberation Segment.

De Los Reyes is always a fun stop at the Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, but this year things were even more exciting. For over a decade Cigar Coop has covered De Los Reyes, but for the most part the focus has been on its Saga brand. While there is a new blend for the long-time Saga No 7 line, it’s De Los Reyes’ other brand Don Julio that is taking center stage at PCA 2024. The Don Julio line pays homage to Don Julio Samuel Reyes Fermin, a third-generation member of the Reyes family who was known as one of the legendary growers in the industry. Don Julio has two new releases that are the first major releases under Don Julio in over a decade. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-stN

Coming into the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, My Father Cigars had already had an exciting year. Not only did the company win the Cigar Coop 2023 Cigar of the Year with the Le Bijou 1922 100 Años, but for the second year in a row, My Father Cigars was our Large Factory of the Year. This year, the momentum continued, highlighted by the launch of the Fonseca MX Edition. In addition, there was the national launch of the Don Pepin Vintage Edition and a new size for El Centurion H-2K-CT. Perhaps the most exciting news would be plans for the Le Bijou 1922 100 Años to make a return. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-stf

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show marked the return of Drew Estate to the Trade Show. Drew Estate certainly didn't miss a beat when it came to the Trade Show. The booth was chock full of excitement, traffic, and loud music. However, this was still a very different trade show for Drew Estate. In the past, Drew Estate was known for launching a slew of new product offerings at the PCA Show. This year, Drew Estate only came into PCA 2024 with one new product, the Blackened S84 Shade to Black. Despite it being only one product, this year still had all the energy of the days when Drew Estate would launch many new products. In fact, for a large company launching only one new product, I cannot remember any company doing it in a grander way. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-st4

We catch up with Sweet Amber Distilling Master Distiller Rob Dietrich at the Drew Estate booth at PCA 2024.

Kristoff Cigars would use the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show to celebrate its 20th anniversary. As a result, the company is coming with its 20th Anniversary Cigar, the Veinte. While as excited as Kristoff is to reach the 20 year milestone, the company is looking toward the future. At last year's Trade Show, owner Glen Case announced he was doing an overhaul of the packaging and bands of his portfolio. The loose tobacco and rustic elegance that Kristoff has been associated with for two decades is being phased out. This has been replaced by a more sleek, modern look. Kristoff Vengeance is the first of the existing lines to receive the new packaging. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-ssh

Prime Time Jukebox Episode 126 features #16 of our Album Archaeology Series as we tackle Tears For Fears’ 2023 album, The Tipping Point. Much like an archaeologist digs and hunts for gems, on Album Archaeology, we dig into the The Tipping Point album. We go deep into each of the tracks of this album, looking at the music, lyrics, and stories behind this album. Most of the time, we have discussed a classic album; this time, we tackle a new album by a classic artist. It’s one we feel is already an instant classic. We will also recap music and cigar news headlines For this show, Coop smokes the Opus X Super Belicoso by Arturo Fuente while Dave smokes the CAO Flathead Sparkplug 450. As always you can follow along with our Spotify Playlists: Episode 126 Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7AN7WKml58itrmtIqUggKt?si=a62821e037d4457c References Billie Eilish Unveils Release Date and Title of New Album: 'Hit Me Hard and Soft': https://variety.com/2024/music/news/billie-eilish-new-album-hit-me-hard-and-soft-1235963974/ First Groovin the Moo, now Splendour: why are Australia’s music festivals falling over?: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/mar/30/first-groovin-the-moo-now-splendour-why-are-australias-music-festivals-falling-over Dolly Parton’s Version of Tom Petty’s “Southern Accents” Debuts With a New Video: https://dollyparton.com/life-and-career/music/dolly-partons-version-of-tom-pettys-southern-accents-debuts-with-a-new-video Blackened Rye the Lightning 2024 Edition Released: https://cigar-coop.com/2024/04/blackened-rye-the-lightning-2024-edition-released-news.html Tony Gomez and Jonathan Carney Collaborate for Bull’s Breath Whiskey: https://cigar-coop.com/2024/04/tony-gomez-and-jonathan-carney-collaborate-for-bulls-breath-whiskey-news.html

At PCA 2024, we catch up with Willy Herrera at the Drew Estate booth.

Guy Fieri was in attendance with Espinosa Cigars at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show as he has been the last two years. Guy has partnered with Espinosa Cigars to produce the Knuckle Sandwich brand. Knuckle Sandwich cigars are produced and distributed by Espinosa Cigars. It's been well-documented that Guy and Erik have changed the game in terms of celebrity-branded cigars, and our team got a chance to catch up with the dynamic duo. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-srA

At PCA 2024, we catch up with Pedro Gomez at the Drew Estate booth.

Cohiba was one of the brands of General Cigar making a return at PCA 2024 for the first time in five years. The brand has maintained its status as General Cigar’s most ultra-premium offering. This year saw Cohiba bring two new releases to the trade show. The first is an all-new brand under the Cohiba M umbrella, the Reserva Roja. Meanwhile the second saw General deliver its first lancero for Cohiba with the Cohiba Riviera Lancero. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sqM