CigarCoop

This year, at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, Patina Cigars showcased its fifth regular production line, the Oro de Nicaragua. The company was coming off a very solid 2023 that saw its first limited edition cigar, the Patina Anniversary, capture its #1 Cigar of the Year for 2023. The good news is the Patina Anniversary blend will live on as a future is planned for this blend. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sLj

The theme for J.C. Newman Cigar Company at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was sports. That is because J.C. Newman Cigar Company had two sports themed releases. First up J.C. Newman showcased a second installment of the LeRoy Neiman Collector's Series that draws its inspiration from the upcoming 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Second, there is a special release that is honoring a minor league baseball team known as the Tampa Smokers. Being J.C. Newman's El Reloj factory is located in Ybor City Tampa, the company has tied its history to the history of Tampa, so it is appropriate to honor this team. Both the LeRoy Neiman Collector's Edition and Tampa Smokers cigars are also rolled at the El Reloj factory. Speaking of El Reloj, once again J.C. Newman brought its booth made of cardboard intended to be a replica of that factory. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sLe

On Prime Time Jukebox Episode 128, we discuss songs we like that others hate. On this episode Dave and Coop look at some polarizing songs, and then make a case for why we love them when others don’t. On this episode Dave and Coop identify miscarriages of justice in terms of decisions with things like the Grammy Awards, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and other things. On this episode, Dave and Coop will attempt to right the wrongs that happened with these decisions. In addition, we will also recap music and cigar news headlines. For this show, Coop smokes the Macanudo 1968 while Dave smokes the CAO Flathead 642. As always you can follow along with our Spotify Playlists: Episode 128 Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/492UEl5hMnJKl5W2BbJeGZ?si=8fbcf29b8ce44f8a

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was the fourth trade show for Casa 1910 Cigars. Casa 1910 Cigars is a cigar and lifestyle brand based out of Mexico. The brand captures the history and culture of Mexico. Casa 1910 produces cigars in Mexico, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. This year, the focus was more on Mexico, as all of the releases were produced in Casa 1910's home country. Also this year, the company has expanded its Revolutionary Series with a new blend and a line extension. On top of that, it has added a new value-priced brand into the portfolio. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sKV

Fratello Cigars made history just a month before the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. In February, the NOVA-C lander touched down on the moon, with the Fratello Cigars name proudly displayed on the unit. This made Fratello Cigars the first-ever cigar company to have its logo land on the moon. Notably, Fratello Cigars owner Omar de Frias has had close ties to the space program since his days working at NASA. He even launched a series of cigars called Fratello Lunar, inspired by the NOVA-C mission, last year. However, for this year's PCA Trade Show releases, Omar de Frias has focused on some other themes in his portfolios. In addition to this, Fratello Cigars has also introduced a new brand named Concealed Carry Cigars. It is exciting to see the expansion of Fratello Cigars' product range, and the company's commitment to innovation and creativity. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sKL

ADVentura entered the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show after undergoing significant changes over the previous six months from both a production and distribution end. It's well-known the company was significantly impacted by a fire that destroyed the factory it was using, Tabacalera William Ventura. Last year, ADVentura decided to handle production by building its own factory, Tabacalera Mina del Rey. Meanwhile, the company also changed distribution partners, moving from Sutliff Tobacco to City of Palms. The changes have opened the road for ADVentura to continue evolving its brand. The long-awaited third installment to the Royal Return series debuted this year. On top of it, there is a follow-up release to 2022's Barbarroja's Invasion. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sKh

Miami Cigar & Company celebrated its 35th anniversary at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. Although the company did not release a cigar to celebrate the occasion, many exciting things are happening at Miami Cigar. Several new cigar products, including the much-awaited Nestor Miranda Grand Reserve 2024, were showcased. This is the third release of the Nestor Miranda Grand Reserve series, which has been on a twelve-year hiatus. The Grand Reserve 2024 belicoso measures 6 1/8 x 52 and utilizes only Nicaraguan tobaccos. It is produced at the My Father Cigars factory and is available in limited quantities. Miami Cigars plans to release only 1,500 ten-count boxes. Additionally, Tatiana introduced their biggest cigar yet and a new line of sweet-tipped cigars. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sK8

Tonight on Prime Time Episode 304, Erik Espinosa, founder and president of Espinosa Cigars returns. It’s been quite a while since Erik has been on Prime Time, so we are very excited to have him on. We will talk to Erik on some of his projects, and have a couple of unique segments we designed specifically for Erik. 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.

United Cigars always has a lot of new activity at their booth, and the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was no exception. This year, United Cigars reintroduced an old brand, expanded its eponymous United brand, and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the La Gianna Havana brand. However, there was a slight difference as Selected Tobacco, owned by Nelson Alfonso and distributed by United Cigars, did not have a separate booth due to visa problems for Alfonso. Instead, the current Selected Tobacco products were showcased at the United booth. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sJd

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was quite a special one for Quesada Cigars. The company is amid a significant milestone as it is celebrating 50 years since it opened its first factory, Manufactura de Tabacos S.A. (MATSA). Unsurprisingly, there is a special anniversary cigar to mark this milestone. The Quesadas first unveiled the 50th Anniversary Cigar at Procigar 2024, but PCA 2024 would be the place retailers would get the opportunity to order this limited edition cigar. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sJ6

One of the first-time exhibitors at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was Somm Cigars. Somm Cigars was started by Vlada Stojanov. Stojanov is an accomplished sommelier who has been in the cigar industry for several years. Over the past year, he has brought his own portfolio to market with Somm Cigars. There are two main brands Stojanov has created under Somm Cigars. There is BDX, which pays homage to the Bordeaux wine region of France, and Rioja, which pays homage to the Rioja wine region of Spain. At PCA 2024, Stojanov added his second blend to the BDX line, the BDX Blanc. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sI9

The C.L.E. Cigar Company booth was one of the busiest at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. On day three, which saw many booths considerably slow down in terms of traffic, this was not the case with C.L.E. The booth remained slammed throughout the whole afternoon of day three. The theme around C.L.E. at PCA 2024 was packaging. The company made a major packaging change to its core C.L.E. brand and introduced several innovative packaging concepts throughout its portfolio. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sHU

While Powstanie Cigars only released a single line extension at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, this one was special for owner Mike Szczepankiewicz. Powstanie Cigars was showcasing its new Powstanie Connecticut Corona Gorda, known as "Justice." Justice is a tribute to the middle child of Szczepankiewicz. The roots of the Powstanie Connecticut Justice go back nine years ago when Mike had the cigar blended for his son’s birth. Only 100 cigars were rolled at that time. These were adorned with the name “ApolloDani” in blue and pink. Fast forward nine years, and the Powstanie Connecticut core line was created based on that blend. Powstanie Connecticut debuted at the 2023 PCA Trade Show, but the Corona Justice size was held back until this year's trade show to spotlight the release. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sHh

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show is the second one for Luciano Meirelles since he reorganized his operations as Luciano Cigars in 2022. Since the reorganization, much of the strategy for Luciano Cigars has been around strategic partnerships and alliances. As mentioned, Luciano Cigars has partnered with Peter James, a luxury cigar goods company, to form a new venture, Peter James Cigar Company. There is a new manufacturing relationship with Plasencia. Finally, there is a partnership with former NBA all-star and champion Ron Harper. At the same time, each project with these partnerships has a unique story to tell. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sH9

Once again, Wildfire Cigar Company was one of the most talked about booths at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. Wildfire is the company launched in 2021 by Jeremy McDonald, best known for his time with Caldwell Cigar Company. The booth went with one of the themes of Wildfire in that it had the look and feel of a campground - complete with an actual RV that was part of the booth. We mention one theme because the other theme revolves around music. McDonald had two releases with a music theme. Each is a release that comes from a different factory. In addition, each is a second installment of a limited edition trilogy from that factory. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sGr

This year, at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, there were two new offerings by AJ Fernandez Cigars. The first is a brand extension to the Dias de Gloria brand – the Dias de Gloria Brazil. As the name hints, the cigar incorporates a Brazilian wrapper as a part of the blend. The second thing is that we haven’t seen AJ Fernandez Cigars do much at a Trade Show preview something way in advance. That preview turns out to be a cigar commemorating 20 years that AJ has been in the cigar business. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sGk

Today we announce the winner of our H.Upmann The Banker Daytrader Prize Pack. This contest is brought to you by Altadis USA

S.T. Dupont was impressive at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. Our team noted that the booth's offerings and presentation were equally astonishing. This French company is known for its ongoing top-of-the-line product innovation, but this year, it showcased its products in various collections. These collections mostly had a contemporary/modern theme, bringing out the best of the S.T. Dupont offerings. In part 2 of our two part coverage, we sit down with S.T. Dupont CEO Alain Crevet. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sF6

S.T. Dupont was impressive at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. Our team noted that the booth's offerings and presentation were equally astonishing. This French company is known for its ongoing top-of-the-line product innovation, but this year, it showcased its products in various collections. These collections mostly had a contemporary/modern theme, bringing out the best of the S.T. Dupont offerings. In part 1 of our two part coverage, Les Mann Vice President of Sales at S.T. Dupont walks us through the products. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sF6

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show was special for Aric Bey and Black Star Line Cigars. This year, the company is celebrating its five-year anniversary. To mark the occasion, a special five-year anniversary cigar, the Marun, is coming out. In addition, two of the company's core lines, Lalibela and Dark War Witch, are getting line extensions. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sEq

Joya de Nicaragua was at its own booth at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show and was also part of the Drew Estate booth. This year, Joya showcased several new things that covered all the bases. There is a new core release for the U.S. market, a limited edition release, a sampler, and a repackaging for one of its core brands. We caught up with Executive President Juan Martinez at the PCA and owe him a special thanks. Sometimes, equipment mishaps happen, and we did have one with Juan's interview. Nevertheless, we have a video because he was kind enough to let us do the interview a second time. This was a jam-packed trade show, and we really appreciate Juan taking the time to do this. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sEg

The 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show would not be complete without a visit to the Toscano Cigars booth. Toscano Cigars the Italian brand famous for its fire-cured cigars. Given Toscano Cigars are pretty different from most, it is always interesting how Toscano combines an experiential and educational component in its booth. This year, the highlight was the cigar roller at the booth. At the same time, Toscano always has something new at the PCA Trade Show, the Toscano Italia. This is a cigar that truly pays homage to Toscano's Italian roots. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sDO

Let's Get Pairing talks pairings with Ernesto Perez-Carrillo PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sDr

E.P. Carrillo was one of the busier companies at the 2024 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show. For the past few years, much of the focus has been on the premium Perez-Carrillo line. During this year's Trade Show, E.P. Carrillo showcased their latest cigar, the Encore Black, and unveiled a new six-cigar blend lineup called the Essence Series. These blends are now a regular production offering and a new core series for the company. Despite receiving many accolades over the years, it's clear that E.P. Carrillo is not a company that rests on its laurels. PCA 2024 Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-sDr

Tonight on Prime Time Episode 303, Nick Fusco of El Mago Cigars makes his debut. Nick’s a newcomer to the cigar industry and has already been making his mark. We will discuss the brand, get to know Nick better, and talk about the unique backstory of the brand. 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.