Springfield, VA (June 25th, 2019) – Omar de Frias is proud to announce the launch of The Texan. This blend will be sold exclusively to retailers in Texas and will be part of a series of state releases by Fratello.

The blend uses an HVA Ecuador wrapper with a Sumatra binder and Piloto Cubano Ligero, Andullo, Esteli Ligero and Pennsylvania Ligero filler tobacco.

“We went full body and our largest cigar format to date. The balance of The Texan, with as much ligero as it has, is simply incredible.” said de Frias.

Pennsylvania (Friday June 14, 2019) —

Cubariqueño Cigar Co. announces the release of the Protocol Official Misconduct Corona Gorda as a new size & regular production release for the 2019 IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas. The Official Misconduct will continue to be produced at Erik Espinosa’s La Zona Factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. This second size in the line - Corona Gorda - will be available in a 5 5/8 X 46 format in boxes of 10. MSRP has been set at $99.40 per box. The blend incorporates an Ecuadorian habano wrapper covering a Nicaraguan binder as well as filler tobaccos hailing from both the Estelí and Jalapa growing regions of Nicaragua. Cubariqueño Cigar Co. offered a select amount of boxes at our 4 Year Anniversary Party on June 1st to our loyal supporters attending the event. The cigar will become available nationally at the 2019 IPCPR located in Las Vegas. Cubariqueño Cigar Co. will again be partnered inside the Espinosa booth at the 2019 IPCPR Trade Show in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust® will be showcasing its Mi Querida® Triqui Traca of handcrafted cigars at this year’s 87th Annual Convention of the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association in Las Vegas, Nevada, June 28th through July 2nd, 2019.

“Mi Querida Triqui Traca, pronounced ‘me kay-ree-dah tree-kee trah-ka’, is arguably our boldest cigar released to date,” shares Founder and Master Ligador Steve Saka. Adding, “At its core, it remains our quintessential Mi Querida blend with its earthy, sweet broadleaf notes, but with the incorporation of a couple refinements. The capa has been switched from the traditional Connecticut Broadleaf Mediums to the rarer No. 1 Dark corona leaves plus a unique, high octane ligero grown in the Dominican Republic has also been introduced into the liga. The resulting cigar retains its inherent sweet loam and chocolate characteristics, yet delivers a significantly heavier smoking experience.”

Miami, Flor.--Crux Cigars, an established name in cigar manufacturing announces a refreshed brand image with a new logo, packaging, and messaging. The comprehensive rebrand elevates the focus on Crux’s constant commitment to quality cigars and desire to connect to their consumers in new and innovative ways. The rebrand includes a new logo, refreshed blend specific branding, all new packaging design, and a comprehensive communication plan. Crux Cigars made the decision to rebrand after years of introducing unique cigars in the U.S. market with great success. The company manufactures cigars that appeal to all levels of cigar smokers by providing an extensive variety of strengths and vitolas.

Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust® will be debuting the Sobremesa Brûlée® blend of fine handmade cigars at this year’s 87th Annual Convention of the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association in Las Vegas, Nevada, June 28th through July 2nd, 2019.

“Sobremesa Brûlée is a recreation of the milder, shade wrapped ligas of my early years. Somewhere over the last three decades many of the classic shade cigars have become wispy, uninspiring and rather dull to my palate. I wanted to share with others the way I remember these blonde cigars being,” states Master Blender Steve Saka. “Also as ligador and tobacco man, I do not understand the recent trend of making strong Connecticut Shade cigars aka “not your grandfather’s cigar”. To me this seems like an oxymoron and a fundamental lack of appreciation of the enchanting characteristics and nuances of shade grown Connecticut Seed tobaccos. In Brûlée, I embraced this shade capa and dedicated myself to showcasing its mild, sweet and nutty nature.”

CELEBRATING AN ICONIC BRAND: A.J. Fernandez uses the rare medio tiempo wrapper

for limited edition H. Upmann 175^th Anniversary

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Altadis U.S.A. is celebrating a special milestone as the H. Upmann cigar brand turns 175 years old. The limited-edition H. Upmann 175th Anniversary will commemorate one of the oldest and most renowned cigars brands. This limited edition will only be expressed in the iconic Churchill size, in 10 count boxes that will number to 14,750. Fifty special-edition humidors containing 50 cigars will also be offered. The story of H. Upmann cigars is one of adventure, family, and passion for tobacco.

It all began in 1843, when German banker Herman Upmann took a leap of faith and moved to Havana, Cuba, to open a branch for his family bank. He created a small batch of cigars for his best clients, but quickly became impassioned with tobacco. A passion that led him to found his own cigar brand in 1844, joined by his younger brother August. The brothers purchased a small cigar factory and diligently learned to combine tobacco artistry and German ingenuity. 175 years later, H. Upmann is still known the world over.

(Miami Florida) June 19, 2019— Casa Cuevas Cigars, makers of handmade premium cigars to release “La Mandarria” (translates to the sledgehammer) at 2019 IPCPR. La Mandarria brand was born out of the unfortunate robbery which occurred in February 2019 at the Casa Cuevas Cigars distribution center in Miami.  Burglars used sledgehammers to break in and steal over 25,000 of the Casa Cuevas brands which included the Casa Cuevas Limited Edition Flaco and Casa Cuevas core line of cigars. The Cuevas family made the decision to forge ahead and create a cigar that will mark the era where they faced and overcame adversity.

For years The Cuevas family patriarch, Luis Cuevas Sr., has been the man behind the curtain for many popular cigar brands. Their factory, the Las Lavas Cigar Factory in the Dominican Republic, has created brands for some of the most globally popular cigar companies. It was only three years ago that the Cuevas family felt it was time to create their own brand: Casa Cuevas Cigars. Luis Jr., son of Luis Cuevas, Sr., who runs the Cuevas operations in Miami, looks to honor his father, who himself made many sacrifices, went through much adversity as a U.S. immigrant, and was forced to leave his homeland of Cuba many years ago.

Miami, Florida) June 12, 2019— Casa Cuevas Cigars, makers of handmade premium cigars to release the Cuevas Reserva Natural and Cuevas Reserva Maduro at the 2019 IPCPR in Las Vegas. The patriarch of the four-generation tobacco family, Luis Cuevas Sr. originally introduced the Cuevas Reserva brand in the early 2000’s and was limited in availability until now.

Luis Cuevas Sr. introduced the Casa Reserva brand in the early 2000’s but was faced with a huge dilemma. At that point, it was either take a chance and put forth efforts (and capital) to introduce his own brand, or concentrate on his newly thriving factory, which was blending and rolling quality private label cigars for other companies.

Springfield, VA (June 18, 2019) – Omar de Frias is proud to announce the company’s latest blend, the Fratello Piccolo. Different from the Fratello Classico, the Piccolo uses an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper with the same binder and filler as the Classico. “We used a different wrapper on our Classico blend and picked up some great flavors! The combustion and aroma were absolutely incredible.” said de Frias.

Fratello Piccolo will debut as a 4 x 34 in 100 count boxes. The MSRP for this cigar will be $3.30 per cigar and will begin shipping in August.

The Fratello Piccolo is being made at Joya de Nicaragua.

Please visit www.fratellocigar.com/thecigar for a description of our cigars.

Springfield, VA (June 11, 2019) - Omar de Frias is proud to announce the company’s latest blend, the Navetta Inverso Boxer. The Inverso Boxer will be making its official debut at this year’s IPCPR Trade Show in Las Vegas. “Similar to the other Boxer blends, we modified the filler blend in the Inverso Boxer to increase in strength and highlight a different flavor profile from its Father the Navetta Inverso.” Said de Frias.

The Inverso boxer will debut at a 6 ¼ x 52 Box Press Torpedo with an MSRP of 13.00 per cigar.

Navetta Inverso features an Habano Nicaragua Wrapper, Habano Ecuador Oscuro Binder and Dominican and Nicaragua Filler tobacco aged for 3 years before being rolled.

Navetta Inverso was introduced at last year’s IPCPR Trade Show. “Its incredible how our consumers saw clearly how the cigars were different from our original release and helped us brand all our cigars box press cigars as The Boxer” Said de Frias.

CIGAR INDUSTRY HEAVYWEIGHTS WELCOME A.C.E. PRIME UPDATE:

(June 17, 2019) Some of the biggest names and brands in the cigar industry are excited for the launch of A.C.E Prime at IPCPR 2019.

"New and innovative cigars and companies are a very important to the vibrancy of the premium cigar
industry," said Drew Newman, General counsel of J.C. Newman Cigar Co. “As the oldest, family- owned cigar company in America, we welcome one of the newest, A.C.E. Prime. We have no doubt
that their outstanding premium cigars will live up to their name.”

June 2, 2019
Hiram & Solomon Cigars is pleased to announce, the availability of our latest creation to fill out
the company’s portfolio of fine premium cigars - The Grand Architect.

The Grand Architect gets its name from one of the founding principles of Freemasons. "It is appropriate that a society founded on the principles of architecture, which symbolizes the terms of that science to moral purposes, and whose members profess to be architects of a spiritual temple should view the Divine Being, under whose holy law they are constructing that edifice, as their Master Builder or Great Architect. Sometimes, but less correctly, the title 'Grand Architect of the Universe' is found."

Vintage Rock-A-Feller Cigars Group to Showcase the Dominican Blue at 2019 IPCPR

New York, NY – Vintage Rock-A-Feller Cigars Group (VRCG) is pleased to announce that their latest cigar, the Dominican Blue will be showcased at this 2019 IPCPR Trade Show, being held in Las Vegas, NV - June 29-July 2, 2019.

The VRCG Dominican Blue is the creation of legendary cigar maker, Victor De La Cruz in collaboration with Rock-A-Feller Cigars owner, Kevin Schweitzer.

Kevin Schweitzer stated:

"Vintage Rock-A-Feller Cigars Group is very excited to work with Victor de la Cruz and his Tabacalera L&V S.R.L factory to add the Dominican Blue to the successful Rock-A-Feller Cigars portfolio of premium cigars. Victor is a legend in the industry and a master blender going back decades in the business."

Savor the taste of Tamboril

The Dominican Blue offers a delicious and complex flavor profile that highlights the aged leaf and masterful construction of the masterful skills of Victor De La Cruz and his Tabacalera L&V S.R.L factory:

Fort Lauderdale, FL (June 8 ,2019)

Coming off of the success of their initial release, Alec & Bradley Blind Faith, Alec and Bradley Rubin, the namesakes of father Alan Rubin’s Alec Bradley Cigar Co. announced today the release of their second cigar line- Alec & Bradley Gatekeeper.

The Rubin brothers searched out E.P. Carrillo (EPC) cigar maker Ernesto Perez-Carrillo for the project. An inspiration to Alec and Bradley, Ernesto is praised by many in the business as the “Godfather” of cigars.

“We are a part of the next generation of the premium cigar business and Ernesto is a legend,” Bradley said. “As Alec and I began learning the processes, we started to appreciate all facets of the business. Though we are under the Alec Bradley Cigar Co. umbrella, my brother and I want to provide enthusiasts with an experience different from the Alec Bradley portfolio- the opportunity to work with Ernesto and Dominican tobaccos is something completely different from anything coming out of Alec Bradley.”

Crux Cigars Limitada Gunner Shipping This Week (Miami, Fla.) - Crux Cigars will begin shipping the much anticipated Limitada Gunner this week to their retail partners across the country.

Announced at the 2018 IPCPR Trade Show, the Gunner is the second quarter extension of the popular Limitada line from Crux Cigars in 2019, following the Redline earlier this year. The Gunner is a 5.375x46 Corona Gorda finished with a Cuban box press.

As with the previously released Limitada PB5 and the Limitada IPCPR, the Gunner is produced once per year as a limited edition of 1,000 10-count boxes. It features the proprietary Nicaraguan Engañoso wrapper.

Available vitola: Corona Gorda Cuban Box Press 6 x 50 (MSRP $9.99) 10-count boxes.

See more: CruxCigars.com Instagram: @CruxCigars Twitter: @CruxCigars Facebook: Facebook.com/CruxCigars 

Fort Lauderdale, FL (June 4, 2019)

Alec Bradley Cigar Co. founder Alan Rubin first announced his
acquisition of Lars Tetens Brands in April of this year. The
acquisition created a partnership between the two cigar makers, Lars
Tetens and Alan Rubin; as well as a sales and distribution agreement
with Alec Bradley Cigar Co.

Since 1979 Lars Tetens has been renowned in the cigar world for
innovating a unique and labor intensive conditioning process using
essential oils and botanicals to make the most exotic premium cigars
on the market. Conditioned cigars are new to the world of Alec Bradley
and at the time of announcement, neither Alan nor Lars speculated as
to which of the plethora of cigar brands Lars Tetens would resurrect
under the new partnership.

Cubariqueño Cigar Co. announces the release of the Protocol Themis Corona Gorda as a regular production release for the 2019 IPCPR Trade Show in Las Vegas. The cigar was originally introduced as a Famous Smoke Shop exclusive on September 8, 2018. The cigars will continue to be produced at Erik Espinosa’s La Zona Factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. The Themis Corona Gorda will be available in a 5 5/8 X 46 format in boxes of 10. MSRP has been set at $99.40 per box. The blend consists of an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper with Nicaraguan binder and fillers. Cubariqueño Cigar Co. & Famous Smoke Shop have had a great relationship and success with this line and are excited to offer this cigar to all of our retail partners. Cubariqueño Cigar Co. will again be partnered inside the Espinosa booth at the 2019 IPCPR Trade Show in Las Vegas, Nevada.

MIAMI – June 5, 2019 – Plasencia Cigars, one of the world’s leading premium tobacco growers, announces the launch of Alma del Fuego, the third of five cigars that make up its signature Alma Series. The official debut will take place at this year’s International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) trade show, from June 28 – July 2 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nev.

“We are beyond grateful and excited for the opportunity to launch the third cigar of our already popular Alma Series collection at IPCPR, amongst our fellow cigar aficionados,” announced Nestor Andrés Plasencia, CEO of Plasencia Cigars. “Alma del Fuego is a manifestation of our ongoing commitment to offer top-quality cigars to both our retailers and consumers, and to continue building on our family’s over 150-year tobacco legacy.”

Alma del Fuego, which translates to “Soul of the Fire,” is a representation of the volcanic soils that stem from the iconic Ometepe Island in Nicaragua, the land where the majority of the filler tobacco leaves for this cigar were harvested. A 100 percent Nicaraguan blend, Alma del Fuego radiates passion and amplifies Plasencia Cigars’ efforts to provide the industry with a high-quality and innovative smoke.

The new cigar offers a hint of spice, complemented by savoring notes of tangerine, roasted cashews, and guava wood. Plasencia Cigars has carefully selected sun-grown wrappers from its fields in Jalapa Valley to further enhance the cigar’s strength and sweetness. In comparison to traditional wrappers, the leaves used to craft the Alma del Fuego receive a higher amount of sunlight exposure, highlighting the cigar’s bold and complex notes.

The Alma del Fuego will be available in three sizes: the Candente, a 5 inches by 50 ring gauge robusto; the Flama, a 6 ½ inches by 38 panatela; and Concepción, a 6 inches by 54 toro. The newest cigar of the Alma Series will be available to consumers mid-July in a ten-count box that doubles as an ashtray.

For more information, visit www.plasenciacigars.com, and follow @PlasenciaCigars on social media.

About Plasencia Cigars

Plasencia Cigars is one of the world’s leading growers of first-class tobacco. The Plasencia family has been pioneering the industry since 1865 when Don Eduardo Plasencia began growing tobacco in Cuba, and five generations of the Plasencia family have continued the legacy. Today, Plasencia Cigars produces more than 35 million handmade cigars per year, and harvests tobacco on more than 3,000 acres across several countries in Central America, including Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica and Panama.

Cubariqueño Cigar Co. announces the release of the Protocol Sir Robert Peel as a regular production release for the 2019 IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas. The Cigars will be offered in a natural & maduro format. The Protocol Sir Robert Peel is produced at Erik Espinosa's La Zona Factory in Estelí, Nicaragua.

The cigars will be available in a 6 x 52 box press format in boxes of 10. MSRP has been set at $119.50 per box. The blend incorporates an Ecuadorian Rosado wrapper covering Nicaraguan binder and fillers. The second blend utilizes the same filler but a Pennsylvania Broad Leaf wrapper.

The cigar will become available nationally at the 2019 IPCPR located in Las Vegas. Sir Robert Peel is regarded as the father of modern day policing. Cubariqueño Cigar Co  again pays homage to the profession of its owners Bill Ives & Juan Cancel who are police officers. We left no stone unturned for this release. Both cigars are smoking phenomenal and we took the packing up to the next level stated Juan Cancel. Cubariqueño Cigar Co. will again be partnered inside the Espinosa booth at the 2019 IPCPR Trade Show in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Springfield, VA (June 3, 2019) – Omar de Frias is proud to announce the Space Fresh Pack. Fratello is releasing four cigars in this fresh pack two of which are new blends for the company. Sorella and Arlequin.

The Space Fresh Pack will have two existing blends. Fratello Classico in its new format 6 x 50 and the existing Fratello Bianco II. Sorella features an Habano Ecuador wrapper, Indonesian Binder and Nicaragua and Dominican filler. Arlequin is featured in a Mexican wrapper, Ecuador Binder and Peruvian and Nicaragua filler. All cigars in the four pack will be produced in a 6 x 50 toro format.

“I’m incredibly excited to release this four pack as it attacks a new segment of the market for Fratello. These new blends will serve as market research for our company as we look into expending our product offering in the future” Said de Frias.

The space Fresh pack will retail at 25.00 per pack and will be available immediately after the IPCPR trade show.