Category: Industry News

Germany, one of the most important cigar markets in the world, could very quickly lose that status under a new tax proposal. The German government is working through a new tax structure for tobacco products. While it was initially believed to be a moderate increase, the Bundesverband der Zigarrenindustrie (BdZ)—the German cigar manufacturers’ association—is now warning of a 14-fold increase to the current ad valorem tax. Currently, there are three

Following the United Kingdom’s passage of a generational tobacco ban, a law that bans anyone born after 2008 from ever legally purchasing tobacco products, proposals have popped up in other countries. Ireland appears to be the latest one. Mark Wall, an Irish TD, asked if the Irish Ministry of Health was looking at a proposal. In response, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, TD, who is the Irish Minister of Health, replied: Tobacco

Since the cigar boom of the 1990s, there’s no brand that has been managed quite like OpusX. I’d be hard-pressed to believe that there’s a single cigar company—including Habanos S.A.—that wouldn’t like to have its own OpusX. It’s a brand that has an incredible backstory. The short of it is that in the early 1990s, the owner of Boutique 22, a shop in Paris, was visiting the Fuente operation in

Casa Carrillo has released the Perez-Carrillo Encore Noir II as an exclusive to international markets, but one retailer in the U.S. will be getting a portion of the release for a launch event later this month. The Perez-Carrillo Encore Noir II is an all-Nicaraguan blend that comes in a Celestial No. 2 size, a 6 1/8 x 50 toro vitola. It’s a blend that’s notably different from the original Encore

Earlier this month, Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) began shipping a new vitola for its Bolivar Cofradia line. The Bolivar Cofradia 770s are a pair of 7 x 70, offered in both the Bolivar Cofradia and Bolivar Cofradia Oscuro blends. The Bolivar Cofradia, pictured on top, uses an Ecuadorian Sumatra-seed wrapper over a Connecticut-seed binder and fillers from Honduras and Nicaragua. The Oscuro uses a Connecticut broadleaf wrapper with an Ecuadorian

Next month, Fratello is releasing a new limited cigar, but you will have to go to Switzerland to get it. Cowbell is a 5 x 50 robusto with a pigtail, made with an Ecuadorian Connecticut-seed wrapper covering a Cameroon binder and filler tobaccos grown in the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. The new cigars are being sold exclusively at Swiss retailers, and they are made at the La Aurora Cigar Factory

The collaborative release between La Flor Dominicana and ProjectCarbon is beginning to ship to stores. It’s called Carbon Flower, combining the “Flor” part of LFD’s name and Carbon from ProjectCarbon, a brand of carbon fiber cigar accessories. Blend-wise, the La Flor Dominicana Carbon Flower is a 6 x 54 toro extra that uses a Mexican San Andrés wrapper over tobaccos grown on the company’s farms in La Canela, Dominican Republic.

In November 2023, West Tampa Tobacco Co. announced the first release in its Cook Book Series, created to showcase food-inspired blends. The first cigar in the series was Boliche Blvd., inspired by the nickname given to Columbus Drive in Tampa, which is known for the many Cuban and Latino restaurants that serve boliche, a Cuban dish consisting of eye-round beef stuffed with ham and served with rice, and which is

Just across the famed Mississippi River from St. Louis and a little north lies the town of Alton in the state of Illinois. Just off of downtown is AP Cigar which is a cool little spot to grab your cigars! Mike Weller is the head honcho here and provides a great place to smoke. In addition to cigars, there are signature coffee drinks available that are well renowned around the

When it comes to family lineages in the tobacco industry, the Eiroa family can claim more than a century in the business. A new line, 1916 Tabacalera Eirora, pays tribute to the heritage, with the fourth generation of the family credited with developing the blend. Santi Eiroa, the youngest son of Christian Eiroa, founder of CLE Cigar Co., came up with an all-Honduran blend, highlighted by a five-year-old habano wrapper