The team from Cigar Insider has returned from the International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers trade show in New Orleans, eager to provide our readers with the most comprehensive coverage of the new cigars scheduled to hit shelves in the near future.
For much, much more coverage of the cigar trade show, check out the latest Cigar Insider.
Here is a sample of just a fraction of this year's coverage.
ALEC BRADLEY CIGAR CO.
ALEC BRADLEY PRENSADO
Made by: Fabrica de Tabacos Raices Cubanas S. de R.L., Honduras
Wrapper: Honduras
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua
Price: $8.95-$11.75
Details: The Alec Bradley Prensado was built around a Corojo 2006 wrapper leaf grown in Trojes, Honduras, near the Nicaraguan border. Alec Bradley owner Alan Rubin first smoked the tobacco in 2008, and he decided to build a brand around it. The cigars are box pressed and powerful. They come in five sizes: Corona Gorda, Robusto, Churchill, Gran Toro and Torpedo, and will be released in very limited quantities starting in September.
What makes it special: The first box-pressed cigar from Alec Bradley, and the company's strongest cigar to date.
ALEC BRADLEY FAMILY BLEND
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Made by: Fabrica de Tabacos Raices Cubanas S. de R.L., Honduras
Wrapper: Honduras
Binder: Indonesia
Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua
Price: $6.50
Details: This is a one-size blend created for David Rubin, Miguel Montero and Reinaldo Sosa, the fathers of the top executives at Alec Bradley Cigar Co. The pigtailed cigars measure 5 1/2 inches by 50 ring gauge, and come in boxes of 50, the top of which is adorned with the signatures of the three men. While the blend's components seem similar to the powerful Tempus, the Family Blend employs medium primings, giving it a far more mellow flavor.
ALEC BRADLEY SELECT CABINET RESERVE
Made by: Fabrica de Tabacos Raices Cubanas S. de R.L., Honduras
Wrapper: Honduras
Binder: Honduras and Indonesia
Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua
Price: $5.50-$8.25
Average Cigar Insider Rating: 87.8 points
Details: The Alec Bradley SCR is intended as a less powerful, more balanced version of the Alec Bradley Tempus. The cigars come in five sizes: Churchill (7 by 48, $7); Robusto (5 by 50, $6.25); Corona (5 1/2 by 42, $5.50); Gran Robusto (5 1/2 by 60, $8.25); and Torpedo (6 1/8 by 52, $7.75). The cigars are made with two binders, and the tobacco blend relies heavily on Honduran tobacco grown in Trojes, near the border of Nicaragua.
ALEC BRADLEY VICE PRESS
Made by: Tabacos de Oriente (Nestor Plasencia), Honduras
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Costa Rica, Colombia
Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico
Price: $7.50-$8.50
Details: This is a new take on an old idea. Vice Press replaces Alec Bradley's 2007 Maxx Vice release, which had big, pressed cigars in a huge bulky crate. The crate proved too large for many cigar store humidors to easily stock, so Alec Bradley ditched the packaging and took the pressing concept to more manageable boxes of 20. Vice Press comes in three sizes: 6T (a torpedo measuring 7 inches long by 60 ring, $8.50); 6T2 (6 1/2 by 62. $8.50) and the relatively diminutive 6T4 (5 by 64, $7.50). These cigars use a double binder, one leaf of Colombian, one Costa Rican.
Camacho Cigar Co.
CAMACHO LIBERTY 09
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Made by: Camacho Cigar Co., Honduras
Wrapper: Honduras
Binder: Honduras
Filler: Honduras, Cuba
Price: $16.50
Details: Camacho Cigars says it has a bit of pre-Embargo Cuban tobacco left in its warehouses, and it used a tiny bit in its latest Liberty release. The Camacho Liberty 2009 comes in one size, a 6-inch long cigar that's 54 ring at its fattest point. Production is limited to 2,000 boxes, or 40,000 cigars.
What makes it special: A bit of pre-Embargo Cuban tobacco.
CAMACHO CONNECTICUT
Made by: Camacho Cigar Co., Honduras
Wrapper: Ecuador
Binder: Honduras
Filler: Honduras, Dom. Rep.
Price: $6.15-$7.50
Average Cigar Insider Rating: 86.7 points.
Details: Since being acquired by Davidoff, Camacho has branched out, trying new tobaccos it previously eschewed. This Connecticut-seed Ecuador cigar is a first step. The brand comes in six sizes: Monarca (5 inches by 50, $6.15); Figurado (6 1/8 by 54, $7.50); Churchill (7 by 48, $6.80); 11/18 (6 by 54, $7.50); 60/6 (6 by 60, $7.50) and Toro (6 by 50, $6.40).
What makes it special: Camacho's first use of Dominican tobacco, and the first Camacho with Connecticut wrapper. Enditem
