Cigar Smokers A.K.A Cigar Aficionados - Ongoing
- Thread starter Ejason5
- Start date
This is definitely on my radar!!!
A Cigar With Two Personalities
Some cigars are blended to start strong. Others are made to start off mild. Omar de Frias, owner of boutique brand Fratello, has a new smoke that he says can do both.
Fratello Vice Versa is a short-run cigar intended to let the smoker choose the power of the first puff. If you pick one up, you’ll think there’s something wrong—the cigar has caps on both ends. That’s intentional. You have to cut off both caps, putting one in your mouth and lighting the other. Which end you light determines the initial flavor.
“You choose,” said de Frias, standing at his booth at the PCA Trade Show last weekend. Depending on which side you put in your mouth determines if the cigar will start with spice or rather mellow. The cigar band is in the middle, and to help guide the smoker. One end of the band is red and says “full,” guiding you to the end that gives the fuller flavor. The other is yellow and says “mild.” For further guidance, the mild side is capped with a much lighter looking leaf.
There’s a vast mix of tobaccos in the cigar, from Ecuador, Indonesia, Pennsylvania, the Dominican Republic, Peru and Nicaragua. The cigars are made for de Frias at the La Aurora factory in the Dominican Republic, and it’s been some time in the making. “A two-year process,” says De Frias.
Vice Versa comes in one size, 7 inches long by 52, and retails for $15. The cigars come in untraditional packaging: a box contains 60 cigars, divided into five packs of 12. De Frias says production has been limited to 400 of those large boxes, 24,000 cigars in total. Shipping is expected to begin in mid-October
https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/a-cigar-with-two-personalities
A Cigar With Two Personalities
Some cigars are blended to start strong. Others are made to start off mild. Omar de Frias, owner of boutique brand Fratello, has a new smoke that he says can do both.
Fratello Vice Versa is a short-run cigar intended to let the smoker choose the power of the first puff. If you pick one up, you’ll think there’s something wrong—the cigar has caps on both ends. That’s intentional. You have to cut off both caps, putting one in your mouth and lighting the other. Which end you light determines the initial flavor.
“You choose,” said de Frias, standing at his booth at the PCA Trade Show last weekend. Depending on which side you put in your mouth determines if the cigar will start with spice or rather mellow. The cigar band is in the middle, and to help guide the smoker. One end of the band is red and says “full,” guiding you to the end that gives the fuller flavor. The other is yellow and says “mild.” For further guidance, the mild side is capped with a much lighter looking leaf.
There’s a vast mix of tobaccos in the cigar, from Ecuador, Indonesia, Pennsylvania, the Dominican Republic, Peru and Nicaragua. The cigars are made for de Frias at the La Aurora factory in the Dominican Republic, and it’s been some time in the making. “A two-year process,” says De Frias.
Vice Versa comes in one size, 7 inches long by 52, and retails for $15. The cigars come in untraditional packaging: a box contains 60 cigars, divided into five packs of 12. De Frias says production has been limited to 400 of those large boxes, 24,000 cigars in total. Shipping is expected to begin in mid-October
https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/a-cigar-with-two-personalities
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Caldwell is cool dude, we met with him last month along with his partner that owns La Barba
Caldwell Long Live The Queen Coming This Fall
Aug 24, 2022 | By Thomas Pappalardo
Photos/Caldwell Cigar Co.
Boutique brand owner Robert Caldwell is releasing a new line of cigars called Long Live the Queen, a regular production line of smokes that he says has been aging for the better part of a year after rolling. He expects to begin shipping in October.
Made in the Dominican Republic, Long Live the Queen is rolled at the El Maestro factory, a smaller factory owned by William Ventura. It’s a four-country blend consisting of a reddish-brown Cameroon cover leaf, a Sumatra binder grown in Indonesia and a mix of Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers.
The line will come in four sizes: Queen’s Sword, a lancero measuring 7 inches by 38 ring gauge ($14.50); Queen’s Court, a 5-by-52 robusto ($14); Queen’s Sceptre, a 6-by-50 toro ($15); and Queen’s Club, a vitola the company refers to as toro gordo measuring 6 by 56 ($16).
A fifth size called Ace of Hearts, which is box pressed and measures 6 by 52, will retail for $18. Production on that size will be capped at 700 boxes.
According to Caldwell, the cigars are medium-full in strength. All sizes will ship in white boxes of 10.
The new brand continues the royal theme from Caldwell, who also produces Long Live the King and The King is Dead.
Well I was going to ask everyone here what are their Top 5? But hey this is a start.
The site is finally live - https://www.cigora.com/
