The gang is back at the mics to smoke Particulares, a cigar made for Sindicato by Aganorsa, and talk about Kevin Hart, traveling to Pheonix, and the Miami Dolphins' win over the New England Patriots. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
The team smokes Herrera Estelí Maduro cigars by Drew Estate, recaps our recent Cigar Snob Lechón Challenge, plots escape from North Sentinel Island, and remembers Thanksgiving diners past. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Brian Chinnock of Chinnock Cellars (and Chinnock Cellars Cigars) stopped by the office to talk about wine, cigars, Napa Valley, how he got his start in a Texas laboratory, and how his friendship with Carlito Fuente and a layover in Miami played a role his his catching the cigar bug. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Rob and Jay from Boveda dropped by Cigar Snob HQ for a conversation about cigars, humidification and their sunburnt calves. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
If you're a subscriber to Cigar Snob Magazine, you've probably come across some of the work of journalist Abraham Mahshie. We had him write a story for us about the consumption of fighting bull meat in Spain, and then later an interview with bullfigher Morante de la Puebla. While in Miami to see some family, Abraham stopped by our office to chat about his experiences in Spain and how he came to embed himself in the peculiar world of Spanish bullfighting. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin...
The Cigar Snob team smokes My Father Limited Edition 10th Anniversary 2018, recaps some recent sports news — like Drew Brees' passing record and the melee at UFC 229 — and wonders which bygone species should be brought back with CRISPR technology. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Steve Zengel dropped by the office to talk about his cigar brand, Los Caídos (Spanish for "The Fallen"), and its mission to support the families of police officers and firefighters who have died in the line of duty. We also talk about his working with Aganorsa, working as a white guy in the athletic program at an HBCU, and more. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
The Cigar Snob team enjoys Liga Privada No. 9 in Corona Viva, laments the bygone days of Dairy Queen before it became “DQ,” and wonder aloud about the fate of the newly abbreviated “Dunkin’.” Also, Tiger Woods is winning golf tournaments and people are passing out on carnival rides. All that and more on this episode of the podcast. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
We remember Arsenio Ramos, the late master blender at Aganorsa, while smoking one of the many cigars he helped craft: the Casa Fernández Miami Arsenio Maduro. Also, we recap the 2018 Emmy Awards, wonder what Dwyane Wade's last NBA season will look like, and run through some of the highlights of the September/October 2018 issue of Cigar Snob Magazine. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org...
You know Karl Malone for his hall-of-fame career in the NBA, where he won 2 league MVP awards and cemented his place in basketball history as half of one of the greatest duos of all time — the other, of course, being John Stockton. In retirement, though, he’s taken on other pursuits. He’s an outdoorsman, an entrepreneur, and a tobacconist. At this summer’s IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas, Karl also launched Barrel-Aged by Karl Malone, a cigar thats being made at La Aurora in the Dominican Republic...
At July’s IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas, senior editor Nicolás Jiménez had a chance to sit down with Drew Estate master blender Willy Herrera and Jeff Borysiewicz, owner of Orlando’s Corona Cigar as well as Florida Sun Grown, the Central Florida tobacco growing operation whose tobaccos have made their way into various premium cigars, including the eponymous FSG brand made by Drew Estate. They talked about Willy’s blending process, what’s new in the Drew Estate portfolio, how the relationship bet...
Jason Lois will be competing for the title of Cigar Smoking World Champion in Croatia. Cigar Snob's Erik Calviño and Nicolás A. Jiménez spoke with Jason about what that even means, what the competition looks like, and how he's been training to reach the tippy top of the cigar smoking mountain. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
The team smokes Arturo Fuente Don Carlos cigars, recaps a recent trip to the Dominican Republic, explains a tostón wager, and wonders whether it's a good idea to require major league baseball players to learn English. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Alec Bradley is one a name loads of cigar smokers know well. But fewer know that there isn’t actually a guy named Alec Bradley behind the brand. The name refers to two brothers — Alec and Bradley — who are the sons of the company’s founder Alan Rubin. While the name might not have referred to anyone in the cigar business at first, that’s starting to change. Our publisher Erik Calviño sat down with Alan Rubin to talk about his company, what’s new in the Alec Bradley portfolio, and the cigar proje...
The Cigar Snob team is back. We're smoking Camacho Coyolar, the company's new Dominican puro. Also, we talk about Coney Island Hot Dogs, meeting country band Old Dominion, shooting in the Dominican Republic, and Erik's adventures in brisket. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sometimes it can seem like any mention of “Central American” cigars is necessarily a reference to Nicaragua. Most of the region’s noteworthy factories are in Estelí. There are great cigars coming out of other countries in the region, though, and one of the hottest protagonists of Honduran cigars is Oscar Valladares. His name recognition in the U.S. got a major bump from Leaf by Oscar, and he's now putting out consistently excellent cigars and some of the most inventive packaging of any boutique ...
If you’re an American smoker of premium cigars, there’s a chance you still aren’t familiar with Royal Agio. But make no mistake; the company is a powerhouse in Europe, with a multi-generational history that has led to its position as one of the largest manufacturers of cigars in the world — when you count machine-made products that is. While machine made cigars have some negative stigma attached to them in the U.S., Agio products don’t compromise on quality and craft. Just a few years ago, the c...
Andre Farkas’ Viaje brand isn’t always easy to come by, but their reputation has spread far and wide. When you come across Viaje cigars, you scoop them up. While at the 2018 IPCPR trade show, Cigar Snob publisher Erik Calviño and senior editor Nicolás A. Jiménez sat with the L.A.-based owner of Viaje for a chat that touched on cigars, booze, basketball and pool parties — along with the first release in Viaje's new Private Keep series of cigars. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (...
Business ideas can come from all sorts of places. In the case of surfer-dude-turned-sailor-turned-humidor maker Daniel Marshall, it all started with a thoughtful thank you gift. Daniel sat down with me while we were at the IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas to talk about his company’s beginnings, how he came to be regarded as among the premier humidor makers in the world, and the benefits of making a living and building a brand inside the cigar culture. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLe...
On this episode, the Cigar Snob team recaps the 2018 IPCPR trade show, where a number of cigars brands and manufacturers debuted new product. We also got our hands on some innovative new accessories, met Karl "The Mailman" Malone, and watched the World Cup Final when a small fire delayed the show. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Robert Holt came into the cigar business after careers in the military and telecommunications. Now, he’s at the helm of Southern Draw, whose cigars are made exclusively by AJ Fernandez in Nicaragua. In a recent interview he did with Cigar Snob's Nick Jiménez not long before the annual IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas, he talked about his life before cigars, what it’s been like to work with his wife Sharon (the namesake of Southern Draw Rose of Sharon, which he and Nick were smoking during this conv...
Rick Rodriguez dropped by Cigar Snob HQ for an interview. Rick is the blender and ambassador at CAO Cigars, the General Cigar brand known for products like Flathead and Pilón, among others. Unlike so many other blenders, Rick came into his role from the sales side of the business. We talked about how he got his start, what it was like learning to blend with a cigar legend, and what’s on the horizon for the CAO brand. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed un...
We got cigars in the mail from Davidoff ... ad we blended them ourselves! Join us as we smoke through some of the cigars we blended while in the Dominican Republic for Davidoff's Viaje al Origen. We also recap the World Cup, talk about leaf blowers, celebrate the survival of the Thai cave kids, and review the latest issue of Cigar Snob Magazine. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/lice...
The Cigar Snob Team races to eat not one, not two, but THREE hot dogs while smoking Debonaire Daybreak in the ultimate contest of refinement and patriotic gluttony. We also discuss World Cup soccer, SweatCoin, Lebron James, and a whole lot more. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
These days, it seems like there’s no aspect of our lives that is outside the reach of divisive politics. Cigars are no exception, with government seemingly on a perpetual assault of the rights of cigar smokers, tobacconists and manufacturers at the federal, state and municipal levels. Few states are more notorious for their restrictive anti-tobacco policies than New York. With a gubernatorial election coming later this year, incumbent Andrew Cuomo (who is a safe bet in the Democrat primary) face...
In this episode, the team smokes Viaje Exclusivo Nicaragua cigars and discusses the World Cup, Koko the Gorilla, Trump's immigration policy, continued unrest in Nicaragua, and some of the latest news coming out of the cigar industry. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
If you’re a fan of Aganorsa Leaf tobacco, there’s a good chance you’ve come across the HVC brand name. We put the HVC San Isidro, which is made at the Aganorsa factory in Estelí, at number 15 on our list of the top 25 cigars of 2017. HVC founder Reinier Lorenzo stopped by our office to watch some World Cup soccer. After the match between Portugal and Spain was over, we moved over to the mics so our publisher Erik Calviño could get an interview in. If you don’t already know his story, you might b...
In this packed episode of the podcast, the Cigar Snob Team smokes Vegas Cubanas by Don Pepín García (except Nick, who still has a cold) and talks about Nicaragua, North Korea, Donald Trump, Alex Ovechkin, the World Cup, snorkel masks, and a whole lot more. One thing's for sure: this episode's not gonna be effin' suck! Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Our office got a visit from Erik Espinosa, the founder of Espinosa Cigars, which is known for brands like Laranja, 601, and Murcielago. As long as he was here, we figured we’d sit him down in front of a mic for a conversation with our publisher Erik Calviño that ended up touching on his cigars, his singing, and his bucket list. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0...
We reached into the Vault for Humo Jaguar cigars by Plasencia, which were distributed only briefly back in 2011. We also remember Anthony Bourdain the day the world learned of the chef's suicide. All that — plus UFC 225, Yoel Romero, the Camel Clutch, and why you shouldn't watch The Handmaid's Tale — on this episode of the podcast. Listen to the episode for information on how you can win a box of Humo Jaguar cigars from 2011 like the ones we smoked on this podcast! Music in this episode: "BossaB...
