Monday, April 18 2011
Cigars basically do one of two things: They either provide pleasure or they don't. The reasons for either may or may not have anything to do with the manufacturer or where you purchased the cigars, be it at your local B&M or a merchant that sells cigars online. Experienced cigar smokers are well aware that, in addition to the popular major or national brand labels, both B&Ms and online catalogers sell "house brands" and "exclusives."
Let's start with the latter. Although "house brands" would also be exclusive to a particular store, exclusives are more often national brand labels sold exclusively to a given merchant. A good example of this would be CAO CX2 cigars, undoubtedly a nationally known brand that is sold exclusively through Famous Smoke Shop. Another is the Carlos Torano Tribute 2008 Toro sold in a box of 10. The remaining 2008 Tribute sizes are available nationally and sold in boxes of 20. Since I'm not involved with that aspect of the company, how these deals are made is beyond my ken (and I wouldn't tell you anyway). However, if you look at the leading online cigar stores and a number of local merchants, they all carry "exclusive" lines.
Recently, a question was raised on one popular online cigar forum that the quality of the cigar was lacking, when compared to the same cigar sold in an earlier release. To be fair, the post pointed out that the retailer had not only purchased the brand, but had also purchased the
blend so they could make the cigars themselves. Apparently, this would save the company money and increase their margin. Nothing wrong with that. But the post also pointed out that the store-manufactured version was world's apart from the original; the company even changed the packaging from a box to a
bundle.
Since I can only speak for Famous, when they take in a national brand as an exclusive, it's the same blend and packaging the cigars have always had. The only exception I've seen is the box design for the aforementioned Torano Tribute 2008 Toro, which was done to distinguish the box of 10 from the remaining shapes in the boxes of 20. The additional upside to exclusives is, they are generally a little more affordable. Suffice it to say, whether they be closeouts, which may be the case, or simply a deal made for a particular line extension, exclusives are what they are, and there's no reason to believe they are any lesser in quality, flavor, etc.
House brands are a different animal, in that, they are sold through a merchant with a blend that has been created exclusively for a specific retailer. Often made by leading manufacturers, yet sold at lower prices than their main lines, here again, you can find some awesome bargains, or you might wind-up with the proverbial "dog rocket." It's a gamble that many retailers are willing to take. Although in some cases, the manufacturer prefers to remain anonymous, certainly, if a house brand cigar is advertised as made by Rocky Patel, Oliva, or Perdomo, you would expect the quality to be on par with their reputation for excellence. A good example of this are VUDU cigars, which are made in Rocky Patel's Tavicusa factory in Nicaragua. Alabao by Perdomo is another that seems to be gaining favor among the masses. Moreover, sometimes the boutique manufacturers turn out some wonderful selections like Capoeira by Jesus Fuego at his Tabacos S.A. factory. Certainly, Famous's competitors can claim their own in-house bestsellers.
Sure, too many lousy house brands can taint the reputation of retailer, but if a cigar is good, it shouldn't matter where it's made or whether it's a house brand or not. Fortunately, most cigar smokers are willing to try something new at least once, and at that point, the market will decide whether it's worth buying or not. Then, the same holds true for the new releases from the nationally known manufacturers doesn't it?
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