Monday, July 14 2008
By Gary Korb
My day started with a breakfast hosted by
Cusano Cigars for our Famous Smoke Shop crew. I started my day with a Cuvée Blanc. Nice. After our meeting, I realized that not only does Cusano make some very good cigars, but I was even more impressed with Mike Chiusano's practical and realistic approach to working in this business. Definitely one of the smartest boutique brands out there, and a company that will be around for a long time. His people are lucky to have him as their leader.
On the floor, today was visibly much more hectic than yesterday, and you could feel that things were beginning to really pick-up, too. My main mission was to do some video interviews. I've been concentrating on boutique labels, and everyone I spoke to was positive about the future of the industry, especially for the independents. Unlike the "big tobacco" companies, many of them are able to offer better quality and value because they really listen to their customers. As such, and because they have less red tape to muddle through, they can respond faster. In such a consumer and price-sensitive business as this, it's good to see the boutique labels like Cusano, Oliva, Alec Bradley, and others grow slow and steady as a result of the total dedication to their work and their customers.
My first stop was the Arganese Cigars booth to shoot a short video interview with Gene Arganese, and who did I run into but Joe Gannascoli, of The Sopranos fame. Gene and Joe are working on a cigar together that will be marketed under the "Gannascoli" name, but is yet to be announced. I also picked up a couple of samples of the new full-bodied CL3 and ML3 cigars, so look for my reviews of those cigars in the very near future.
From there I returned to the Alec Bradley Cigars booth where I did a short video interview with Alan Rubin. Alan talked about how his company has grown over the years and his recent success with their new Tempus Cigars line. Like many of the boutique cigar makers I talked to today, he's positive about the outlook of the industry in spite of the increasing passage of anti-smoking laws.
I then spoke with Patrick Vivalo of E/O brands, who talked about their new Cubao cigars selection, and he showed me a new limited edition cigar, also made by Don Pepin Garcia, called Mi Barrio. Patrick gave me a Mi Barrio and a "show sample" of the Cubao, which is not in the main line. It's roughly 5 ¾ inches by a 42 by my estimation. I lit it up and the first couple of puffs were really stoked with pepper. The cigar rounded out at times, but the spiciness kept coming back and walloping my palate, yet it.wasn't overpowering. In a nutshell: if you like a good spicy-peppery smoke with a lot of dark tobacco flavor, you'll want to give Cubao a try.
Next, in the Oliva Cigars booth, I got to meet Sam Leccia, creator of nub cigars. Great guy, too. He personally rolled me a nub 460 Connecticut, and I captured the whole thing on video. (Look for that one soon after I return home.) According to Jose Oliva, the nub is more than a fad. It looks like a lot of cigar smokers have really taken to it. I'm still in the "wait and see" camp, but ride the wave as long as you can hold on, is what I say, and I've already seen a few nub imitators at the show. So good luck Sam. It's always good to be the first.
Later in the day I met with George Rico of Gran Habano cigars, who's promoting his new G.A.R. cigars line. Gran Habano has also just released a semi-boxed pressed Cabinet Selection with an attractive dark Nicaraguan Corojo wrapper. George gave me one of those to try, plus a couple of G.A.R.'s and he even gave me a few of his own personal blend cigars, which he calls his "private Lancero." More Lanceros folks! George intimated that it's his favorite size, and was the first cigar he ever made. It's an all-Nicaraguan filler blend with a rustic-looking Ecaudorian Connecticut wrapper.
In the Davidoff of Geneva booth, Avo Uvezian was holding court with the customers. He asked me to sit down with him, and we talked our usual talk - cigars and music. He told me that the recently released Tesoro cigars are doing very well, and that he was working on a new album of Tango music. During our conversaion he handed me a new Avo 787 Belicoso. A nice, beefy-looking cigar, too. He also treated me to an LE07 from his pocket, and insisted I smoke it with him. What a great smoke, and a perfect burn, too. It's also one of his "pet" cigars. Thanks Avo. It was the only chance I had to really relax all day.
On my way out of the show, I ran into Didier Houvenaghel, who revamped the Nicarao cigars line with Rocky Patel. An expert on tobacco farming and agriculture, Didier (pronounced, "did-ee-ay") has just had his book, The Cigar: From Soil to Soul, translated from French and Spanish into English. If you really want to learn what goes into growing and curing tobacco, and gain a whole new appreciation for smoking cigars, this book is astounding in its detail. Look for it to be available in the coming months. It's a true cigar lover's must-have for their library.
Finally, tonight I attended annual Davidoff Cigars dinner at The Bellagio Resort & Casino. The special guest for the evening was Winston S. Churchill, Sir Wintston Churchill's grandson (yes, THE Sir Winston Churchill), a journalist by trade and, like his grandfather, a statesman, too. He's had a fascinating life, and gave a wonderful speech filled with anecdotes about "Grandpa-pa." (I even got a photograph with him.) After dinner with desseert, Winston Churchill by Davidoff cigars were handed out. I enjoyed a No.10 immensely. What a great way to top off the evening and a very long day.
So until tomorrow...happy smokes.
