Vacation

Firecured is taking some time off to roam and ramble. I'll be back in a few weeks. In the meantime, you might enjoy some of the 2,087 archived posts on this blog.

Peace Prevails at Zimbabwe Tobacco Floors

(allAfrica.com) THE irritating noise, chaos and congestion that has characterised the tobacco marketing season for the past three years could now be history since the 2012 marketing season has provided a peaceful environment for farmers to conduct their business.
A visit to the tobacco auction floors by The Financial Gazette's Farming revealed that the four auction floors have dealt with the perennial problems that had blighted the tobacco marketing season.
Unauthorised traders that always contributed to the chaos and congestion associated with the auction floors have been permanently removed; there are police posts within the auction floors to deal with all warranted incidences.
All the four operating auction floors, Boka Tobacco Floor, Tobacco Sales Floor, Millennium Tobacco Floors and Premier Tobacco Floors, have constructed clinics which are manned by qualified staff and canteens that provide adequate and hot meals for the farmers. Continued

La Aurora Adds Salomon to 107 Cigar Line

(Cigar Aficionado) La Aurora is adding a size to its 107 line, and it should hit shelves this summer.
Miami Cigar and Company, the U.S. distributor for La Aurora, told Cigar Aficionado today that the new size will be a Salomon at 7 1/4 by 52 ring gauge, the same dimensions as the Aurora Puro Vintage 2003. Continued

Tobacco farmers face contract cuts

(Tennessean) In a time that many tobacco farmers are just starting to seed, some area dark fire growers were informed earlier this month that their contracts for this year would be cut or scaled back.
William Elliot, a grower from Cedar Hill, said he was informed on March 1 that Hail & Cotton would only be able to offer him a partial contract this year.
... While exact figures of how many families will be effected are unknown, Elliot said that most farmers he knew were given partial contracts. Continued

Judge delays decision on Renegade Tobacco future

(Winston-Salem Journal) Three Mocksville tobacco manufacturers will have to wait another 45 days before learning whether they will face a trial or be able move toward exiting bankruptcy for the second time.
Judge William Stocks of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of N.C. approved Tuesday continuing the pretrial hearing until 9:30 a.m. May 1.
Renegade Holdings Inc., Renegade Tobacco Co. and Alternative Brands Inc., which have a total of 101 employees, initially entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2009. The companies exited bankruptcy in June 2010 but returned six weeks later. Continued

Circle K Rolls Out Proprietary Cigarette Brand

(CSP) Over the past few months, executives at Circle K parent company Alimentation Couche-Tard have made no mistake that they are unhappy with cigarette pricing changes recommended by Altria Group. The “deflationary effect of the price strategy” has taken a sizable bite out of the company’s same-store merchandise sales in the United States.
So last month, rather than continue to complain, the chain took action, rolling out a proprietary cigarette brand to all its regional divisions in the United States, CEO Alain Bouchard announced yesterday. Continued

2012 Tobacco Throwdown aims to reincarnate John Cotton's Nos. 1&2 Medium

(apassionforpipes.com) The Seattle and New York Pipe Clubs–organizers of the 2011 Balkan Sobranie Throwdown–announce a new edition of the event for the Chicago Pipe Show this coming May. This year’s competition is the John Cotton Throwdown, featuring John Cotton Nos. 1&2 Medium. Continued

Remembering the local cigar king

(myjournalcourier.com) Smoke-free businesses were the stuff of pipe dreams a few generations ago. That was especially true in Jacksonville [Illinois], where the tobacco industry once flourished.
In fact, for many years, the aristocrats of the working class in Morgan County were the cigar makers, who were present in Jacksonville at least as far back as 1843. Benjamin Pyatt is credited with being the city’s first cigar maker, and a nephew and one-time employee of Pyatt — Robert T. Cassell — became one of Jacksonville’s best-known cigar manufacturers. Continued

I'm Kukri for Gurkha Puffs!

(Cigar Aficionado) Beach Cigar Group, the company behind Gurkha and Wicked Indie cigars, has renamed itself Gurkha Cigar Group Inc. effective immediately.
Gurkha told Cigar Aficionado today that the company was re-branding itself to better emphasize its link to the more than 100-year-old Gurkha brand.
... The company intends to release an anniversary cigar later this year to commemorate the occasion. Continued

The Rise and Fall of Calvin Phelps, Renegade Tobacco

(Greensboro News & Record) How does an initiative that started with such promise end so badly?
The answer begins with a young man who wanted to be a rock star but found his calling in the machinery of cigarette- and cigar-making, and who then profited hugely from a brief wrinkle in the rules that govern this nation’s tobacco industry.
His newfound money flew out the door for fancy sports cars, including several Ferraris and a $142,000 Maserati, and a $1.9 million jet, Chinqua Penn, a collection of vintage guitars, and such smaller pleasures as an $8,500-a-week stint at a rock ’n’ roll fantasy camp.
Now the tab is due. Continued

Uganda becomes key tobacco producer

(observer.ug) Uganda is becoming a key tobacco growing country six years after British America Tobacco Uganda (BATU) decided to concentrate on growing the leaf and leaving the production of cigarettes to its Kenyan operations.
BAT has already made Uganda the key location for its leaf operations. The company relocated its regional headquarters for Leaf Operations in Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (EEMEA), from South Africa to Uganda.
From just one country with only 30,000 farmers, Uganda will now oversee 11 countries, three continents, 1,038 employees and 100,000 farmers. According to Alain Schacher, BATU’s Managing Director, who is also EEMEA Regional Leaf Supply Manager, the choice was between Uganda and Zimbabwe, another key source. Continued

Candela Cigars, once hugely popular, are latter-day oddities

(Cigar Aficionado) ... Green cigars are latter-day oddities, but they once were the preferred smokes of Americans, so popular in the United States that cigars with candela wrappers became known as American Market Selection. (Natural cigars, the ones that make up the vast majority of today's cigar market, were dubbed English Market Selection.)
From about 1958 to the early 1970s, Americans smoked billions of cigars, and nearly all of them were as green as your front lawn after a May rain. The popular tint was not a function of the use of underage leaf, however. It resulted from a unique process by which the wrapper tobacco was being cured. Continued

USA Gold Cigarettes Hosts Online Photo Contest

(CSP) USA Gold, a leading cigarette brand manufactured by Commonwealth Brands Inc., distributed and sold by Commonwealth - Altadis, is running an online consumer promotion that also includes a retailer appreciation component.
The consumer promotion, "Win Gold with USA Gold Photo Challenge," will giveaway $400,000 to 40 winners over four voting periods. The promotion's positioning statement "Grab A Pack. Send A Pic. Pocket $10,000 in Gold" was used in e-mail, direct mail and point-of-sale (POS) campaigns to drive traffic to http://www.usagoldbar.com/.
The campaign, sponsored by USA Gold, asks consumers to submit a photo of themselves with any USA Gold product or promotional piece. Eligible photos are then posted to the website. Entrants are encouraged to ask their friends 21-years of age and older to log on to the website and vote for their photo. Continued

A La Gloria Cubana, a CAO and a Murcielago – Cigar Weather is Returning!

(Cigar Craig) We left off on Sunday having had a nice Camacho Havana with my son and brother-in-law, and it seemed like a 2 cigar day, so I selected a La Gloria Cubana Artesanos de Tabaqueros Rothschild that I got last December when I went up to Famous Smoke Shop in Easton, PA to hang out with Michael Giannini. This was the version that starts our with a delicious Connecticut shade wrapper, then transitions to the Ecuador Sumatra wrapper.
These are tasty little buggers, and I like them. This is a size that I believe is only available at their events, and it’s a shame, because it’s a great size and fit the time I had available perfectly. Continued

New G. L. Pease Tobacco blend: Sextant

(glpease.com) This one has been in the works for months, and I'm really thrilled with it. I'm not ready to reveal the details quite yet, as it's still a few weeks before it'll start finding its way to the retailers, but it's different, and it's special. It's a Latakia mixture with a twist, and I don't mean lemon. Continued

Photo via Lamarde

Maker of Big Ben, Porsche & Hilson Pipes Files for Reorganization

(Pips Magazine) Some sad news was released today. The last pipe factory in the Netherlands, Koninklijke Gubbels en Zn., recently filed for bankruptcy.
Gubbels was the manufacturer of the Big Ben, Porsche Design and Hilson pipe brands, among others.
Here’s a translation of an article placed in ‘De Limburger’, a local newspaper: Continued

Snus Tobacco and Sports

(Snus Authority) When I used to smoke it was difficult to get my nicotine fix while playing sports, and I could always tell that smoking negatively impacted my endurance. Once I finally made the switch from smoking to snus, I noticed that not only did my endurance improve, but I could also enjoy it while playing! Here are some of the sports that I’ve had experience snusing and playing: Continued

Connoisseur's Corner: A Perfect, 55-Year-Old Cigar

(Cigar Aficionado) A perfect 100-point-score is a rarity in Cigar Aficionado magazine. We have never given a 100 in our main tasting section, and even here in Connoisseur’s Corner, where we focus on aged cigars, their appearances are fleeting.
Here we have our first perfect cigar since February 2011. The smoke, a 55-year-old H. Upmann No. 120, combined rich flavor and ideal balance. Continued

Top 10 Hong Kong cigar bars

(thedrinksbusiness.com) The Hong Kong climate lends itself for much of the year to balmy evenings sitting out on one of the city’s many rooftop terraces.
Since the indoor smoking ban was introduced in 2009, these venues have come into their own as a haven for cigar lovers to enjoy their hobby in a comfortable, relaxed environment, often rounded off by a glass of something special. Continued

The 'regulars' at Carmine's Cigars have built a tight-knit friendship

(silive) It's clear from their easy banter that the Dongan Hills smoke shop, which opened for business in 1996, has become more than a place where cigar aficionados can light up and unwind without getting flack from family members sensitive to the smell and second-hand fumes.
The two dozen or so customers who visit the shop on a weekly – in some cases, daily – basis have developed a genuine rapport, one that surpasses the realm of camaraderie. Prior to meeting at Carmine's, they didn't know one another; now they're like family. Continued

China’s Tobacco Monopoly Bigger by Profit Than HSBC

(Bloomberg) China National Tobacco Corp., the nation’s cigarette monopoly, may be larger by annual profit than HSBC Holdings Plc (HSBA) and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT), according to a rare release of the company’s financial data.
The state-owned tobacco company had net income of 117.7 billion yuan ($18.7 billion) in 2010 on sales of 770.4 billion yuan. Industrial Bank Co. released the figures in a statement late yesterday because China National Tobacco is buying a 5.2 billion yuan stake in the Shanghai-listed lender.
... Its 2010 figures would make China National Tobacco the world’s 18th largest company by profit, one spot ahead of American International Group and just behind JPMorgan Chase & Co., according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Continued

Tobacco Company given ultimatum to pay Uganda farmers

(ugpulse.com) The minister of state for trade and cooperatives, David Wakikona, has given Continental tobacco company up to end of April to pay all the tobacco farmers across the country or risk losing their license of dealing in the crop in the country.
The minister who was addressing farmers during a victory party of the MP of Buganganyi west, Atwooki Kasirivu, revealed that continental tobacco owes Ugandan farmers 26 billions and 1.5 billions to Kibaale district farmers. Continued

A Cigar Dinner Extravaganza

(Gordon Mott) Riveting! No other word describes the all black jumpsuit-clad dance troupe, long hair swirling, lithe bodies gyrating and the pounding percussion from their drumsticks on the wooden chairs they carried pulsing through the 1000-plus attendees in tuxedos and suits and flowing long gowns.
The dance group, one of the featured performances at the Festival de Habanos closing dinner last Friday night, highlighted an evening celebrating the brand Romeo y Julieta. Instead of the black on gold decor of several recent gala dinners, the banquet hall was vividly outlined with snow-white floors, bright red walls and splashy silver cursive lettering of one of Cuba’s signature brands. Continued

Tobacco renaissance at Mac Baren

(P&T) The worldwide pipe tobacco market may be relatively flat at the moment, but don’t tell that to folks at Mac Baren. The largest family-owned Danish tobacco company is excited about the future pipe tobacco market.
Staffed by knowledgeable and dedicated tobacco people, Mac Baren has recently introduced 7 Seas, a new line of American-style aromatic tobaccos, and invested a large amount of money to purchase steam presses from defunct English tobacco manufacturers to revive traditional English-style blends. Continued

Dubinthedam: Popeye the Sailorman?

(Dubinthedam) As with life... pipe smoking has a funny side.

Cigar Finder, a Free App for Stogie Enthusiasts, Makes Debut in Android Market

(PRWeb) Stogie enthusiasts, retailers, and merchants can now use the free mobile app Cigar Finder on their Android phones. Cigar Finder for Android launched March 5, following the release of the updated version 1.1 for iPhone 4. The app has about 8,000 establishments in its database - more listings in the U.S. and Puerto Rico than any other app on the market. It also helps users discover and share their favorite local bars and shops with other stogie fans. Continued

Centennial Hills man travels the world collecting cigar bands

(Las Vegas Review Journal) Centennial Hills resident John L. Curtis is passionate about a collectors' item you might never have never heard of. And he's OK with that.
Since the 1970s, Curtis has amassed more than 1,000 cigar bands, paper or foil loops attached to cigars to denote brand or variety. But the bands aren't for or from your average stogie. Continued

San Lotano Oval Maduro Cigar Coming Soon

(Cigar Aficionado) The San Lotano Oval from A.J. Fernandez Cigars, a Nicaraguan cigar brand with an unconventional oval box-pressing, is being expanded with the introduction of a maduro version.
San Lotano Oval, made by A.J. Fernandez in Estelí, Nicaragua, has a Ecuadoran wrapper grown from Habano seed, Nicaraguan binder and a mix of Honduran, Dominican and Nicaraguan filler tobacco. Continued

The Renegade Tobacco saga continues

(Winston-Salem Journal) A group of state attorneys general have filed an objection to the proposed bankruptcy exit plan by three bankrupt Mocksville tobacco manufacturers.
Bankruptcy trustee Peter Tourtellot filed a reorganization plan Jan. 30 that could enable Renegade Holdings Inc., Renegade Tobacco Co. and Alternative Brands Inc. to emerge from Chapter 11 protection by as early as late March.
The plan would remove Calvin Phelps, who is involved in a criminal investigation, as their owner and from any investor and operational role. The companies have a combined 101 employees. Continued

New Samuel Gawith Limited Edition Tobacco

(Mr. Tobacco) This blend of Virginia & Black Cavendish is flavoured with champagne. 3 tin designs, will be out for a limited time (unsure on how long)

The New Cigars of Cuba

(David Savona) Much of the excitement surrounding the annual Habanos Festival surrounds new cigars. The Festival is a stage for Habanos S.A. to present their new creations to the hundreds from around the world who gather for this event. Some of the cigars are available for preview, but it will be many months before they appear on store shelves.
Every year, Cuba releases Edición Limitada cigars. They’ve done as many as five in a year, but now the number is fixed at three. The 2012 Limitadas will be all big brand smokes: a Partagas Serie C No. 3 (5 1/2” by 48), H. Upmann Robusto (4 7/8” by 50) and Montecristo 520 (6 1/8” by 55). Continued

Off Tackle Empire - Cigars and B1G Co-Champs

Graham Filler from OTE discusses B1G co-champs, celebratory cigars, and our upcoming bracket series where we try and figure our what the best B1G college town is...

Pitching smoke: Red Sox great Luis Tiant and son now selling cigars

(naplesnews.com) ... One of the Tiants Groups biggest decisions was to join forces with another Cuban legend, Jose "Pepin" Garcia, considered one of the preeminent "tabaqueros" (tobacco makers) in the world.
Like the Tiants, cigars are a family business with Garcia, who is part of his son, Jaime's, My Father Cigar factory in Esteli, Nicaragua, where all El Tiante manufacturing details — from growing to curing, wrapping, banding and boxing - are done.
The cigars are then shipped to Garcia's headquarters in Miami, then to the Tiant Cigar Group offices in Fort Myers. Continued

Photo: SoxStickers

Pipe From Keens Steakhouse Is Claimed, and Smoked, Decades After Storage

(NYTimes) IN 1976, my membership certificate for Keen’s English Chop House’s Pipe Club arrived in my parents’ mailbox, a gift from my godfather, James Elkins McIlvain. I hadn’t yet turned 2. I never did ask Uncle Jim whether the gesture was a hope that I, too, would one day puff away at his favorite hangout, or if he merely giggled at the image of an infant inhaling from such an instrument — it looked as if it should be filled with opium rather than aged tobacco — like some sort of diaper-clad burgher. Starting in 1885, when Albert Keen opened his restaurant and saloon, now known as Keens Steakhouse, the destination has provided post-dinner pipes to the likes of Babe Ruth, Theodore Roosevelt and Buffalo Bill Cody. Keen, who managed the acting and literary society called the Lamb’s Club, on West 36th Street, in what was then the theater district, opened up his self-named restaurant next door. Continued

Cohiba Cigar Humidor Sold for $475,500

Havana (PRWEB) On early Saturday morning a cigar humidor in form of a detailed replica of the "El Laguito" cigar factory, where the renowned Cohiba cigars are rolled, was sold for the price of 360,000 EUR (475,500 USD).
The humidity in the humidor is regulated with the new microprocessor controlled adorini cigar humidifiers for humidors, which apply a new generation of high-precision capacitive sensors and maintain a constant humidity level of 70% in the humidor.
At the touch of a button a remote-controlled hydraulic system opens the humidor allowing access to 23 drawers filled with 520 Cohiba cigars, including some which have been rolled exclusively for this humidor and are not offered anywhere else. Continued

Cubeb cigarettes

(Wikipedia) Cubeb (Piper cubeba), or tailed pepper, is a plant in genus Piper, cultivated for its fruit and essential oil. It is mostly grown in Java and Sumatra, hence sometimes called Java pepper. The fruits are gathered before they are ripe, and carefully dried.
... Cubeb was frequently used in the form of cigarettes for asthma, chronic pharyngitis and hay fever. Edgar Rice Burroughs, being fond of smoking cubeb cigarettes, humorously stated that if he had not smoked so many cubebs, there might never have been Tarzan. "Marshall's Prepared Cubeb Cigarettes" was a popular brand, with enough sales to still be made during World War II. Continued

Cigar & Spirits Magazine Launches

(PRNewswire) Cigar & Spirits Magazine, which is a bi-monthly publication licensed to Innovative Product Opportunities, Inc. (OTC.BB: IPRU.OB), is hitting newsstands nationwide for the first time over the weekend.
Rock 'N Roll hall of famer, and founder of Cabo Wabo Tequila (part of Campari), Sammy Hagar, graces the cover of the national launch.
Just prior to hitting newsstands, a sneak peak of the Magazine has been made available online at http://www.CigarandSpirits.com/cigar-spirits-magazine.
The momentum behind the Publication has increased dramatically in recent months. Major new advertising deals have been signed with companies like J.C. Newman Cigar Co., Gurkha Cigars, and Vapor Corp. Cigar & Spirits Magazine President/Publisher, Lincoln Salazar, stated that "our team has been working hard to build this momentum, and we are looking forward to even more growth now as a national publication." Continued

Woman Lets Prince Albert Out of a Wall

(WSAW) ... "Well I didn't let him out of the can, but I let him out of the wall," said Lang laughingly.
She found not one, not two, but 88 cans of Prince Albert tobacco from 1918 stashed in her dining room wall.
Most of them are in great condition and many still have the original seal and still full of tobacco. Continued

Kentucky tobacco: A look back, a look ahead

(southeastfarmpress.com) ... Lower production, tight quality stocks, stabilizing use, and a decent quality crop will likely cause top‐quality contracted U.S. burley prices to rebound back into the $1.70s and $1.80s per pound for the 2011‐12 marketing season after the extremely poor quality 2010 crop averaged $1.50 per pound.
Limited auction offerings of good‐quality burley should also sell well in this marketing environment.
Dark tobacco producers continued to benefit from growing domestic snuff sales (increasing around 5 percent annually) as consumers responded to successful marketing efforts, new products introduced by smokeless tobacco companies, smoking restrictions, and perceptions of lower health risks for smokeless products relative to cigarettes. Continued

Photo: A traditional black Kentucky tobacco barn. Black barns raise the heat inside, aiding the curing of tobacco. Many got their color from creosote, which repelled termites. Soon many Kentucky barns were painted black just as a fashion statement. (Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress).

Tobacco production to decline due to La Niña

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - Tobacco production may decline by 2.5 percent to 78 million kilograms due to the adverse impact of the La Niña weather phenomenon, the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) said today.
"Too much water is not good for tobacco. Several tobacco farms in the north was hit by the La Niña that is why we expect a slight decline in output for this year," NTA Administrator Edgardo D. Zaragoza said in a briefing. Continued

Photo: "During cold La Niña episodes the normal patterns of tropical precipitation and atmospheric circulation become disrupted." (NOAA)

Can Star Scientific cure what ails tobacco?

(PRNewswire) Star Scientific, Inc. announced that the US Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) issued a Notice of Allowance on February 16, 2012 in Application No. 12/342,192 by Jonnie Williams, entitled "Tobacco Curing Method", formally granting patent claims for a new method of curing tobacco. The written patent will issue from the USPTO within the next several months.
The '192 application discloses the minimizing of TSNA (tobacco-specific nitrosamine) formation in tobacco by subjecting it to a controlled environment while a majority of the leaf is in a green, uncured state. The process, therefore, represents an improvement over the method described in the Williams '649 patent; Star Scientific believes it is particularly well-suited for curing tobacco for use in smokeless tobacco products. Continued

Pöschl Tobacco Group Company film: Overview, history and manufacturing.

Pöschl Tobacco Group Company film: Overview, history and manufacturing.

Nedbank’s Zimbabwe Unit to Lend $65 Million to Tobacco Farmers

(Bloomberg) MBCA Bank Ltd., a unit of South Africa’s Nedbank Group Ltd. (NED), will lend $65 million to Zimbabwean tobacco farmers this year, spokeswoman Dedrey Mutimutema said.
“These lines of credit have been structured in such a manner that they will fund the entire value chain in the production of green-leaf tobacco,” Mutimutema said in an e- mailed statement from Harare, the capital. “The funds will cover input financing, grower financing, processing, export logistics as well as export debtors.” Continued

La Flor Dominicana Air Bender Maduro Cigar Review

(TomsCigars.com) A couple years ago, Ed and I reviewed the original Air Bender. I remember liking it. The other day, I noticed an interesting display of cigars on Ed’s counter. It turned out to be the Air Bender, but with a maduro wrapper. The blend is the same as the original. The only difference is the wrapper. I hear these are of limited availability as well. I picked some up, got a glass of water, and took some notes. Here’s how it went… Continued