I’m living the life the past couple weeks. Lots of events, travel and of course smoking! The highlight this past week was attending the Texas Cigar Festival in Houston TX hosted by Serious Cigars. It was an awesome event with a great turn out by cigar smokers and manufacturers. I’ll admit that I spent most of my time sitting at the Illusione booth with Dion Giolito and the Tatuaje booth with Pete Johnson. I wish I was better at taking notes because there were so many fans of Stogie Review and followers on Twitter that I got to meet. I swear Stogie Review has some of the best fans who appreciate all of our efforts to bring entertaining cigar information. It was great to meet so many of you. I actually flew into Austin TX the day before the festival and stayed with ChiefHava. Chief was kind enough to take me on a cigar tour of Austin TX. I was able to visit some really great shops, run by dedicated individuals who love this industry. Six airports, six cigar shops in three days made for an exciting and exhausting weekend.
Tatuaje Verocu #5 – My Cigar of the Year for 2010. I don’t think I can shower any additional praise on the Tatuaje Verocu #5. So much balance, so much flavor and so much complexity in such a small format. Consistent from cabinet to cabinet. Literally an anytime, any place, always enjoyable type of cigar. This is truly a cigar that I can’t get enough of.
Nosotros – Sometimes I think I’m the only one who enjoyed the Nosotros. Was that the reason why the joint project between Dion Giolito and Jonathan Drew ended? Who knows? All I know is that I thought the Nosotros, more so in the smaller ring gauges, had what it took to be a mainstay in the market. So for me, the Nosotros will be missed. Lucky for me, the folks at Habana House in Austin TX still had some in stock for me to enjoy.
Viaje 50/50 Black – I’ve taken a break from smoking Viaje cigars. I don’t know. Maybe its with all the recent hype and the high ratings it has received, that has turned me off. While visiting Heroes and Legacies in Austin TX I decided to give the Viaje 50/50 Black another try. I remember when these were released at the 2009 IPCPR. The concept for this cigar is that its two cigars in one. Meaning that the first half you get more of a medium bodied cigar and then around the halfway point, it instantly transforms to a full bodied cigar instead of the traditional natural progression. Its that instantaneous transition in body and strength that isn’t my thing. Combine that with a subpar burn that needed constant attention and a wrapper that became unraveled, I think I will stick with the Viaje 50/50 Red Label.
Partagas Black – The cigar that started it all. The Partagas Black represents my transformation from a occasional cigar smoker to the Blog Father I am today. ChiefHava actually purchased this cigar for me while we were visiting his local B&M, Pipe World in Austin TX. Some will say the Partagas Black isn’t the same cigar that it was a few years ago. I think it has more to do with the overall changes in definition of body and strength the industry has undergone the past few years. The Partagas Black has some great flavors. The definition of full body and full strength has changed over time so I’d say the Partagas Black is more around the solid medium scale for both. The Partagas Black is like an old friend that you don’t get to talk to as much as you use to but when you do, its still a good time.
My Father Special – The last episode of Week in Smoke I smoked the El Centurion by Don Pepin Garcia. During that blurb I mentioned how rumor has it that these are still being rolled for personal consumption. Turns out I was right (they are still being rolled) and I was wrong (personal consumption). The My Father Special is the El Centurion. Produced in even fewer numbers and usually only available at events where Don Pepin Garcia is in attendance. This cigar was gifted to me by ChiefHava who attended the Nicaraguan Cigar Festival. The My Father Special is officially the first cigar I smoked in his Man Cave…make a note, that maybe a trivia question one day. Who knows?
CroMagnon – Featured in an earlier episode of Week in Smoke, the CroMagnon is the joint creation of our friend ChiefHava and Adrian’s Cigar. This is the Mandible size from the much anticipated second batch. The first thing you will notice from this batch is that its a heck of a lot prettier and smoother looking wrapper. I thought the rustic look and feel from the first batch was cool but the sleekness and shine of the second batch is definitely an eye catcher that really standouts. The next thing you will notice is that the CroMagnon burns more evenly and more consistently. Blend is as dynamite and meaty as ever. Lots of simple but yet complex flavors with a great balance of Nicaraguan zing, Cameroon tang and a dark juicy semi sweet tobacco flavor from it’s Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper. Ship the cigars already Skip!
Man O’War Puro Authentico – A new staple in my humidor. Love the size, love its bold peppery notes and I love how the nicotine flavors linger for forever, love the nuttiness that dominates the palate, love the soft delicate woody and coffee notes. I love it all. An awesome balance of power, body and flavor that grabs your attention from the start. My favorite of all the Man O’War Series.
León Jimenes Don Fernando #4 – It doesn’t get much more special than the Léon Jimenes Don Fernando #4. Our good friend and supporter of Stogie Review, Michael Herklots has a great story regarding Don Fernando Léon Arsenio the patriarch of the Léon Family that owns La Aurora Cigars. A very flawless Cameroon wrapper graces this truly special cigar. I always comment how the La Flor Dominicana Cameroon Cabinet has a Cameroon wrapper like no other, but hand down, the Léon Jimenes Don Fernando #4 surpasses it. Flawless construction, beautiful looking and tasty wrapper. A mello cocoa and earthy flavors accompany a subtle tang to make for a very very memorable cigar made for a legendary man. “Hechos Especialmente Para Don Fernando Leon”
Forcade Giralda Maduro – On the way to the Texas Cigar Festival we made a impromptu stop at Cigar! Cigar! in Sugar Land TX. There I was introduced to the local rep for Forcade, Chris. Chris was smoking a beautiful maduro cigar with a gypsy on the band, both of which caught my attention. Chris went on to tell me all about Forcade and the Giralda Maduro cigar he was smoking and how they are made by Don Pepin and Jaime Garcia. Really fantastic syrupy texture with a classic maduro flavor profile with a little bit of Nicaraguan zing. Nothing too overbearing. Very smooth and very enjoyable. Classic maduro with that familiar DPG twist. Definitely a cigar worth hunting down and smoking more of.
PJ 40th – Easy there Tatuaje whores. The PJ 40th is to celebrate…you guessed it, Pete Johnson 40th birthday. This isn’t a new blend. Its actually the soon to be released Fausto which if you remember from my 20:15 with Pete Johnson interview, Fausto is the same blend of the limited edition T110 blend Pete did for a store in Hawaii a couple years back. So the PJ 40th is a unique size not found in the Fausto line and the original T110 size isn’t in the Fausto line. A little confusing…I know. So how does the PJ 40th compare to the T110? I enjoyed the PJ 40th although it seemed a little toned down from what I remember the T110 being. It was missing that “firecracker” essence that the T110 had upon lighting up. Still looking forward to the Fausto release and even more so for the release of the La Casita Criolla.
EPC Core Line Maduro – What I love most about Ernesto Perez Carrillo is that whenever I see him he greets me with a hearty smile, a hug, thanks me for our support and asks how my family is doing. It doesn’t get much more classy than that. Our conversations always have a way of combining love of cigars and love of family into one conversation. A great man with a great vision and a great family behind working with him. The soon to be released EPC Core Line Maduro brings me back to what I think LGC Serie R Maduro was before Ernesto’s departure. Classic maduro with a modern twist that will greatly appeal to today’s smokers. Toasty and nutty flavors throughout with a bit of power to keep you on your toes. The sample I had was refined, complex and balanced. Can’t wait to try more.
Para Ti – The Para Ti is a Dominican puro distributed by Havana Cellars (Pete Johnson). Made for wine maker, Fred Schrader of Schrader Cellars, the Para Ti line of cigars was introduced to compliment his limited edition release Schrader figurado. Purchased from Habana House Cigars in Austin TX I found the Para Ti to be enjoyable but I’m on the fence as to whether I’d buy more. The flavor profile was a bit one dimensional with a nice oak flavor core and sprinkling of pepper notes. There was little else to add to the flavor profile. Slow burning and for the most part, one dimensional make for an okay but rather boring cigar. Maybe the Para Ti is best enjoyed when being paired with wine?
EO 601 Oscuro (Green) – This was the first time I smoked a 601 Oscuro (Green) from our friends Erik Espinosa and Eddie Ortega. I’m much more familiar with the 601 Maduro (Blue) and the Cubao lines. Seeing the new old schoolish, non-cartoonish band at Fumée Cigars in Austin TX it was a no brainer to pick up and try. Peppery to start and then transitions to a smooth black coffee flavor. Lots of thick smoke that lingers around. I’m glad that new bands resemble the original bands. I’m not saying anything new here but those initial bands by Rocky had too much of a cartoonish and overall “cheap” look/feel to them that really didn’t stand out on the shelf.
Casa Magna Colorado Perfecto – Lastly is this Casa Magna Perfecto was gifted to me by StogeyBogey at the TX Cigar Festival. Paul, I appreciate your generosity gifting me these. Normally not a fan of most Casa Magna and I really can’t say why. Maybe it falls victim to its own succes similar to how I look at Viaje. I honestly don’t know. The Casa Magna Colorado Perfecto is only available at events and it suffers from a common issue with most perfectos I’ve encountered; a snug/tight draw. Even after lighting and working past the nipple the draw never totally opens up. Even so I managed to produce a nice volume of smoke and steady flavors. Medium-Full in strength and flavor. Nice roasted coffee flavors with a hint of spicy woodsy flavor really worked well and peaked my palate. To date, my best experience flavor wise with any Casa Magna.
Contest
It’s contest heaven here at Stogie Review these days. When we turn on the contest spicket we really turn it on. Pictured above is the goodie bag from the Texas Cigar Festival. Twenty-eight (28) cigars in all. Ranging from the Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial to the Acid Toast by Drew Estate with a lot of fine cigars in the middle. Like always, when I don’t have room in my humidors you win. Up for grabs is the goodie bag from Texas Cigar Festival.
How To Enter
I’ve been to a lot of events and festivals over the years. Leave a comment and tell me what is your favorite cigar event or festival that you’ve attended. If you’ve never attended one, indicate one you’d like to attend.
Fine Print
Contest will run for ten (10) days ending at 11:59pm EST on April 30, 2011. One comment per person. For entry to count twice, (a) Include your Twitter name and make sure you are following Stogie Review (no need to unfollow/refollow) or (b) include your Stogie Review Fan Forum screen name.
I haven’t yet had the pleasure of attending a cigar festival, but I’d love to visit the one in Texas. I’ve got family down there, so it would be perfect for multiple reasons!
@craighartonline
I went to a tatuaje cigar event at Holts cigars in Philadelphia with my sister and friend that was awesome, got to try a bunch of new cigars. Awesome week in smoke too.
@gabrielf3340
I’ve never attended.a cigar event, believe me when I tell you it is one of the things I desire the most to do or be a part of. I don’t know if it’s possible for a regular Joe to attend, but if I could, I would choose the Pro Cigar Festival in the Dominican Republic and talk and have a cigar with the likes of Manuel Quesada, José Blanco, and other cigar greats. Right now a dream, but hey, dreams sometimes come true.
Craig Cass and crew from Tinderbox in Charlotte put on great events with the likes of Avo, E.P. Carillo, Rocky, Oliva is tomorrow night. Plenty of smokes, food and drink, that I have enjoyed on many occasions. I have never been to a festival, but I would love to go ak to my home state of Texas.
I have never attended an event but I would like to go to big smoke only b/c it’s in Vegas this yr. Twitter: @pr0nphisher thanks for the contest Jerry!
I haven’t attended any events yet, but would love to try the Nicaraguan cigar festival and CI’s cigar fest. Keep up the great work SR. Love the site!!
I attend the SI-15 Padron release with my dad because of YOUR review and it was excellent. absolutely excellent time, food, music, new friends, and loved the SI-15. My first cigar event and definitely not the last!
@jackcgrover
I haven’t been to any large or major cigar events – last year I flew in to Vegas on the last day of Big Smoke…D’OH! Had I only paid attention when booking my anniversary trip, I could have attended my first. In May there is an upcoming medium-sized event at Lit Cigar Lounge at Snoqualmie Casino which is a larger version of their Tuesday Night Cigar Club, and fortunately for me…I’ll be in the area to attend!
@Jerrys_Humidor
DON ! ! ! IT WAS A PLEASENT SURPRIZE MEETING YOU AT THE TEXAS CIGAR FESTIVAL I’VE FOLLOWED
THE STOGIE REVIEW FOR YEARS NOW AND HAVE ENJOYED MOST ALL OF THE REVIEWS AND GAINED SOME INSIGHT ON NEW PRODUCTS AND OLDER ONES I’VE YET TO TRY. THE ENTIRE REVIEW STAFF GET’S A BIG TEXAS THUMBS UP FOR YOUR TIRELESS EFFORTS IN MAKING YOUR WEBSITE A “GO TO” MUST FOR THE LOW DOWN ON THE CIGAR INDUSTRY, I RECOMMEND IT TO ALL MY SMOKIN’ BUDDIES . HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE CIGAR FESTIVAL AS RON LESSEREAUX REALLY PUTS FORTH AND EXCELLENT EFFORT IN ANY AND ALL SERIOUS CIGAR EVENTS. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK AND I’LL BE LOOKIN’ OUT FOR YOU NEXT YEAR.
FARMBEAU
The Big Smoke for me. Thanks
Seems like you had a great time
I would like to go to any big event. I have to say that between work and fily finding the time has been really hard. But if I had to pick one it would be the one that they have down in Cuba
Damn those are some nice smokes there!
I’ve never been to any events, but I’d probably enjoy CI’s Cigarfest.
I’ve attended the cigar heritage festival a couple of times in Ybor City. Really i’d be good attending any of the big events, haven’t been able to make it to any of them yet but next year i’ve got plans on the books for a couple of them.
Hey guys, never been to a cigar fest but the Texas Cigar Festival sounds great from all reports. Thanks.
@kekoa_kai
I have attended the Ybor Cigar Heritage Festival for the past several years. I attended the 2010 Tampa Humidor Cigar Bash. One of these years I would like to get to the Great Smoke festival in West Palm.
Sorry – I forgot to add – @jpgem
Haven’t been to a cigar show but would definitely love to go to cigarfest held by cigars international. A weekend of cigars and fun, what more could a man ask for? Thanks for all you guys do.
Favorite cigar event is the anniversary show every year at the maduroroom room ( my local shop). The next event would be the annual south Carolina sit-down smoke put on by tiny tim (check out his blog tiny Tims cigar world) this year we had 150 guys together smoking cigars and raising money for a good cause. I have not been to any festivals as of yet but do want to attend some in the future.
Twitter- @bleviner
Looking forward to Cigarnival 2011, At F.S.S., thanks.
I’ve been to plenty of local events, tastings, etc. though none of them stand out I’ve met a ton of great people through them. I’ve never been to a “festival” but would love to check out something like CI Cigarfest, being in the Northeast it would be convenient and I hear its a ton of fun
Twitter – @SmokeyOgre
I haven’t been to any festivals yet, but Cigarfest sounds like it would be awesome. Maybe in the near future I can attend.
Damn dude…. what a great week…..
SRFF-> Tadd
Best events are the monthly parties at the Outlaw here in KC. Always a great time with friends and the cigar makers.
@jledou
I’ve honestly never thought about going to a cigar festival. I am not big on crowds. However with all the talk lately, on the reviews. I might have to look into this. If there is a local or semi local one.
My Twtter handle is @AronL, as I believe you well know :p
You can drop off the cigars at the house. Or I can come pick them up. Either way :p
Never been to a big show just the local shops putting something on.Would love to do Big Smoke in Vegas
I haven’t been to a show, but I would like to try the Cigar Expo from Famous since I’m in the Reading Area its not to far away, if the price wouldn’t be so high I would be in.
czerbe = Fan Forum name
I think my favorite was my second Big Smoke. I understood things a little better and was able to enjoy it more.
Twitter = @keith1911
I live in TAXachusetts so I don’t get to go to many cigar events. For big events I’ve only been to CFest and I loved it because of the guys from Social Cigar I went with but it’s not my favorite. It’s killing me that I can’t make the drive this year as I’m gearing up for a move to California in a couple month. At least I’m moving to a more cigar friendly state… Oh wait…. Haha!
My favorite event was actually a small Macanudo tasting at the only cigar shop in town. The rep was nice, the patrons were chatty and the atmosphere was great. Oh yea and I fell in love with the Macanudo double maduro but I haven’t been able to find them since.
A bunch of friends and myself went to CI’s cigarfest in 2010. It was alot of fun and i got to hang out with J Drew and Steve for 45 min learning about how they made the dirty rats and Ligas… That was the best part of the whole thing, even better than the “free” cigars
My favorite event was at Blue Havana in Chicago, IL. It was a LFD event and we were sampling the Air Bender. It was there I remembered my love of LFD cigars, after a long hiatus.
I haven’t been to any large festivals – just some small events at my local shop. I think I would like to attend CI’s cigarfest someday. My stogie review forum name is hurdygurdy. Thanks for the contest!
I have not been to a large cigar fest yet but, I would like to attend the CI cigarfest. Money provided I hope to attend one day. It would also be nice to meet you guys there too!!!! Keep up the great work!!!!!
I attended a Padron event at Outlaw Cigar in Kansas City. I am not a fan of the shop due to the staff being jerks, but I got to meet Jorge and he was very nice and talked with us for a while.
I’d really love to attend Cigarnival 2011, but I’m too busy that month. Hopefully can attend a cigar festival in the near future.
My favorite event was the Torano event at Tobacco Leaf’s Eastern Ave location in Las Vegas back in 2006. Not only did we get to meet Carlos Torano, he patiently answered questions one-on-one for an hour and spoke extensively about blending and smoking. One of the last of the original pre-Castro Cuban tabacaleros.
Never attended one YET!. come October…I’ll be @ the great smoke in Vegas. P.S. I ave Pleanty of room in my Humidor…send them on over 🙂
Love these week in review. My favorite festival was the 2nd Texas Cigar Festival I justed attended this year. Given that you have a goody bag, does that mean you were there?!? If so, I am disappointed I didnt get to meet you in person. Would have been fun….If you can make it to the festival next year, I highly recommend it to anyone. It is an awesome event!
Pfhou – Yup I was there. If you walked past the Illusione or Tatuaje booths (across from each other) I was usually hanging out at there.
Never had the pleasure of attending a cigar event; something I am hoping to remedy in the very near future. Wouldn’t mind checking out the Texas Cigar Festival, and of course anything that is being held down in the Dominican!
Joseph aka mango2kw on twitter and SR
Atlanta Tweetup? Come on man! That counts!
LOL, yup you go that right. Can’t wait for the next installment.
I have only attended local events held at Alcorn Cigars however, it has always been a dream to attend the Big Smoke.
Never been to one, but the Nicaraguan Cigar Festival sounds great.
I’m jealous of all those nice cigars you got to smoke. I really need to try an EPC cigar. I haven’t been able to find them in the B&M in my area. I’m sure average dudes like us can’t attend, but going to the cigar festival you and some of the other blogger giants went to in the DR would be awesome.
i have not attended a function, but would love to go to Cigarnival 2011! ill have to catch a later year. Cant swing it this year.
Im @LoveMeKaty
I haven’t been to a cigar event yet, but I’d like to get out to the Big Smoke in Las Vegas and Cigar Fest.
I’m hoping to attend the TBOTLCH one of these years…..
The guys at Serious CIgars are great, ordered a few smokes from them over the years….
I’m @cfrasa!
I’ve never been to a cigar event, but would like to. I think Crush & Roll West sounds cool. Wine + cigars = winning.
@realmattspears
never been to one before but would love to go to the one in Cuba.
My stogie review fan forum name is smoke770
I wish they would hold one in the new england area.
I have never gotten to go to an event. However, I would love to go to Doc’s crush and roll.
Went to Big Smoke Las Vegas 2010 with my dad. Was an amazing time, plus smoking awesome cigars and bonding with my dad.
Twitter name: AaronWeimer
screen name: weimerad
I’ve never been to a event yet. But I hope to go to a Pepin/Tatuaje event someday soon.
Have never been to a big festival, but would plan and hope to attend Great Smoke at Smoke Inn W. Palm Beach. Sounds like a great time and my limited dealings with the people at Smoke Inn have been great.
@jtbruschi
Thanks for the contest, you guys are the best at what you do
I haven’t been to any. So I guess I would say i’d like to go to cigarfest.
Never been to a cigar event, so I guess I’d like to win these cigars and host my own event on my back deck!! Ha Ha….Thanks for the great contest and good luck everyone
Last year a couple friends and I went to cigarfest 2010, and we all agreed that between the people and cigars it was one of the funnest things we’d ever done. I wish I could make it this year, but on a students budget I’m pretty much up the creek without a paddle heh.
I’ve never been to any event but I’d love to attend my first soon.
Relatively new to the cigar culture so I’ve never been to any events. would love to go to The Big Smoke in Vegas.
@biggz4200
Love your website!!!
Have never been to a ”Cigar Event”, my choice would be the 2011 IPCPR, thanks for the contest.
The Cigar Explorer CRA Open House Herf was my favorite event hands down!
My favorite is one I went to recently, was a Torano event with Master blend roller Fellipe Sosa, it was awesome to watch him and talk to the rep, best event I’ve been to hands down, they were knowledgeable and great great guys. Would love to go to CigarFest but have a formal dinner this year
I’ve gone to Crush and Roll West ever since it started and while I am not a big wine drinker the combination of these two artisan crafts is fantastic. That reminds me, I need to buy tickets for this year’s event. Thanks for the contest!
Twitter – @mh_mudboy
SRFF – mudboy
Wasn’t able to make it due to a previous commitment, but would love to try some of the new sticks! Here’s to next year!
Never been to a commercial cigarfest, but the boyz @
CigarAsylum.com throw a h3ll of a SoCal Herf! If I had to
pick a CigarFest to attend, it has to be the one in Cuba.
I’ve never been to a cigar festival before, but I hope to go to the Big Smoke in Las Vegas one day, @devwilly
never been to a festival; however in order of preference…
habano festival
IPCPR
Texas Cigar festival
Nicaragua
ProCigar
CigarFest
I have never been to a cigar festival but I would like to attend the Nicaraguan Cigar Festival before I die…
SR Forum name: Sin
Twitter: Sin
Thanks for the contest Jerry!
I have not been to a cigar event yet but would like to go to the Big Smoke Las Vegas and the Pro Cigar Festival. My twitter is @JonJamesB and I follow stogie review.
I have never been to a cigar event. I just haven’t made the time but have set aside next year’s Texas Cigar Festival at Serious Cigars. I live 3 hours away from Houston, but each time I make the trip to visit family, I always make a point of stopping there. Just want to say that I truly appreciate all you guys do. I feel like I know most of the manufacturers through you! One of the things I really like about our hobby is how open and approachable most of the big players seem to be. I look forward to someday meeting some of them. Keep up the great work!!
Man! THIS right HERE is a cigar event!!
Look at all of those cigars!
I’d like going to an event where I can find all of the most enjoyed premium cigars.
I wouldn’t mind going to the next event you go to so I can see the Don in real life.
User Name:
UmamiSoBig
The Full Moon herf here in Atlanta is pretty cool. It is held whenever there is a full moon on a saturday. It is put on by Old Boar (a great BOTL). A lot of cigars are collected for the troops, there are giveaways/ raffles all night … your almost sure to leave with more cigars than you came with. All the ATL’s greats come out…. It’s a great event.
Great cigars. I too was a big fan of Partagas Black Label a few years back, not so much anymore. 601s of any blend are as Tony the Tiger says: GREAT!
the only event i attended was a God of fire event, a great opportunity to enjoy a high end cigar with many leaf brothers, coundnt make it to the Perdomo event couple weeks ago but i still got the special deal on box 🙂
I’ve been to 2 Las Vegas Big Smokes and CI’s CigarFest. Of the 3, I think CigarFest was the most enjoyable to me. They all had their pluses and minuses, but CigarFest had tons of cigars (admittedly, some not so good) and plenty of time to enjoy a few while just hanging out. Combine that with a road trip with great friends and visiting a couple Bourbon distilleries and the results were simply awesome. Even got to meet KnightRid and WaltW while we were there, which was very cool.
My favorite cigar event is NERF over here in Massachusetts. Great opportunity to meet up with wonderful B/SOTLs in the area, and the entire thing if run for charity (Wednesday’s Child, which finds adoptive homes for special-needs children in state care).
I would like to go to ipcpr!
I love this feature, Jerry. As always, nice array of smokes there! As for my favorite cigar event thus far, well, I’ve only been to one – the EP Carrillo event in Gaithersburg about a month ago (looks like your Caps are off to a good start). Can’t wait to try that maduro core line. Twitter is @robertmu. Thanks for the contest…
I’ve never been to a major event only appearences from some cigar makers at Holt’s in Philly. I would love to attend any cigar event. Just being with a group of people enjoying what we love and having a good time is a good enough event for me
Thanks for the contest Jerry. It sounds like you had a great trip!
I have been to many local events but never been to a large cigar festival.
One of my favorite local events was a My Father event in Greer, SC. Great smokes and a good time.
The My Father rep was Taven Johnson and he really made the night a success. He’s a great guy; it was a pleasure meeting him. I even wound up helping him out for the night which made it even more fun.
I definitely would love to go to a major cigar event someday.
Damn it. I meant Punch. not Macanudo. Stupid fingers and brains not communicating.
The Big Smoke at the Foxwoods Resort and Casino in Ct this past year. I enjoyed the unity and brotherhood of fellow cigar smokers and the grat time I had there. Looking foward to other Big Smoke events and cigar events and festival. For sure they will all be great times.
@mikeram2500
Bull and Bear Tobacco in St. Charles had a Punch poker night. Free food, free drinks, and I won some free cigars playing poker….it was perfect.
I would love to attend the Procigar festival, check out the DR. Good stuff.
Fortgot to put my twitter name and stogie review forum name which is the same Cigar2
The only event I have been to was a nestor miranda and la aurora event at a local cigar shop. I would love to go to cigarfest once.
Never been to a event yet. If i had to choose I would love to attend CigarFest. Since my girlfriends family is from Central America and we go down there frequently, Nicaragua also needs to be on my short list.
Hey Jerry,
I keep hearing about the Big Smoke in Vegas so I would love to make it out there this year. I hear Cigarfest is a cool event as well. Good Luck to all!
My favorite cigar event is a local cigar shop super bowl party this year. I even won an Illusione 4g.
Stogie Review fan forum name is Dave Hanifan
twitter is @Weelok
I have only been to one small local B & M event, but besides that I have never been to one of the larger events. I have been trying to convice the warden to let me go to the Big Smoke at Foxwoods Casino each year, but alas… no such luck.
Thanks for the contest Jerry!!
My forum name is Mike-J, I never been to one, don’t have the money. I would love to go to Big Smoke in Las Vegas.
Twitter : tavale7
Most memorable event was definitely my first. DPG event at one of my locals, 82nda Ave Tobacco & Pipe. Met the man himself and got a hand rolled. Smoked my first JJ… awesome memories.
@mycigarreviews
Well I really wanted to go to Cigarfest in PA this year. I got up at 4:55AM on a Monday morning and rushed to my computer. I already had the page pulled up to buy my tickets. I was so excited like a kid on Christmas. My first cigar festival!!!! I even talked the wife into going!!!! Well my excitement was short lived since as I submitted my order I got a “sorry but we are having technical difficulties, please try again in 5 minutes” type page but it was much more sarcastic than that. I could have handled a normal Server too busy error but this was a custom page that they went through the trouble to make that was almost mocking any poor schmuck that was stupid enough to think they were getting tickets just by getting on the pre-order list or whatever the thing was I signed up for several months earlier. I mean why bother???. I wish I would have taken a screenshot of the stupid message. I sat there in utter disbelief. I went back to the main page and tried again. Same thing…..I waited about 1 minute and hit the “F5” key to refresh the screen and got a message saying that they were sold out but I could bid on the ultra premium tickets on cbid for way more money than I will ever be able to spend on a cigar festival. In short this was the start to a very bad Monday. I felt betrayed, very tired and literally depressed. I was pretty fucking pissed off about the whole thing but like Hillary was to Bill, somehow I just can’t help myself either and still got much love for CI and would love to actually be able to get tickets 1 day.
I just yesterday set up my first 2 coolidors, so I have plenty of room to put that lovely collection down for a nap!
Never been to an event, but the Nicaraguan festival you mentioned above sounds perfect for me.
Back in 2000 went to the Big Smoke in Vegas with the Mrs, had a blast enjoying our anniversary at the same time.
My first festival will be the upcoming cigarfest. I had the same experience as Brad but was able to get the cigarnut auction ticket (which in my case was kinda stupid as my company closed a few months ago and I have no business spending money on such a trivial thing). but I’ll be there and hope for an experience that I wouldn’t have had at home at the local cigar stores. I’d love to attend one of the foreign events and see where the farms are, that sounds like a great photography trip too.
My forum name is mitchg and my twitter name is @mitchg (xbox live and PSN (if it ever works again) are both mitchgtz for anyone who cares to start a videogame online herf).
Twitter: greatgizmos
I’ve never attended a cigar event but now that I know about the Ybor festival, I will catch the next one later this year.
The closest I’ve been to a cigar festival is Slippery Rock’s Cigar Bar B Que in conjunction with the BlowinSmoke podcast. I attended last year (2010) and had an incredible time. Had to leave early though, because of the incredible rain storm that soaked my wife. A wet wife at a Cigar Bar B Que isn’t a great thing to have.
Thanks for running the contest.
Twitter handle @doblemaduro
@HunterGrappler
SR forum: biggie55
I wanted to attend the Texas Cigar Festival, but had to work on a paper. I wish I had a better excuse. Looks like it was a great time for all the attendees!
I’ve never been to any cigar events , but i would like to if there are some coming to ks!!!!!!!!!!!
and i hope i win the goodie bag!!!!!!LOL
when are you annoucing the winner of the TX cigar goodie bag if I win it contact me atkiterao@att.net or on twitter @vinodude26 and I would like to go to cigafest or the procigar fest in the DR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
thanks,
Josh
Hi walt iwas wondering if you still have any of the twitter bother of the leaf grab bags !!!!!! contact me at:kiterao@att.net or on twitter @ vinodude 26
Thanks,
Josh
Never been to one but the big smoke sounds like fun.
I have never been, but I would like to go someday…
I attended the CA Big Smoke in Vegas a few years ago with several friends. It’s a great venue.
FYI: There’s a donutboy2000 that’s getting alot of attention on cigar auction websites. Apparently this dumbass bids on every single item and every single brand and never comes close to winning but only drives prices higher. Cigar forums are creating lynch mobs to find out this dude’s purpose in life and why, when this person knows he doesn’t have the funds to buy quality cigars, he continues to bid on pretty much every item on the block. Check it out for yourself on cigarauctioneer (any Arturo cigar for example) or google donutboy2000. If it aint you, you should probably change your nic in fear of mistaken identity or worse.
I’ve been to a Big Smoke in Tampa years ago, really enjoyed it….but I’d like to get to the the Cigar Expo at famous this year. Unfortunately, won’t be back home in time for Cigar Fest….
@dirtyharry69
I’ve never been to a Cigar Festival, but one of the Big Smokes would be fun. Also, the Cuban and Dominican Festivals would be fantastic!
As an Austin resident, I’d glad you got a chance to take a tour of our fair city, and I’m glad to seem to have found it hospitable. If we’ve got a fair number of Austinites reading here, I’d love to schedule a meet-up to sit around and talk about our shared love of the leaf.
As for the festivals, I was sad to miss the Houston show this year, and I’m looking forward to catching it next go round.
Best of luck to everyone!
I’ve never been to one myself, but CI’s Cigarfest always looks like a good time.
I went to the locally event night that you got a discount on a sampler/ box on the brand name cigars (Fuente Night, Perdomo Nigth, Rocky Patel Night…).
I’ve never been to one, but CigarFest sounds like one that I could/would try since I’m within driving distance (although it would be a long drive.
@HoopieWorld
I have yet to attend a big event. Ive attended many local shop and brand events but one day hope to make it out to Vegas and catch The Big Smoke. Looks and sounds like a great time. btw LOVE the week in smoke.
@brooklynsdaddy
I attended the RTDA (now IPCPR) in Houston in 2007, but was only able to attend the first day.
I’m now stationed in Guam and flew to New Orleans just to attend the IPCPR last year. This time I was able to enjoy the full strength of the IPCPR (private parties after the show, vendor sponsored events, gatherings of cigar smokers on Bourbon Street, etc).
I’m currently looking at my schedule (and my funds) to try to make the Two Guys Smoke Shop 26th Anniversary in September.
@chiefinguam
I’ve never been to a cigar event before but I’d like to attend one in Nicaragua. The corojos and habanos are my favorite and id love to experience where it all takes place. I guess I would also call it heaven!
I would love to attend any cigar event that the stogie review crew is at.
No cigar events or festivals here on the Big Island of Hawaii. A bunch of us guys get together once a month and have a “cigar night”, but that’s about all we got on this rock out in the middle of the Pacific. I would love to attend the 2011 CIGARfest in Splitrock, PA. Sounds like it’s going to be one hell of a herf!
Hmmmm, I thought I had left a comment a week ago … but not here anymore.
Oh, well … I’ve never been to one of the big events. But I have been to several B&M local events, including one that had almost a dozen of the big manufacturers attending. I hope to attend a Big Smoke someday … call it a dream, everyone’s gotta have one! I tweeted this,as well.
I would truly enjoy attending the Montecristo Golf event in the D.R. It’s a great chance to contribute to a good cause, play some golf and to enjoy a wide veriety of one of my favorite brand of cigar. Someday!
I’ve never been to an event but I would love to go to Famous’s Cigarnival because it’s fairly close to my hometown.
Twitter: @bnascuh
The most recent event I attended was a Rocky Patel at my local B&M. Never had the opportunity to go to a big festival. I will be attending a La Aurora event at the same B&M this May. Word is Guillermo Leon may be there as well.
I have never had the pleasure of attending an event. However I aim high, I would love to go to this years IPCPR and attend the TBOTLCH.
twitter handle: @SharingSmoke
I have attended the Tampa Cigar Heritage Festival in the Ybor city portion of Tampa. The dificult part of attending this festival was not the travel, I could drive there in 30 minutes, but that it always falls on the same weekend as the Ohio State vs Michigan football game. As a life long die hard Ohio State fan who has not missed this game in 15 years makes it a tough choice. The other difficult part of the weekend is this is the Saturday before Thanksgiving. I am a restaraunt manager at a place that is open on turkey day and this will be my only day off in a 70-80 hour week. Now with the back ground, I have enjoyed going to this festival very much. I have got to meet the Newmans from the JC Newman company, been recognized by the local reps from CAO, Oliva, Torano and cigar smokers from the other shops around the area. It has been a great time walking around, meeting people and enjoying cigars with other people that feel the same way. If you have not made it to this festival I highly recomend it. Besides, it’s in Florida in November. Perfect weather for a perfect day.
I’ve only been smoking cigars for about 8 months now so I have yet to go to a cigar related event. If I had to chose from one I think it would be CigarFest.
I’d like to attend the annual IPCPR event. It seems that’s where all the new stuff gets introduced. I’ve never been to a cigar event before.
Never been to an event and would really love to go.
Living in Canada makes it very difficult to attend a major event. If I could attend one it would be Cfest, as this looks to be a lot of fun and seems to be very down to earth (unlike Big Smokes which seem to attract too many posers). Plus it gives me an excuse to travel around Pennsylvania once again.
The winner is Brent C. (mudboy)
Thanks for entering everyone!
Wow, this is great! Thanks, Jerry! You, Walt, Brian, and yes even the hippie, are the best. Keep it up!
The best cigar event is always the last one at my local cigar shop/lounge. Is there anything better than enjoying a new (and free, no less!) cigar with old and new friends after a long day at work? Plus, one gets to meet folks like Pete Johnson, Rocky Patel, and other icons of the new golden age of cigars. And, when they’re pouring samples of a new wine, beer, rum, scotch or tequila, does it get any better than that?