A couple of weeks ago I got a text message from my Dad. He said that he heard about a cigar event being held at the East End Athletic Club in Pottstown, PA and asked if I wanted to join him. With the world on high-alert this would be the first Cigar Event I would have attended in over a year.

It sounded like fun and hanging out with my Dad over a cigar and a beer is always a good time. I asked him to pick me up a ticket and I’d see him there. The entry fee was $60 which included 10 Cigars, Beer (all that you could drink), and Food.

About a week before the event, it dawned on me that I had no idea who was hosting it. I hadn’t heard of the East End Athletic Club and I wasn’t sure if a Retail Shop was backing the event. There are two shops in the area and, to put it bluntly, I won’t spent my money at one of them – so I started asking around. Not one person I spoke to knew anything about the club and some of them had even lived in Pottstown all of their lives.

On the day of the event I had a little trouble finding the place but before long my Dad and I were inside getting our cigars. As it turns out, the event was self-hosted and not affiliated with any Manufacturers or Retailers. The club bought loads of cigars, created 10-Cigar Samplers, and that was that.

In the grand scheme of things it wasn’t about the cigars per-se. They were just a conduit to get people together to socialize and do a lot of laughing. I had a good time and got me meet a handful of fellow cigar smokers (the amazing part is I didn’t recognize a single face from the lounge where I hang out – so there are a lot more Cigar Guys in the area than I thought).

Back to the cigars – so I got the impression that the club purchased cigars through an outlet like Cigars International and created their own samplers. As a result, there were more than a few cigars that I wouldn’t normally purchase for myself (I realize that sounds kind of snobbish but lets be honest – I probably haven’t bought myself a Gurkha or Rocky Patel in almost a decade). That being said – there are a few cigars I’m looking forward to revisiting. The cigars, combined with the food and drink, made the event well worth the price of admission to me and I look forward to attending another East End Athletic Club Cigar Event in the future.

Ask The Reader:
Have you attended any events or visited shops during the pandemic?