There’s a particular kind of episode that doesn’t happen on purpose. Nobody plans it. You just show up, fire something up, and two hours later you realize the whole garage was locked in. That’s what went down this week. Eric crawled out of bed after ten days with Flu B – his kid couldn’t walk, urgent care told them “Gatorade,” and somehow that was the correct answer, and the first thing he did when he felt human again was light an Ashton and come sit with us. That’s the kind of dedication this cigar podcast garage session runs on.

Eric’s Back, and We Have Questions About Flu B

We’re going to give this the attention it deserves because it was genuinely wild. Eric was out for the better part of ten days. He and his son both got hit hard, but the son’s situation was the one that had everybody’s attention. Woke up one morning and just couldn’t walk. Not “my legs are sore” couldn’t walk. Crumpled straight to the floor when Eric put him on his feet.

They took him to urgent care expecting the worst and the doctor basically shrugged and said they’d already seen four cases that day. Myositis – a muscle inflammation that apparently tags along with Flu B in kids more than most people realize. The prescribed treatment was Gatorade. That’s it. And sure enough, a couple days later the kid was up on his tiptoes, then back to normal.

By the time we recorded, Eric was feeling human again. First cigar in eight or nine days. He went light for good reason, and we were just glad to have him back in the chair.

What We Were Smoking

• Mark: RoMa Craft Intemperance Volstead
• Eric: Ashton Classic (Connecticut)
• Rob: Placencia Alma Fuerte Box Pressed
• Eric the Elder: Gran Habano Black Dalia
• Jim: Padre Elegido
• Walt: Gris Gris Lonsdale (LACC)

The Gris Gris Tubes Deserve Their Own Mention

Seriously. We’ve seen a lot of cigar packaging over the years and these things are genuinely impressive. White and blue colorway, the chicken foot logo right on the tube – Kyle told us they outdid what even they were expecting when the production run came in. Walt made the point that he’d want one just to put on the wall, and that’s not a small compliment. When the packaging on a cigar becomes part of the conversation, somebody did their job right.

The cigar itself is a Lonsdale format from LACC, which already tells you something about the approach – they’re not chasing trends, they’re building something specific. Walt’s notes were positive and the room was interested. If you’re not already a collective pack member, the Gris Gris launch is a pretty good reason to look into it.

The Box Pass Is Moving and the Community Is Growing

We spent some time on the box pass, which is currently on its sixth or seventh stop and going strong. The concept is simple – guys contribute sticks, the box travels, you pull some out and put some back in of equal or greater value. What’s made it work is that everyone’s been respectful about the process. There have been a few cases where somebody needed a friendly nudge to up their contribution, and that’s been handled like adults. Nobody’s trying to scam anybody. It’s just cigars moving between people who appreciate them.

What’s been even more fun to watch is the community building up around the show in general. The Discord went from something we were actively trying to keep alive to something that runs itself. Conversations going until four in the morning. Guys from outside our region – our first Puerto Rico member checked in this week. YouTube comments rolling in from people watching episodes in real time and commenting as they go. We can’t always keep up with every comment as fast as we’d like, but we see them and we appreciate every single one.

PCA Is Coming and the Chubby Unicorn Is Real

Before we wrapped, a quick mention that PCA is just around the corner and Joe Macko from our crew is going to be out there. If you’ve listened to his episode, you know he’s going to be in heaven. It’s the Super Bowl for cigar guys and he’s earned his spot in that room.

Also – Steve Saka has something coming out at PCA that caught our attention. The Muestra de Saka Chubby Unicorn. 5×60 perfecto from Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust. The band looks incredible. Saka’s been interacting with our stuff lately and when we saw this one come across the feed, the reaction in the group was pretty unanimous. We want one.

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