We are excited to welcome back our friend, William “Cigar Coop” Cooper to the podcast. Cigar Coop, Nick, and James discuss the upcoming PCA ’24 Trade Show in Las Vegas. Coop lets us know what he’s looking forward to the most this year, changes to the PCA over the years, and who will be there…
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James and Nick welcome Dr. Stefan Lampert of Lampert Cigars. As Nick was traveling to Tabacos de Costa Rica, he ran into Dr. Lampert who visiting the factory, as well. We discuss Dr. Lampert’s vision for the company, how he juggles travel between Europe, the US, and South America. We talk about how Dr. Lampert…
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We welcome Scott Pearce, the Executive Director of the Premium Cigar Association, to the show. Scott tells us about how he got into cigars, his background before joining the PCA, and his love of cigars. Scott fills us in on some of what the upcoming annual PCA Trade Show has in store for us and…
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Rob from Friends of El Habano (FOH) and Bond Roberts tells us how and why he got into the cigar industry. Rob tells of how FOH and Bond Roberts were brought into existence. He discusses the importance of customer service and understanding your client. We talk about the Cuban price increases and how it has…
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Do you have questions about how your cigars are rolled? We’ve all heard “200 hands” touch your cigar, but what does that look like? Nick Syris of LH Cigars and Filipe Leon of Tabacos de Costa Rica walk us through their factory and show us how the tobacco is sorted, what a pilón is, and…
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James and Nick welcome Charlie Minato, co-founder of Halfwheel.com. The trio discuss how Halfwheel came to be, when Charlie started smoking cigars, as well as find out how they review cigars. Charlie details their review process and if there is such a thing as a 100pt cigar. Charlie gives us his expert opinions on the…
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On this episode, James and Nick welcome Nimmer Ahmed of Valacari Cigars. The trio find out about Nimmer’s background: how and where he started his cigar journey, how Valacari came to be, and how he chose the name “Valacari.” Nimmer has great insights into the manufacturing side of the cigar industry, as well as on…
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James sits down with John Peter Laurendi and Adrian Maharaj of Peter James Co. The trio discuss John’s journey with Peter James and how he overcame adversity by putting everything on the line to follow his dream and passion. John explains how Adrian came on board Peter James and the value he adds. Adrian explains…
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James and Nick Syris welcome back Nick Melillo to the show. Nick talks about what’s new at Foundation Cigars (Metapa, Tabernacle Knight Commander, and the Charter Oak Pasquale and Pegnataro). The trio briefly talk about Nick Melillo running the DE Factory, before they deep dive on the Highclere Castle Senetjer. We discuss how things have…
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James and Nick welcome cigar industry legend, Jose Blanco to the show. The trio discuss what cigar smokers should know and why they should know it, we take a look at how Jose got started in the industry, and how he started with Arturo Fuente. Jose Blanco is a wealth of knowledge and we are…
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Stay smoky, friends.