At the end of July, 2023, Lou Cross decided to start his own brand of cigars; he called it Lure Cigars. A play on his (and his late father’s) name. What began as an homage to his father who had passed just the month before, soon turned in to something much more. Lure Cigars is…
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James and Nick welcome Eddy Guerra, Head of Brand Marketing for Davidoff Cigars, to the show. Eddy tells the story of how he got in the industry and the type of people that he interacted with. Eddy’s goal was to eventually work for Davidoff, but his journey had a few stops along the way. Eddy…
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James and Nick sit down with Chef Rick Rodriguez and his daughter Sara, of West Tampa Tobacco Co. We discuss what they’ve learned since starting West Tampa Tobacco. From what they thought being prepared looked like, to wearing different hats for the company, to learning to delegate. Sara discusses the stories that she’s making, the…
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James and Nick sit down for an in-depth discussion about business and entrepreneurship with Al Micallef, founder of Micallef Cigars, and his daughter and head of marketing, Amanda Micallef. The conversation begins with Al discussing how he had an interest in business from a young age and how he parlayed that into where he is…
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The Sobremesa Brûlée Wagashi is a collaboration between DT&T and Cigar Dojo. It was first a Smoke Inn exclusive that built on the Sobremesa Brûlée Blue and is a modified blend of the Blue. The Blue is one of my favorite cigars from Steve Saka; so I was looking forward to this release to see…
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This episode we have a great conversation with Crowned Heads and Oz Family Cigars National Sales Manager, Miguel Schoedel. Miguel walks us through his history in the cigar industry: from his early interest in tobacco and agriculture, to his time with CAO, and ultimately to where he is today. Miguel discusses informed cigar consumers and…
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In March of this year, Drew Estate released the another cigar in the Blackened line: the S84 Shade to Black. This is the sophomore release for the line that is a collaboration between Metallica’s frontman, James Hetfield, Master Distiller of BLACKENED Whiskey, Rob Dietrich, and Drew Estate. Their first release, M81, was named after the…
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During the PCA 2024 Trade Show earlier this year, I was able to stop by the Smoking Jacket booth and spend some time talking with the those behind the Mini Henkie: Hendrik Kelner Jr. (blender and owner of Kelner Boutique Factory in the Dominican Republic), Henrik Kelner (son of Hendrik Kelner Jr.), and Hendrik Alexander…
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James and Nick sit down with Ben Rotem, one of the founders and owners of Luxury Cigar Club. If you’re not familiar with luxurycigarclub.com now, you will be after this episode. Luxury Cigar Club is more than just a “cigar of the month” club. They have a large online inventory of cigars, accessories, and humidors…
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James and Nick welcome Lou Cross III, founder of Lure Cigars, to the show. Lou talks about honoring his late father, Lou Cross Jr., to naming his cigars after his family, he walks us through his journey. We discuss the “grind” that boutique cigar manufacturers go through to promote their brands and connecting directly with…
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