General Cigar just announced that as a result of completely acquiring CAO International today, former Chairman of CAO Gary Hyams will step down. So when companies merge, it’s commonplace for duplicative positions to be streamlined. I guess Gary’s role was just made obsolete.
Just before he left, Gary said, “Being at the helm of CAO for the past four years has meant a lot to me and I am proud of what my colleagues and I have accomplished. I have great faith in Dan Carr and his team…
Posted in News, Press Releases 
Tags: CAO, casualties, gary hyams, general cigar, merger 
3 Comments »Nat Sherman is teaming up with General Cigar for a very unique event in Midtown Manhattan. On Thursday, February 3rd at 7:30pm the Nat Sherman store will be hosting the legendary Benji Menendez for the Worldwide Release of the Bolivar D’Oro.
Looks like there will be cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and of course samplings of the new Bolivar D’Oro.
Posted in Events & Recaps, News, Press Releases Tags: Benji Menendez, Bolivar, Bolivar D'Oro, Cigar tasting, general cigar, Nat Sherman 2 Comments »TIM OZGENER DEPARTS PREMIUM CIGAR BUSINESS Richmond, VA—General Cigar announces that CAO President Tim Ozgener has decided to pursue personal business interests in his hometown of Nashville, TN, thus moving on from his 16-year career in the premium cigar business. Ozgener, son of company founder Cano A Ozgener, joined the original family business in 1994 [...]
Despite a lot of the new releases coming out a little early like the Rocky Patel 15th Anniversary and the CAO La Traviata Maduro there were a few surprises to the IPCPR that I didn’t know about. Now this doesn’t mean that they were a surprise to all but they did manage to catch me off guard.
EP Carrillo – I went out with a few of my fellow bloggers for lunch. Upon walking in I noticed Ernesto and his family sitting and having lunch. After a quick hello so has not to disturb their lunch I sat down in the back of the restaurant and enjoyed some Aligator. During the course of our meal Ernesto had the waiter come over and buy us a round of drinks which was totally classy.
Posted in News Tags: 7-20-4, A. Turrent, Abe Flores, altadis, EP Carrillo, general cigar, Greycliff, h upmann, hoyo de monterrey, Kurt Kendall, La Flor Dominicana, La Gloria Cubana, macanudo, Pinar Del Rio, Schraders, tatuaje, The Face, Triple Play 1 Comment »
irst off thank you to everyone who helped out while I was sick. While still not 100% I am back to smoking and I got my taste back so all is good. Secondly sorry there was no Sunday Links yesterday but due to Mothers Day they took a hiatus and will return next week.
The first cigar I smoked for review after my illness was the La Gloria Cubana Artesanos De Tabaqueros which I smoked with my pal Sonny who has done the occasional review with me from time to time. We smoked these together because I was a bit worried my taste buds would be off but thankfully they were not and we agreed on what we smoked. For those who wonder how many the review is based on, I smoked 3, and Sonny smoked 2.
The La Gloria Cubana Artesanos De Tabaqueros is a new cigar from General Cigar Co. According to the press release,
I didn’t know what to smoke today so I asked my friend what one of the top sellers in his cigar store is and he told me the La Gloria Cubana No. 7 Maduro. Not wanting to smoke a large cigar in the heat today I opted for the smaller size of the No. 4. [...]
Posted in Cigar Reviews Tags: dominican republic, general cigar, La Gloria Cubana Serie R, maduro, No. 4, Rothschild, Series R 5 Comments »Mention Macanudo to a cigar smoker and many seasoned cigar smokers will cringe. That pretty much sums up the view of Macanudo in my world. But when the 1968 launched, I jumped at the chance to get 3 sticks for 7.95 back in July. I smoked one, decided it was a dog rocket and put [...]
