My La Aurora Cigar Factory Trip
Plumbing problems have a way of making you wish you were someplace else. Last night, after my first trip abroad, I was welcomed by a plumbing problem that, without going into too much detail, couldn’t be solved with even the most forceful application of a plunger. So even though I was glad to be back home I was already wishing I was back in the Dominican Republic where I smoked God only knows how many cigars, drank tons of rum and beer, ate some of the best food I’ve ever had and, more importantly, met some awesome people.
Miami Cigar and Company, which advertises on this blog, set up this junket for a group comprised of mostly cigar bloggers but also a PR guy and a cruise guy (I’ll name names at the end of this post). We were set up at a very nice hotel called the Camp David Ranch. It is set on top of a hill with some amazing sites and is extremely cigar friendly.
The first full day in the Dominican Republic featured a trip to the La Aurora cigar factory. Unless you have seen one of these factories firsthand then there’s little chance you can completely grasp the massive operation it is to make premium cigars. Jose Blanco, one of our gracious hosts and a brilliant cigar man, led the tour. He started us off running… with a test!
After sitting us all in a conference room we were handed baggies with five cigars, each rolled with a unique type of tobacco. Our mission was to figure out the flavors associated with each cigar, its strength and, the really hard part, which country the tobacco hails from. So here I’m sitting, right next to Jose Blanco nonetheless, trying not to look completely like a rube. I think I may have gotten one country of origin right but the big takeaway from that experience for me was that there is still boatloads of stuff I need to learn. (I’ll go into more depth about this seminar in another post since I did learn a tremendous amount about cigars during this exercise and I think you would like to learn about this stuff as much as I do.)
I guess none of us failed that entrance exam horribly enough because we were all allowed to tour the factory and blend our own cigars. Man, now that was an experience. Using the impressions we were able to glean from those five test cigars we were tasked with formulating a blend comprised of any combination from those tobaccos. Then we picked up our tobacco leaves and headed off to bunch them. I was horrible at that. If it weren’t for the guys there basically doing the bunching and rolling for me there is no way I would have ended up with anything that even remotely looks like cigars.
With the filler and binder tobaccos resting in forms we went off to look at all sorts of things. Rollers, curing rooms, a contraption that makes tobacco leaves more pliable, another contraption that rips out stems and so much more. Most of it was very humid but amazing to see. The most apt description of my sense of awe at seeing the complexity of their operation is this: WOW!
After picking my jaw up from the ground we went back to put the finishing touches on our own cigars. I was horrible at that too. Putting a wrapper on a cigar looks simple enough but it’s deceptively complicated. You have to put the wrapper down, then cut it so you’re left with a strip of tobacco, then put the foot of your bunched tobaccos at one end, roll it, apply some glue, roll some more, cut this way, cut that way, twist the extra, cut of the extra, cut the cap from a scrap piece of tobacco, apply some more glue, try to get it on and then, in my case, hand it over to the man who was watching over me so that he could fix it enough so the whole thing didn’t just fall apart. Even though it wasn’t an easy thing to do I had a blast. They even gave me a framed photo of myself rolling the cigar to commemorate the experience.
The rest of our stay in the Dominican Republic was a feast comprised of cigars, rum, cigars, authentic Dominican food, cigars, beer, karaoke and some more cigars. Guillermo León, who is the head of his family’s cigar business, was frequently there and added a great deal to my enjoyment of the trip. All in all it was a great trip and I can’t wait to see another cigar factory. My sincerest thanks to the La Aurora cigar family.
So, who else was on this great trip? Here’s a list:
- Anthony from Puffing Cigars
- Barry from A Cigar Smoker’s Journal
- Bob from Dog Watch Radio
- Juan who is does PR for Drapers
- Mo, the guy who does cruises
- Two Patricks from Stogie Guys
- Tom from Cigar Reader
Cigar Pricing Survey
Skip, Galveston’s Cigar Yoda, has created a short, ten question survey for cigar smokers. The survey starts out asking a little about yourself and then delves into retail pricing issues for the cigar smoker. If you have an extra five or ten minutes please take the time to fill out this survey.
And while you are at it, follow Skip on Twitter @ChiefHava and make sure to follow his blog, Smoke Signals.
La Aurora Cigar Giveaway
Just wanted to remind you of this awesome giveaway that La Aurora is doing tomorrow, April 30th, 2010. All you have to do is go to one of 107 pre-approved retailers, buy any cigar and get a La Aurora 107 robusto for free. I gave the La Aurora 107 robusto an 88, so I think it is definitely worth a try.
Rediscover La Aurora with the 107
Rediscover La Aurora with the 107
107 retailers to hand out free cigars on April 30
MIAMI FL — Miami Cigar & Company, the exclusive distributor for La Aurora brands in the United States, announces the release of the La Aurora Serie 107 Anniversario to mark the company’s 107th year of operation in the Dominican Republic. As part of a year-long campaign to Rediscover La Aurora, 107 retailers across the U-S will be giving away 107 robustos on April 30th. The list of participating retailers can be found at http://rediscoverlaaurora.com [Site will launch soon].
Miami Cigar president Nestor Miranda says, “We have represented La Aurora for over 20 years and feel this is one of the best cigars they have made so far. We believe so much in the 107 that we are giving cigar smokers the chance to try it for free. All anyone has to do is buy a cigar, any cigar, at one of the participating retailers on April 30 and we’ll give you a free 107.” La Aurora vice president Guillermo Léon adds, “We realize that while our family has been making fine handcrafted cigars for more than a century, some cigar smokers still have not tried our products and others remember when we only made cigars in the mild range. La Aurora has been developing medium to full bodied cigars with full flavor and we want to let people know how we have changed. The Rediscover La Aurora is part of our outreach to those smokers.”
The 107, which uses a Sun Grown Ecuador wrapper over 6 year old fillers and binder from Dominican Republic and Nicaragua, will come in boxes of 21 with a suggested retail price between $6 to $8, plus any local taxes. There will be 3 sizes: Robusto (4.5×50); Toro (5.5×54); and a Belicoso (6.25 x 52). The 107 will only be available at brick and mortar tobacconists.
About Miami Cigar & Company
Miami Cigar & Company, founded in 1989, is the sole U-S distributor of La Aurora brands, Ducados and worldwide distributor of Tatiana and the Nestor Miranda Special Selection.
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Cigar Rights of America Member Discounts
As if you needed another reason to become a member of Cigar Rights of America (other than, you know, helping an organization that is fighting for your rights!) your CRA membership now comes with discounts! Seriously. Just click on the picture below to find out more.
Now you can use your CRA membership card to get some awesome discounts!
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