The Gran Habano – G.R. Tabacaleras Co. cigar factory located on “Calle Ocho”, 8th street, in the Little Havana district of Miami is completed and ready to roll. Focusing on the highest standard for the cigar community the factory will employ 10 Cuban rollers who will produce no more than 1,000 cigars per day to ensure quality and consistency. This will be the base of our new cigar line “Gran Habano Miami” which will lead off with the soon-to-be-released Black Corojo, Opium Miami and the continuance of our STK program.

Black Corojo will be an extension of our popular Gran Habano Corojo #5 line. As the name implies, it will feature the industries first black corojo cigar wrapper. Due to the overwhelming success of our Opium release it will become a regular production cigar line known as Opium Miami. Production on both of these cigars will be based on traditional Cuban sizes and the blends will be revised to take the connoisseur to the next level.

A blend lab, called G.A.R. Deli, will also be made available to anyone who has ever dreamt of creating their own cigar. This program will put you in the position of the master blender; allowing the creation of a cigar tailored to your unique palate. Materials on hand will fluctuate every two weeks to affirm that the possibilities are endless.

Our Gran Habano – G.R. Tabacaleras Co. factory also features a luxury lounge and the official Gran Habano humidor. Patrons will be able to choose from our lines – both old and new. We also have products that are not widely available to the public such the Corojo #5 lancero, Cabinet Selection (and a private Cabinet Selection Lancero) and other unique size formats.

Hot on the heels of the Zulu Zulu, that was just rated 91 by Cigar Aficionado, the STK Opium is now ready to be released into the wild. After years of experimenting with wrappers, fillers, blends and various prototypes George Rico has finally developed a cigar worthy of the unique name Opium.

The STK Opium is comprised of a Nicaraguan Habano Corojo Hybrid wrapper, a Nicaraguan binder and a mixture of unique fillers at deliver power and flavor to this limited production cigar. Only 1,000 boxes of the 6 x 52 Opium have been created and each cigar will have an MSRP of just $9.

Shipments are now leaving the warehouse and will soon be at your local retailers. All of our STK retailers, STK cigars and future projects (as they are announced) can be located on our website: STK Accounts.

The 2011 IPCPR in Las Vegas was a great success and it was amazing to see all the retailers, cigar manufacturers, media and random guests have a great time. We also wanted to take the time to thank everyone that came by our booth and especially those who were daring enough to try our freeze-dried ice cream.

Also, to answer all the questions we got at the show and through email: The Gran Habano flat black ice cream truck is fully functional and operational. It is a 1967 International Metro-Mite, it was a straight-six engine that was rebuilt (mostly using Chevy parts), the top speed is 45 MPH, painted with a true Hot Rod Black and highlighted with a custom red that was created at the paint booth. The interior was redone with a synthetic grass floor, velvet diamond walls, 4 speaks, two 12 inch subs, a working fridge, a racing Sparco seat and the interior lights were all changed to blacklights.

Now that we can move on – The 2011 IPCPR was the first time we had the opportunity to show some of our new cigars that will be hitting the market soon. The first groups of cigars were the limited production STK lines. These included the Zulu Zulu which will be releasing in an Ecuadorian and Habano blend both of which will ship soon. Opium was also at the show and will be the second release of STK program; Opium will ship to the retailers in November.

Our second exciting release at the show is was the V.I.P. by Geroge A. Rico. This will be our new budget line of cigars that will retail for $3.50, $4.00 and $4.50 (depending on the size and taxes). We will have a sweet tipped Ecuadorian Connecticut, Nicaraguan Natural and a Nicaraguan Maduro. The binder and filler of all 3 cigars are Nicaraguan. While we are already known for offering great cigars at an amazing price – these will be even easier on the wallet (and taste great too).

Updates to the GHCigars.com Website: We have updated our “Cigars” section to include the Gran Reserva #3 and the V.I.P. offerings. We will be diligent in updating the site as we will be featuring a list of all STK retailers, weekly contests, reviews, events and of course our products. So stay tuned!

Click here to check out the V.I.P. cigars.

The first cigar from the new Gran Habano STK line will be the personal blend of George Rico called Zulu Zulu. Measuring 7 1/2 x 40 with a pig tail finish this lancero will have an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and Nicaraguan filler. Created many years ago for his private collection, by George himself, this will be the first time it is officially released to the public.

This one time production will be limited to a maximum of 2,000 boxes from our highest skilled rollers in the Honduran factory. Each box will feature one of two unique images commissioned by George Rico from the Miami artist, and friend, known as “Kid”. Gran Habano will release the Zulu Zulu to select retailers across the country.

While limited in production, pricing will still remain affordable with an MSRP of $9.00.

As the personal cigar in his private collection George A. Rico wanted to take the opportunity to bring awareness to an organization he holds close to his heart – Invisible Children.

Invisible Children is an organization; “…that uses film, creativity and social action to end the use of child soldiers in Joseph Kony’s rebel war and restore LRA-affected communities in central Africa to peace and prosperity.”

A portion of the proceeds from all boxes sold will be donated directly to Invisible Children. For more information on Invisible Children please take the time to explore their website and videos at http://InvisibleChildren.com

.

We take great pride in introducing our first true Maduro cigar in 2010 that uses the finest San Andres wrapper, binder and creative mix of Nicaraguan and Panamanian fillers. The Azteca, which is currently being offered in 3 sizes, has been very well received by our great cigar smoking community.

Many of you may already know that we also ended the 2010 year by removing many great cigars from our portfolio such as the 3SLS, Cabinet and various G.A.R. lines. While it was a difficult decision to make, it was one that was made with great anticipation knowing the new cigar lines will raise the bar onn anything we have previously created.

Starting off the new year will be our very refined Gran Reserva #3 that is created with prime (and aged) Nicaraguan and Colombian tobaccos. The decade old components come from our Nicaraguan (La Santa Cruz) and Colombian (La Joya del Valle) farms. Smoking the Gran Reserva #3 will give you an immediate sense of the effort and detail that went into this amazing product and truly show you where we plan to take our loyal supporters in 2011. The Gran Reserva #3 has started distribution (a current list of retailers is available on GHCigars.com) and should reach all of our retailers by the second week of January.

In support of the Gran Reserva, and our continued push for a higher standard, Gran Habano will be unveiling a number of surprises for 2011. Perhaps the most notable will be our new factory that opens on “Calle Ocho”, 8th street, in the Little Havana district of Miami. This factory, named La Joya del Valle, will act as our home for the STK program, allowing us to operate in a boutique fashion with rare and limited materials. G.A.R. will also be making a bold statement through a George Rico project that has been in development for years – OPIUM.

These are just some of the fun and exciting ventures that will go live in 2011. Again, we would like to thank everyone for the great support you have provided us in the years past and we look forward on continuing our great partnership in the years to come.

AZ
CIGAR KING
CRESCENT TOBACCO  II
FOX TOBACCO & LIQUOR

CA
GRANT’S PIPE SHOP
THE PIEDMONT TOBACCONIST LTD
2nd ST CIGAR LOUNGE
CIGAR MONKEY
CIGAR MAS FINO
D.R.   CIGARS
JOHN’S  CIGARS
HOUSE OF SALOMINOS CIGARS

CO
PRINCE PHILPS
SMOKING CAVE  OUTLET

FL
TINDER BOX  – #199 -FL
MJM Fine Cigars
HARRY’S CIGAR & BREW
CIGAR SMOKE INC

GA
TOP SHELF CIGAR & TOBACCO SHOPPE
LOU’S SMOKE HOUSE INC
CIGAR CONNOISSEUR

IL
THE CIGAR LOUNGE

KY
FAYETTE CIGAR

LA
Cigar Merchant

MA
C.B  PERKINS – Canton
JULIOS LIQUOR
HANCOCK TOBACCO

MD
DAVIDUS CIGARS LTD

MO
SAINT LOUIS CIGARS CLUB 94

NH
ABC CIGARS NORTH

NJ
LIGHTHOUSE CIGARS # ll
LIGHTHOUSE  CIGARS
HEMINGWAY’S CIGAR SHOP  LLC
SMOKER’S DELIGHT
FUME CIGAR SHOP & LOUNGE
SANJ’S  SMOKE SHOP

NV
PHEASANT  CIGARS

NY
HABANA PREMIUM CIGAR SHOPPE
CIGAR SUPER STORE

OH
TINDER BOX  – #378 – Dublin
CIGAR MERCHANT
BARCLAY PIPE & TOBACCO
REIDER  MARKET
TINDER BOX – #408

OK
TOBACCO EXCHANGE

PA
THE TOBACCO COMPANY
GENUINE TOBACCO CO
PHILLY SMOKE SHOP
LIGHT N UP PREMIER SMOKE SHOP

RI
SMITHFIELD SMOKE SHOP
CIGAR BOX – Narragansett

TN
SMOKIN JOES 
TINDER BOX #376

TX
THE SMOKE RING
TOWN & COUNTRY CIGARS
JSR CIGAR DISTRIBUTORS
EN FUEGO TOBACCO SHOP 
HAVANA JIM

WI
FULLER PULLER

Composition of the Gran Reserva #3 consists of an 8 year old wrapper and a 7 year old binder from our Nicaraguan farm “La Santa Cruz”. The filler is a mixture of 7 year old Nicaraguan from “La Santa Cruz” and 8 year old Columbian from our “La Joya del Valle” farm. The cigars were rolled in early 2008 and have been aging for the previous two years making the overall components about a decade old.

George A. Rico explains that “Being able to age the leaf and rolled cigars for such a long period of time has created a very rich, smooth, yet complex smoke.”

Gran Habano will release the new Gran Reserva #3 with a Churchill(7×50), Pyramid (6 1/8×52) and a Gran Robusto (6×54). Due to the long aging process and special tobaccos used only 1,200 boxes of each size will be released across the country. New packaging will also accompany the Gran Reserva #3 to help distinguish it from our original #3 release.

Pricing will remain affordable at $6.80 (Churchill), $6.90 (Gran Robusto), and $7.10 (Pyramid) – not including local taxes. Shipments are scheduled to reach retailers during the first week in November.

Wear the brand new AZTECA shirt for the full IPCPR event and George Rico will be your personal blender and roller.

To help support your visitors, and show thanks for the dedication, you will get a 1 on 1 personal consultation with Mr. Rico. During this time you will craft a unique blend that George will hand roll himself. After the cigars are ready to ship you will receive 100 of your very own, personal, masterpieces.

Any blogger who wishes to participate can stop by the Gran Habano booth to pick up their AZTECA shirt. All participants must be proud to rock the chain, and no cover-ups will be allowed.

On this Sunday, June 20, 2010 we hope everyone has the opportunity to sit down with the important person in your life, have a good smoke and thank the fathers for being just that – Dad.

For this day I would like to share a personal memory/story that just happened with my father that made me laugh and one I will never forget.

For this holiday my father, Lorenzo, always takes them time to fly to Texas to hang out with his dad, have a few drinks, cigars and BBQ. He always fly’s back in time to end the evening at his home with me, my son Asher, and all of my friends growing up who also thought of him as a father.

This time around my dad asked me to show up to his house a few days earlier (while he was still in Texas) because he was expecting a “very important” package that I needed to pick up. Intrigued, I pressed him for some more details of this “important” package and what he was expecting to receive. He explained that since he didn’t live near a cigar lounge he had to order some cigars online and wanted to make sure they weren’t sitting outside. Dad also said it would be nice to come home to some of his favorite cigars that have already rested in his humidor so he can smoke them with us on Father’s Day (we have a big BBQ). At this point I agreed I would pick up the cigars, make sure they were resting in the humidor and he would be able to smoke one as soon as the grill fired up on Sunday.

I arrived to his house on Thursday to make sure the humidor was at perfect condition when the doorbell rang. It was his cigar package. Once I opened up this medium sized box of about 40 cigars I could only laugh and wonder if he wasn’t sending me or teaching me yet another lesson. You see the cigars he ordered, the ones he NEEDED to have, the ones that were VERY important to him, the ones I HAD to come in early and prepare for him were Gran Habano 3 SLS Torpedos.

I thank my father for supporting the retailers who support us at Gran Habano – but I think I get what you’re trying to say Dad. Thanks for yet another unspoken message.