Cigar Snob Podcast

The guys are back to discuss the madness that is this election and how it could impact the cigar business with special guest Glynn Loope, former executive director of Cigar Rights of America. Things got much lighter from there when they got into serious Masters talk with predictions from Erik and Ivan. They also responded to some interesting listener feedback! All of this while smoking the new Sobremesa Brûlée Blue!!

HVC's Reinier Lorenzo joined our host Erik Calviño to talk about the latest HVC Black Friday release. Reinier also shares his ideas on blending, Cuban cigars, and which cigars make him want to have a glass of milk!

Master blender and co-owner of Mombacho Cigars, Claudio Sgroi paid us a visit at Cigar Snob HQ. Erik surprised Claudio with a special cigar that he'd been aging for 5 years. Claudio shared his inspiring and serendipitous story of how he went from never smoking cigars, to falling head over heels, to eventually being offered his dream job of master blender.

We traveled out to Southern Utah for an epic photo shoot with two gorgeous models, a photo shoot crew, tons of Casa Cuba cigars, and way too much equipment to haul up and down slippery slopes. Also nearly lost a drone in the high winds of %&@#* Point! We'd tell you the name but swore that we wouldn't share that amazing spot. Did the drone survive?

Not only is Aganorsa Leaf the largest tobacco grower in Nicaragua, but their cigars consistently garner some of the highest ratings in Cigar Snob Magazine. In today's episode we bring back Terence Reilly to discuss Aganorsa's latest release and what the future holds for the New England Patriots...

Oscar Valladares is the man behind the insanely popular brands LEAF by Oscar, SuperFly, and The Oscar among others. He spent some time with us at Cigar Snob HQ before continuing down to Honduras. His story of grit, resourcefulness, and love for tobacco is one you won't want to miss.

We're back with tons of Cigar Snob photo shoot talk while smoking the new Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Nicaragua made at the AJ Fernandez factory. We discovered a bird that can predict hurricanes and recapped the recent PGA Championship along with Erik's trip to Sanibel Island. And once again we read some great listener feedback.

Harry made a series of cocktails for the team at Cigar Snob and sat down with Erik to share stories about his interesting background and what made him decide to dive into the competitive gin market in the middle of a global pandemic.

We smoked the new Liga Privada Unico Serie Year of the Rat 2020 Limited Edition while talking about our trip to Naples to attend the Traveling Road Show with Rocky Patel, Oliva, Alec Bradley, and Crowned Heads. We played golf and even told the story of the time Ivan hit a car with a golf ball from Erik's parents house. We also read some great listener feedback!

We’re smoking one of our favorite cigars in lancero format and we got into some stories of when we visited Tabacalera Fuente and spent days smoking nothing but Opus X and Don Carlos. We then got into movies, Charlie Daniels, and Japanese roller coasters! Yes you read that right...

We smoked the Brick House Culebra Maestra and went deep into what is a culebra, what's so good about it, and why it looks so funky! We also took a page from KROQ's on-air personality and our former classmate Nicole Alvarez and each came up with our perfect song. And finally we got into why cancelling Mt. Rushmore would suck. Brick House Culebra Maestra Shape: Culebra Manufactured by JC Newman in Estelí, Nicaragua Only available at JC Newman events

We found our new favorite Davidoff in the pre-release Special 53 Capa Dominicana and we talk about how cigar companies are reacting to not having a trade show. We discuss Father's Day plans and a day at the shooting range. It was all going so well until we got into the idea of a time capsule and what cigars, booze, and copies of Cigar Snob Magazine we would want remembered...

We smoke the My Father The Judge in Grand Robusto and we get into the tricky nature of blending cigars. It goes downhill after that when we get into Major League domestic disputes and some disastrous Cigar Snob photo shoot stories. My Father The Judge Robusto (5 x 60) box-pressed Manufactured by My Father Cigars Origin: Nicaragua Wrapper: Ecuador Binder: Nicaragua Filler: Nicaragua MSRP: $12.70

Erik, Ivan (and Jasper) smoke the Viva La Vida robusto while talking about the protests, riots, and looting. They also get into the impact that COVID has had on the cigar business as well as the wacky drive-thru celebrations being held all over the country. Viva La Vida Robusto (5 x 54) Manufactured by AJ Fernandez Origin: Nicaragua Wrapper: Nicaragua Binder: Nicaragua Filler: Nicaragua MSRP: $11.00

The guys introduced a new team member while smoking one of their all-time favorite smokes, the Oliva Serie V Melanio. There's also coronavirus talk including the end of social distancing at Cigar Snob HQ! Also the end of an era at the magazine and podcast, Nick is gone! Finally we announced the winner of the #QuarantineGiveaway and respond to reader feedback. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

The Cigar Snob team gathers around the mics (keeping a safe distance) to smoke Diplomatico by Mombacho, paired with Diplomático rum, and talk about how we've experienced the coronavirus outbreak. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

The gang smokes Protocol Themis cigars while talking corona virus, the Democratic primaries, Miami Heat basketball, cigar festivals, and more. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

We got a visit at Cigar Snob HQ from Eddy Guerra and George Rami, who told us all about what's new in the Avo and Camacho portfolios, along with information about events and factory tours. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

On this episode, we smoked a Joya de Nicaragua cigar that's available exclusively at Drew Diplomat retailer events. We also recapped some of our recent travel (Dominican Republic, Austin, Palm Beach) and went over the latest developments in the Democratic Party's primary race, Tyson Fury's heavyweight rematch win, and the retirement of Dwyane Wade's jersey. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

The Cigar Snob team has a good old fashioned smoke off, recaps the Puro Sabor festival in Nicaragua, talks about the Top 25 Cigars of 2019, and wonders about whether the Super Bowl Halftime Show would have been better without Shakira or Jennifer Lopez. Also, Donald Trump and Nancy Pelosi are ridiculous, Ivan saw a weird movie, and we got a song about cigars from a reader. Music in this episode: "BossaBossa" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0