Altadis USA booth is a fairly large area and this year they introduced a couple of new members to the company and cigars. They now handle the distribution for Boutique Blends, maker of Aging Room, and the partnered with AJ Fernandez with the Gispert and H. Upmann cigar.
Monte by Montecristo AJ Fernandez
A.J. Fernandez has been the hottest name in the cigar industry so why not pair him with a classic line like Montecristo and give it an upgrade. It uses an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, a Corojo ’98 binder & Criollo ’98 and Dominican Piloto Cubano fillers. It’s offered in four different vitolas: Corona (5 x 44), Belicoso (6 1/8 x 54), Robusto (4 1/4 x 54), and Toro (6 x 55).
Monte by Montecristo AJ Fernandez are produced at Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A. and distributed by Altadis U.S.A.
H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez
H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez is a partnership that launched in May 2017. The cigar uses Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, Nicaraguan Corojo ’99 binder & fillers from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. It comes in three sizes: Churchill (7 x 54), Robusto (5 x 52), and Toro (6 x 54).
H. Upmann The Banker Ingot Rosé
An extension to last year’s H. Upmann Ingot The Banker Private Holding, this new cigar is about as pink as can be, from the rose gold box to the bands and foil wrap. The cigar is made of an aged Cameroon wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and fillers from Nicaragua, Peru, and the Dominican Republic. The Ingot Rose is made in one size – a 6 3/4 x 48 Churchill.
The insert that comes with the packaging says, ” Establishes in 1844 by a pair of German banking magnates, H. Upmann is known for being distinct among others. The Banker Ingot Rose, with its carefully aged Cameroon wrapper stands out in a crowd. The deep chocolaty aroma enhances underlying notes of cashew, coffee and spice, making for an uncommonly flavorful and refined smoke.”
It’s schedule to launch September 2017.
Aging Room Quattro F55 Maduro
Boutique Blends showcased the Aging Room Quattro F55 Maduro. It’s an offshoot of the popular Quattro F55 line which was #2 Cigar of the Year 2013. Made from Tabacalera Palma and limited to a yearly production run of 400,000 cigars. The wrapper is San Andres Morron and binder & filler are Dominican Republic. It’s a box-pressed cigar with a 10-count box.
This is Boutique Blends/Aging Room debut in the Altadis USA booth since there distribution partnership earlier this year.
Gispert Intenso
Gispert Intenso received a huge upgrade by partnering Altadis USA Grupo de Maestro & AJ Fernandez to create a new line of cigars. The cigar is produced at the Tabacalera Fernandez. The blend is much bolder and robust thanks to having a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, Nicaraguan Criollo ’98 binder and filler from the Dominican Republic & Nicaragua.
To expand the Gispert brand to the next generation it recruited AJ Fernandez and modernized the cigar packaging. Also, Altadis USA has recently been launching a slew of Nicaragua cigars like H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez and Romeo 505 Nicaragua thanks to Nicaraguan tobacco’s popularity with consumers.
