2020 was a great year for new cigar releases, from boutiques like RoMa Craft Tobac all the way up to iconic brands like Montecristo and Trinidad. But it’s a new year, and that mean’s there’s a lot of people wondering what the best new cigars are to smoke in 2021. We’ll be adding more cigars to the list as we blind review cigars throughout the year, but we’ll start with some of the greatest blends we’ve encountered over the course of the last 24 months.
The Best Cigars to Smoke in 2021
Cohiba Royale
The most expensive cigar on our list of must-smoke cigars in 2021 is the Cohiba Royale. This blend earned a huge 93 rating in our blind review in 2020, and deservedly so. The combination of rich tobacco, earth, cherries, spice and a creamy finish gives this cigar a complexity and deliciousness that are hard to beat.
Release Year: 2020
Strength: Medium-Full
Box Price: from $260
Buy the Cohiba Royale from Famous Smoke Shop here.
Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Nicaragua
The original Reserva Real from Romeo y Julieta has long been a classic. The team at Altadis worked tirelessly to create a Nicaraguan follow up that delivers a classic Romeo y Julieta experience while adding a bit more body than the Dominican original. An elegant smoke, ideally suited for new cigar smokers. Read our full review here.
Release Year: 2020
Strength: Medium
Box Price: from $197
Buy the Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Nicaragua from Famous Smoke Shop here.
Joya de Nicaragua Antano Connecticut
Don’t let the Connecticut wrapper fool you: the Joya de Nicaragua Antano Connecticut is a flavor bomb, albeit slightly milder than many on the market. In our blind review, we were impressed with the creaminess, oak, leather and wood that gave this cigar so much flavor.
Release Year: 2019
Strength: Mild-Medium
Box Price: from $150
Buy the Joya de Nicaragua Antano Connecticut from Famous Smoke Shop here.
Herman’s Batch The Banker by H.Upmann
Released in 2020 and blended by AJ Fernandez, H. Upmann Herman’s Batch impressed us with its spicy, strong start that morphs into a delicious combo of toast, coffee, leather and honeyed notes.
Release Year: 2020
Strength: Medium-Full
Box Price: from $160
Buy the H. Upmann Herman’s Batch from Famous Smoke Shop here.
Fonseca by My Father
One of the true break-out blends of 2020, receiving a whopping 93 rating in our blind review. My Father Fonseca is expertly constructed and features notes of sweet spice, milk chocolate, tea and floral notes that develop nicely throughout the blend. A must smoke, especially for the veteran cigar smoker.
Release Year: 2020
Strength: Medium-Full
Box Price: from $155
Buy the My Father Fonseca from Famous Smoke Shop here.
Joya de Nicaragua Cinco Decadas
The Joya de Nicaragua Cinco Décadas presents a flavor profile that no JdN fan could miss: dark oak and charcoal, creamy cocoa, leather, and light spiciness. What Cinco Décadas achieves is to take the JdN flavor profile that we know and love and elevate it into the realm of art. We know that is high praise, but it is true, particularly given the cigar’s sheer complexity and balance. Highly recommended.
Release Year: 2018
Strength: Full
Box Price: from $152
Buy the Joya de Nicaragua Cinco Decadas from Famous Smoke Shop here.
Aging Room Pura Cepa
Once again, Rafael Nodal of Aging Room has hit the ball out of the park. The Aging Room Pura Cepa makes the list of best cigars to smoke in 2021 with notes of smoky wood that’s augmented by light chocolate, cream, floral, and leather notes. Impeccably constructed, this cigar achieved a score of 90 and we highly recommend it.
Release Year: 2018
Strength: Medium
Box Price: from $234
Buy the Aging Room Pura Cepa from Famous Smoke Shop here.
And there you have it, our initial recommendations for the top cigars to smoke in 2021. We’ll continue adding to this list as stellar blends from our 2021 blind reviews come in.
Affiliate note: we may receive a small commission for purchases made through links on this page–but that doesn’t affect our review scores or recommendations.
You’ve read his reviews here on Fine Tobacco NYC or heard him describe tasting notes on our Perfect Pairings events. Now hear Fine Tobacco NYC contributor Kevin Sun talk about the Zino Platinum Crown Series Limited Edition 2020 with the guys at The Straight Cut, one of the more entertaining cigar podcasts available online.
You can listen to the podcast on Spotify by clicking here.
In the midst of a global pandemic that has shuttered businesses everywhere and seen the end of NYC cigar industry heavyweights like Nat Sherman, there is a rare piece of good news for NYC cigar smokers. Merchants NY Cigar Bar , which closed in December of 2016, has announced plans to reopen on December 2nd, 2020. The website is back up, complete with a new logo, new design, and much more.
One of the few in NYC to serve cigars, drinks and food in one place, Merchants Cigar Bar will return with an all-new menu of premium cigars, cocktails, and food service. The lounge will have a new look and feel too. When the cigar bar was shuttered in 2016, management redesigned the interior space to a Mad Men-esque mid-century modern vibe and relaunched as Sugar East, a bar where patrons could smoke cigarettes but not cigars. The new Merchants Cigar Bar will keep the same bones, but with updated leather furniture and new visual features.
Fernando Rodriguez, Director of Operations at Merchants Hospitality, describes the new space having a “chill, modern feel” in contrast to the older, more traditional lounge. When asked about how the venue plans to open during COVID, Rodriguez described the rigorous health and safety measures being undertaken. “We have spared no expense creating a venue that New Yorkers can feel safe and comfortable in,” Rodriguez said. “From basics like heightened sanitation and mandatory masks for staff to plexiglass separators for tables and a world class filtration system that kills airborn bacteria and viruses, we are ready to open and welcome patrons in to our new experience.”
To start, the lounge will be open Wednesday through Sunday from 5pm to 10pm. Currently, the lounge has a maximum capacity of 30 people, less than a quarter of its total capacity.
Merchants Cigar Bar is located at 1125 1st Avenue on the southwest corner of 1st ave and 62nd st on the Upper East Side.
News broke this week that Nat Sherman and its Nat Sherman Townhouse in Midtown Manhattan will permanently close in September. First reported by Cigar Aficionado and then a slew of other cigar blogs, the news came as a shock to many, especially those in the New York City cigar community that frequented the Townhouse on 42nd street for its incredible selection, great prices, and the knowledge and hospitality of its staff.
In the midst of a stressful and taxing global pandemic, the news was a hard blow for me personally. I worked and lived in Midtown just blocks from the Townhouse for a number of years, stopping by multiple times a week—sometimes to pick up a few cigars for a weekend get together with friends, other times for a quiet smoke during lunch hour.
Nat Sherman has been in business since 1930, and got its start during the Great Depression. Though it wasn’t always located in the Townhouse on 42nd street, the Townhouse became for many the iconic symbol not just of the Nat Sherman brand, but of the ethos of the cigar culture in New York. The store was particularly memorable in the winter. Like so many others, I remember pulling hard on the heavy front doors to escape freezing rain or snow and being greeted by a cozy atmosphere (sometimes accompanied with a jazz band playing on the second-floor balcony) and a sea of smiling faces.
I remember the cigar launch parties that the store would throw, especially those that the Quesada family attended—perhaps the kindest family in an industry of kind families. Those events were always well attended, full of laughter and friendship, and always accompanied by a few good jokes from Michael Herklots thrown in during the evening’s festivities.
The historic brand was made immensely richer and more defined by Mr. Herklots after he joined the team at the head of brand and retail. Not only did he spearhead the release of incredible blends (Timeless, Bench Series, Joel Sherman 75th, the list goes on); he put his heart and soul into the brand, and the increased foot traffic and consecutive 90+ point cigar ratings prove it.
The industry is losing a great and storied brand. The city is losing something as well. But the price it pays for Nat Sherman’s closing won’t be in tax revenue or foot traffic on 42nd street. Thepeople of this great city will pay in all the new friendships, polite conversations, and quiet thoughtfulness that will never happen at the Townhouse again. This might sound sentimental, but in our polarized age of ceaseless noise… is it?
Someday, we might hope, another enterprising young man will open the next cigar shop that lives on another 90 or 100 years. But the city will always be poorer for the closing of the Nat Sherman Townhouse.
Starting on Tuesday, July 7th, The Carnegie Club is reopening for the first time since it closed on March 16th due to the global pandemic. Scott Asbury, Carnegie Club’s manager confirmed via email that the legendary cigar bar will open outdoor seating for the first time in its history.
Key details on the opening include:
Establishment Hours: 3pm – 9pm
Tables will be spaced 6 feet
Guest masks are not required except in order to use the restroom
Happy Hour 3pm-6pm consisting of select $6 beers, $8 wines and $11 cocktails
Scott explained in his email that Carnegie Club may extend the hours and days of operation depending on the demand. He went on to write
“The situation will be very fluid and we will be constantly refining how we do everything since this is uncharted territory. We were planning on waiting for Phase 3 to start this Monday for indoor seating but when they cancelled it we felt compelled to be proactive and just assume that indoor seating will not be allowed for awhile and that we have to adapt to survive.
We got our approval for outdoor seating and met up at The Carnegie Club shortly after to figure out how we could pull this off in a matter of days. We ordered some open air tents that should be arriving today and some barricades to claim our street space. We will come up with some branded banners to cover up the metal on the barricades but will not likely have them in time for opening so it may not be pretty at first but in the interest of getting started we are going to go with what we have and improve it as we go.
As you know we have never had outdoor seating and are not set up for that so it will be like starting a whole new business. Mistakes will be made and that’s fine. We will make it work and most importantly listen to any and all feedback from everyone. I do hope we can figure out a way to hold events too. I’ve already got a few ideas on how but I still want to see how things develop.”
As much as we are all eagerly awaiting the reopening of our indoor cigar lounges in NYC, it’s refreshing to see cigar bars like The Carnegie Club take the lead on reopening.
As a lover of all things cigars, including accessories and adjacent interests like whisky and cocktails, I’m very grateful to have had the opportunity to obtain the Davidoff Cigar Storage and Bar Tool Set. It’s one of the more unique Davidoff accessories I’ve come across and is both beautiful and functional.
The box itself is made of a beautiful light wood exterior with light gray fabric interior. It has slots for six cigars, two vertical slots for a cigar cutter and cigar lighter, and of course the bar tool slots which include a jigger, wine key, champagne stopper and 4oz. cup. The last slot holds a “Pairing Suggestions” booklet which suggests drink pairings for Davidoff’s core line of cigars.
The bar tools themselves are high quality as evidenced by their substantial weight, which is great. And once you’ve populated the box with your choice of cigars, a cutter and a lighter, you can consider yourself prepared to show up in style to any social cigar gathering.
The only suggestion I’d make for future iterations of this product is for the surface inside the box to be a bit more deeply inset. When the 4oz cup is stowed in its slot, it takes up quite a bit of vertical space and can come into contact with the lighter strapped in above it under the lid, making it difficult to close the box back up.
All things considered, still a beautiful and functional accessory to have on hand. Here’s the description from the Davidoff website:
For those who plan their libations with their cigars.
The perfect kit for every occasion. A wooden carrying case with a secure closure latch, equipped with storage for cigars, a lighter and cutter, along with necessary bar tools, a beautiful gold-satin wine key, champagne stopper, jigger for cocktails and a small steel restaurant grade drinking glass.
The kit itself is priced at $99, but can be obtained from some official Davidoff retail shops as a complementary gift for cigar purchases over $250. For more info about purchasing, visit the official Davidoff website.
Last week, Barclay Rex emailed customers announcing the reopening of the store, including the walk in humidor which is now open to the public (unlike other notable NYC cigar retailers like Davidoff where only staff are allowed to walk into the humidor). In addition, the members-only lounge is now open on the condition that reservations are made ahead of time.
Lastly, Barclay Rex has opened limited outdoor seating and hopes to gain a permit for more outdoor seating in the coming week.
Outdoor seating at Barclay Rex on Pearl St.
Below is the email that went out to the Barclay Rex mailing list last week:
Thank you for all the support during this challenging time. We are thrilled to officially announce our reopening, on Monday, for in-store shopping during Phase 2 New York City reopening. Please make note of our most updated information:
Barclay Rex will be open Monday-Friday 10am-7pm. Feel free to call, email or shop inside the store for all of your purchases.
Rex Club is officially reopened to members and their guests. Please note that a reservation is required. Please call or email before you come. Priority seating and availability will be given to Rex Club members with earlier reservations.
Before you order online, please consider ordering through us. We are currently offering a 10% discount off of any box orders and will match any online box price. We are currently ordering for the following cigar companies: Padron, Davidoff, Avo, Camacho, Griffin, Tatuaje, Placencia, Altadis, My Father, Drew Estate, Santana, Ashton and Arturo Fuente
Tobacco orders can also be picked up or delivered to you. Here is a list of our famous tobaccos: Aromatics: Maravilla, El Moreno, Alkazar, Royal Scott, Diplomat, Jack O’ Hearts, Rexey, Peter McGurk’s. Non-Aromatics: Barclay Slice, Hampton Bay, Maiden Lane, Vincents, #4, #6
Please remain safe and healthy. We are excited to welcome you back into our store.
Up for review today is the God of Fire Aniversario 2016 from Prometheus Cigars. After four years of aging in the box, this cigar is vintage and I’m curious to see how it performs.
Blend Specifics
Cigar Reviewed: God of Fire Aniversario 2016
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sun Grown
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Size: 5 1/2 x 60
Appearance & Construction
The God of Fire Aniversario 2016 is a stout and strong looking cigar. The gold, black and white bands put a strong foot forward and frame the artistic depiction of Promethius (being attacked by an Eagle in retribution for him stealing fire from the gods) at the center.
After clipping with a straight cut, the draw shows itself to be fairly restrictive, probably an 8.5/10 in terms of amount of restrictiveness. Hopefully that opens up a bit as the tapered end of the cigar burns. The outer wrapper leaf has a strong aroma of leather, black pepper, and dried meats.
Flavor & Smoke Characteristics
Given the name of this cigar, I was expecting a lot more strength out of the gate. Instead, the God of Fire Aniversario 2016 opens with full bodied but mild strength smoke. It’s maybe the first time I’ve ever encountered that combo. Another way to put it would be that the God of Fire opens like a cigar that’s been aging a long time–it’s got a strong character but it’s been mellowed way out. The smoke doesn’t make a huge impression on the palate, with some faint wood and leather notes that sit on top of a subtler dark chocolate note. The retrohale is almost non-existent. It’s the aroma of the smoke that makes a bigger statement, with hints of baking spices, caramel, mushrooms, and something akin to dusty attic (that’s the age coming in to play).
Construction wise, the cigar opens well. Within the first half an inch the tapered end of the cigar has burned and the draw definitely opens up to a more comfortable level. Overall in the first third, there’s definitely a lot of finesse and elegance to the smoke, as well as some enjoyable flavor. But it is possible for tobacco to mellow out too much which is what I’m afraid could be happening here.
As the God of Fire burns into the second third, the strength does increase a bit, bringing it up about a third of the way between mild and medium. The flavor the smoke is divided almost evenly between bitter notes of raw cocoa and earth, and sweeter notes of cream and floral. There’s also some spice that hits the tip of the tongue and lingers, and it seems to come on stronger the more quickly I puff so I do my best to minimize that. Overall though, not much to speak of in terms of flavor, which is a shame to say.
At halfway, the burn strays a bit, requiring a significant touch up to correct. And worse, the smoke production which was excellent at first begins to dwindle, forcing me to choose between puffing faster to generate smoke or puff slower to keep the smoke cool.
Just when I’m about to give up on the God of Fire Aniversario 2016 at about halfway through, the strength of flavor finally ramps up enough to start to get a sense of what the cigar is about. Except, it isn’t good. Though the smoke is mostly characterized by gentle and sweet notes of bread, cream, and baking spices, there’s also an aggressively bitter and sometimes downright sour fermented note that throws the experience off. Thankfully, the spice finally begins to hit the retrohale, adding some additional dimension to the experience.
Unfortunately, that’s about where the good news ends. Poor smoke production issues continue to dog the cigar in the final third, and the flavors become overly bitter and unenjoyable. I’m not a glutton for punishment so I toss the cigar well before finishing it.
Conclusion
The Promethius God of Fire Aniversario 2016 is a great cigar that somehow found a way to be terrible. Yes, it had smoothness in spades and some enjoyable moments at the beginning, but it never delivered any of the strength that would make its better moments stand out.
But what really killed the experience was the combo of the large ring gauge and poor smoke production. Having to puff repeatedly on a 48 corona size to get smoke is one thing. Puffing on a large ring gauge cigar over and over to produce smoke takes all of the relaxation out of the experience, overheats the smoke and warps otherwise pleasant flavors into monsters.
Ultimately the only thought I have finishing this review is “I want the hour and a half I invested in this cigar back.”
Davidoff of Geneva announced today that NYC stores are back open after months of closure due to COVID 19. In an email, a representative from Davidoff outlined some of the health and safety measures being implemented to keep customers and staff safe, including:
Customers are recommended to wear face coverings upon entry. Staff are required to.
Sales professionals will guide the shoppers experience. Customers will not be allowed to enter the humidor. Floor markers will provide a space to wait for staff to make selection and present to the customer.
Similar floor markers are provided by point of sale area for customers to maintain 6ft distancing.
Additional signage will be applied in multiple areas throughout the store to ensure current operation measures are understood and followed.
No outside food or beverage will be allowed.
Lounges will remain closed until further notice.
Store hour vary from store to store, see below.
Madison: Mon-Saturday: 10AM-5PM / Sunday closed.
6th Avenue: Mon-Fri: 11AM-5PM / Weekends closed
Downtown: Mon – Fri: 11AM-7PM / Sat and Sun: 12PM-6PM
Note: due to the fast-moving nature of laws, regulations, and requirements around COVID 19, I suggest calling ahead before visiting a Davidoff location.
If you’re a cigar smoker on Instagram, you’ve probably seen some of Billy Rothwell’s (@bk23xxiii) photos on your feed. He’s grown a large Instagram following by capturing an essence of luxury that is hard to find elsewhere.
I had the pleasure of meeting Billy at Davidoff Brookfield Place at an event put together by Eric of @scotchandtime. We didn’t get to chat much, but Billy struck me as a down to earth guy and someone most anyone would enjoy smoking a cigar with. At the event, he also showed off a prototype of his new ultra-luxury cigar ash tray, the W.R. Roth Avant-Garde II. Just holding it my hands was quite the experience–it felt solid and had a great look to it.
In the months since, the world has obviously turned upside down. So I’ve reached out to friends in the cigar world like Billy to chat so that our readers can discover interesting new personalities to follow online.
So without further ado, let’s get to know Billy and take a look behind-the-scenes at W.R. Roth.
Matthias: Let’s start with the obvious. Where is your head at right as far as Corona Virus goes? I know you’re safe and given your posts you are continuing to enjoy life, but what are you feeling when it comes to the pandemic, the economy, social distancing, etc?
Billy: Perspective. Life is truly all about the way a person sees things. Me, I try to look for the silver lining in every situation. Many of us are so blessed to be at home with a pantry full of food, internet, tv, cell phones and video games. This is a unique environment that most people reading this have never seen before unless you were around in 1918 for the last major global pandemic (Virus related… I think hunger, homelessness, mental health and more qualify as global pandemics as well) All that said, its also an eye opening experience to human behavior, trust in our government, emergency preparedness and so much more. I could go on for hours about change and the future but I will just say we are resilient, we have been through wars, famine, plague and more…yet here we are. This too shall pass…
Matthias: I hear you – this topic could certainly span an entire interview. But let’s get to know you a bit more, and not in the typical “what do you do for work” kind of way. What were some of the formative experiences you had when you were younger that shaped the kind of person you are today?
Billy: I grew up in an environment much different than most assume. My father was in prison for 23 years and my Mom wasn’t around at all until my adult years. My Moms parents raised me and my sisters until my Grandfather passed away when I was in 4th grade. My Grandmother then took on the burden of raising us alone. So when you ask what shaped me, the answer is multifaceted. I was smart enough to learn from other peoples mistakes so I avoided making too many of my own. I was also lucky to have a woman in my life like my Grandmother (Nonnie) who showed me what a true work ethic was.
I started working in Banking with the company she worked for almost full time in 10th grade to help her pay the rent and I always dreamed of being successful to put myself in a position to provide for her the way she provided for us. Christmas and birthdays were limited to a single gift and at the time I was a HUGE Michael Jordan fan (still am) so that was almost always a pair of the newest Jordan sneakers. Between the work ethic she instilled and the competitive nature and desire to win Jordan embodied, I had 2 people I really looked up to that helped shape the person I became.
Matthias: That’s pretty inspiring. I’m also a huge fan of Jordan and 23 was my favorite number growing up. Outside of an interest in quality and craftsmanship, what do you care about in life? What do you value—personally—and why?
Billy: I value my family, my friendships (I keep a very small circle) and my memories and experiences, new and old. Money is cool. Having “stuff” is fun, but I would give all that up if it gave me unlimited access to creating incredible experiences and memories with the people I love. I came from nothing, so I remember what having nothing felt like…and it was fine… as long as I had the people around me that I loved.
My fondest memories in life to this day aren’t about the things I have now, they are of the experiences I went through and things I learned from the people that meant the most to me. Those are the things that allowed me the opportunity, skills and drive to work so hard for the things I am grateful to possess today.
Matthias: I hear you on that. That is what seems to separate the annoying luxury personalities from the genuinely interesting ones: values that transcend owning expensive things or having status.
This all begs the question, outside of luxury products like cigars, drinks, accessories, and fashion, what are your hobbies?
Billy: Those are certainly the majority of my passions but in regards to hobbies otherwise, I love to be outdoors and in the woods. Hiking, camping, motorcycles… anything in nature or outside. I also love to travel. Creating memories and experiences that last a lifetime. I am blessed to have done some pretty cool things in my life and each of them are far more valuable to me than anything I own physically.
Matthias: Speaking of experiences, tell us about the best cigar experience you’ve ever had. Where were you, who were you with, what were you smoking/drinking?
Billy: Picking one is impossible as I have so many amazing experiences involving cigars. One that stands out was 3 years ago in Georgia at the Masters. I was staying at a gorgeous resort in Lake Okonee, had a great friend come visit that night after the first round of the tournament and we sat by the lake in a private area next to a firepit drinking great wine and smoking some aged regional Cubans talking about everything and nothing. Between the INCREDIBLE scenery, the conversation, the beautiful wine and cigars, it was truly the perfect end to a wonderful day. Almost something out of a movie honestly…
Matthias: Yeah that sounds pretty incredible. So stepping back from favorite memories for a second, what would you consider your favorite cigar?
Billy: Such a hard question to answer because I smoke cigars based on my mood, what I am pairing them with, where I am, what the weather is like… And that changes daily. If I had to pick a cigar that I could possibly smoke regardless of those factors, or that could compliment an aspect of each of them, I would probably say the Partagas Lusitania Gran Reserva. It may be the perfect cigar.
Matthias: So let’s switch gears a bit and talk about W.R. Roth. First of all, tell us a bit about the name. (For readers, you can browse W.R. Roth products here)
Billy: W.R. Roth is actually an abbreviated version of my name, William Rothwell. I wanted to create a classic brand. Something that stood the test of time, like Chanel. I wanted it to “be the new black” lol. I wanted an incredible logo that could look great anywhere, from a tee shirt to cufflinks to a forged carbon ashtray or humidor. But most important, I wanted it to be an homage to a time of true craftsmanship and pride in what was being created… The only way I could think to fully commit and give my personal quality guarantee was to put my name on it…Literally…Nobody would ever want to put out a product that isn’t the best quality it could be if it had their name on it.
Matthias: That’s a great point. Naming a brand after yourself is certainly one way to motivate yourself to put your best products forward.
What makes your ash trays special, and what is your favorite part of your ash trays?
Billy: I think the quality and craftsmanship make it special. The limited production makes it something that only 50 people in the world can say they own (python was limited to 50 pieces and 100 forged carbon pieces) and as someone who enjoys exclusivity, I thought that was appealing. My favorite part though was seeing an idea in my head translate so well to paper via my original drawing and then finally come to fruition as a production-ready product…and sell out in a few weeks. That helped solidify the concept of building a luxury brand as being worthwhile in a market full of inexpensive, low quality pieces. A $400 ashtray isn’t for everyone, but 150 of them, between the forged carbon and python pieces were a must have for somebody…and that’s what mattered to me.
Matthias: Why did you name the ash tray the “Avante-Gard”?
Billy: The definition of “Avante-Gard” is new and innovative in style or method, which I truly felt these pieces were. The II (2) symbolized the number of cigars it accommodated with the intention of doing a single and possibly 4 cigar version in the future in new materials.
Matthias: Love it. I remember holding the prototype and being so impressed with the weight in my hand and how solid the whole product felt. It’s a tremendously striking and original ash tray so hats off to you for putting it together. Why did you go in the direction of producing an ash tray for your first product?
Billy: I wanted to create something that would appeal to my followers who enjoy the pictures I post. I needed to create something unique, but also a necessity item so people saw value. There are hundreds of lighters and cutters available, tons of cases, etc. The Avant-Garde II ashtray was the perfect expression of what I wanted to portray to my clientele. A new twist on something they used out of necessity that reflected my style and eye for design but in a way that they had never seen before. The sleek lines, but no hard edges, each micro beveled to precision. The cigar posts instead of the traditional finger grooves. The solid, symmetrical aluminum base with the contrast of the warm, textured, soft feel of the Indonesian python (a material that has always screamed luxury to me) and then the ultra limited production of only 50 individually numbered pieces. Then, to touch each piece for final inspection before they were mailed out and ensure it met my quality standards before hand laying the wax seal on the packaging as my final assurance that the piece they were getting was perfectly crafted… That meant a lot to me.
Matthias: That’s awesome. Thanks for sharing in such depth on your life and brand philosophy. I’m always excited when new cigar accessory products come on to the market, and doubly so when they are quality products vs. the garbage that so many bigger brands produce. Thanks for doing this interview with me.
Billy: My pleasure Matthias, it’s been great talking.
