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FineTobaccoNYC Announces “The Smoker Social”, an Exclusive Cigar & Spirits Tasting

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cigar social

The 2013 Smoker Social is an exclusive cigar and spirits pairing featuring premium Rum from Brugal, cigars from Turei Cigars, live jazz, give-aways, and more. The social will be held at Merchants New York Cigar Bar. This iconic venue features a world-class decor and full dinner and bar service. Tickets are limited. Dress code is business casual: no shorts, t-shirts or sandals.

Ticket price: $20 via EventBrite and $25 at the door.

Ticket includes:

  • Admission
  • 1 glass Brugal 1888
  • 1 glass Brugal Anejo
  • 1 Turei Puro Sol cigar
  • Live music
  • Raffle

What You Will Taste

 

1888

The award-winning Brugal 1888 combines a distinctively dry style of spirit with a proprietary aging process to produce a complex and layered rum that is truly unique. The product starts with a clean and dry distillate, which is then aged to maturity for 6-8 years in American Oak Casks, followed by a 2-4 year ageing in Oloroso Sherry Casks – the same casks used to mature the world’s finest single malt. The finished product is smooth, rich and full bodied while still retaining the distinctively dry style that separates Brugal from all other rums on the market.

The Brugal distillery leverages the expertise of The Edrington Groups’s Master of Wood, George Espie, who runs The Macallan and Highland Park Scotch Whisky’s Cask Management Systems. Under The Edrington Group’s guidance, the casks in which 1888 is both double-distilled and double-matured are handcrafted or hand-picked to ensure the finest of aging conditions. With Brugal 1888, the rum’s unique flavors shine through and are not overwhelmed by the sweetness generally associated with rum; it is undoubtedly a world class rum.

Tasting Notes

Color: The light enhances its dark amber hues and bright, clean color.

Nose: Fascinatingly complex, with spiced nuances, hints of chocolate, of roasted coffee, cinnamon and other dried fruits.

Palate: On the palate, pleasant, smooth and full-bodied. Its finish has nuances of toffee caramel, wood and liquorice.

Aftertaste: Brugal 1888 leaves a slightly sweet and long lasting aftertaste, with a sublime taste which denotes perfection.

 

anejo

Expert crafting of rums aged 2 to 5 years in white American Oak Casks. Using traditions and skills passed down through five generations, our Maestros Roneros craft rums that provide the consistent quality and distinctive style that Brugal demands.

Tasting Notes

Color: Amber, bright and clean.

Nose: Light aroma of wood with hints of chocolate.

Palate: Dry in an overall sense. Buttery in the mouth with a slight hint of caramel and wood tannin.

Aftertaste: Long, dry and pleasant.

 

Turei Puro Sol

Turei

After a series of complex trials and broad acceptance at IPCPR 2012, Hugo F. Melo, a fourth generation master blender and President of Hispaniola Cigars, decided the time was right to release Turei.

The Turei line includes three Dominican puro blends, each offered in a single vitola. The blends feature four-year aged tobaccos to deliver maximum complexity and flavor.

Turei cigars deliver a broad spectrum of flavor experiences, from medium bodied floral and roasted coffee notes to full bodied profiles with light pepper, dark cocoa, cinnamon, and brown sugar. The release of the Turei line follows on the heels of the immensely popular offerings from Hispaniola Cigars, which Hugo Melo launched in 2002.

 

 The Venue

Click here to RSVP

*By signing up for this event, you give FineTobaccoNYC permission to send future cigar event invites via email.

 

FineTobaccoNYC Hosts Second “Straight Up & Toasted” Pairing Event at the Carnegie Club

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On Wednesday, September 18th, FineTobaccoNYC and the Carnegie Club teamed up to present another edition of Straight Up & Toasted. The event featured cigars from Espinosa Cigars and Moya Ruiz Cigars, as well as a special selection of bourbon and rye from Bulleit Whiskey Co.

The evening event, open to the public, started at 8:00pm. Around the same time, the Stan Rubin Quartet livened up the atmosphere with a selection of new and old jazz numbers. Approximately 150 attended the event and enjoyed cigars, whiskey, live music, and special item raffles throughout the evening.

Guests also shared the event with friends online via social media using the hashtag #CarnegieClub. Below is a selection of social media stories generated during the event.

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http://storify.com/matthiasclock/straight-up-and-toasted

SUNDAY CIGAR SHOTS VIA #FINETOBACCONYC – NOVEMBER 18TH, 2012

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It’s that time of the week again! Our second round of Sunday cigar shots from the #FineTobaccoNYC hashtag on twitter concluded this morning with some really great shots submitted in the last week. Dozens of users submitted, but only three were chosen. Photos are selected on the basis of creativity and pure bad-assery. As far as prizes go, for now there are none, but I’m working on fixing that.

Without further ado, here are your winners, and below some runners-up:

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#1

User: tainocigar
Smoking: Undercrown by Drew Estate
Caption: Very sexy!!! #FineTobaccoNYC  –  (sometimes the simple description is best!)

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#2

User: mstichweh
Smoking: Alec Bradley Black Market
Caption: Black Market. #knockfirst #alecbradley #cigar #cigars #cigaraficionado#picoftheday #gun #guns #ak47 #saiga #7. 62×39 #finetobacconyc  –  (you win the badassery award)

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#3

User: don_cerati
Smoking: Fernando Leon Robusto from La Aurora Cigars
Caption: Time for a stroll with the dog and a #cigar. This time I’m going with a Fernando León Robusto by @LaAuroraCigars (@mccbarry). Maybe I’ll just keep it in the E. León Jimenez family this week… – October 23rd 2012

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Runners-Up

Here is a gallery of all the best awesome shots submitted this week, including our winners. Click to enlarge:

To submit a photo for consideration for next week’s post, simply tag your cigar shots #FineTobaccoNYC. You can see the rest of the submissions here on Statigram.com, hashtag #FineTobaccoNYC.

Sunday Cigar Shots via #FineTobaccoNYC – November 11th, 2012

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Top of the morning to you all on this beautiful Sunday, and welcome to our first installment of Sunday Cigar Shots, via the Instagram hash tag #FineTobaccoNYC. We’ve selected three of the best instagram cigar shots submitted to #FineTobaccoNYC for your viewing pleasure, and we encourage you to Follow the users who snapped these photos!

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#1 

User: mstichweh
Smoking: Oliva Cain Straight Ligero
Caption: A cigar named after our first murderer sounds good. These are quickly becoming a favorite! #cigar #botl #cigarlife #botlflchapter #bible #cain #able #nowsmoking #FineTobaccoNYC

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#2

User: brog52
Smoking: Nestor Miranda Grand Reserve 2012
Caption: Any thoughts on this stick #botl ? I locked it up at my local B&M the other day and have never had anything from this line so not sure what to expect. #cigar#cigars #allclassallthetime.

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#3

User: tom_cassano
Smoking: La Duena Petite Lancero
Caption: La Dueña Petite Lancero, review on Longfillerslounge.com to come shorty #botl# botlnychapter #cigaraddicts #cigars #cigarclub1 #longfillerslounge#cigaraficionado #nowsmoking
(Here is the review!)

Thanks to everyone who submitted! If you want to have your photo featured, just do two things. 1) Make it a good photo! 2) Tag it #FineTobaccoNYC. Check the front page the following Sunday!

FineTobaccoNYC Launches “Cigar Industry Network” On LinkedIn

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NEW YORK, September 24, 2012–finetobaccoclub.com/ is pleased to announce the creation of the “Cigar Industry Network” on LinkedIn. The LinkedIn group will facilitate discussion among members of the cigar industry and connect members of the cigar press/blog community to the frequent announcements of manufacturers and distributors alike.

Though there are multiple cigar related groups on LinkedIn, none are geared towards helping members of the industry collaborate without incessant advertisement by outside companies, or dozens of cigar reviews posted by bloggers. Groups  frequently overrun with spam and irrelevant posts thus hinder collaboration instead of helping.

In its first week of operation, the group has gained about 40 members, including members of the New York Cigar industry. Members also include CRA Ambassadors, members of the cigar press, and aficionados living around the East Coast.

Matthias Clock, editor-in-chief at FineTobbacoNYC.com said, “I put the group together because I think that there is tremendous untapped opportunity for collaboration in the cigar industry, be it with advertising, marketing, distribution, or even creating new products or talking about best business practices.”

Group membership is currently set to “open,” meaning that anyone with a LinkedIn account can currently join. As the group grows, however, this will change in order to protect meaningful discussion and fight spam.

Click here to join the Cigar Industry Network.

FineTobaccoNYC is an organization dedicated to promoting the art and enjoyment of fine tobacco in New York City. With over 500 event subscribers and and audience measured in tens of thousands, FineTobaccoNYC produces cigar reviews, industry news, luxury product announcements, free events, and sponsored products.  Additionally, FineTobaccoNYC increases awareness and promotes a healthy, responsible cigar community in New York City.

FineTobaccoNYC on Twitter.

FineTobaccoNYC on Facebook.

Event Recap: Havana Wednesday at Ravel Rooftop

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This last Wednesday, the FTNYC community came together for another great smoke-session. And what a night it was! We were on the penthouse level of the Ravel Rooftop in Queens. We had live salsa music, some of the guys took a beginner salsa lesson, a cigar roller rolling fresh stogies, bar service, and about 25 BOTL/SOTL there to hang out with.

Thanks to everyone who came out to make the event a success, and for BOTL Kelvin Batista for setting it up. What a great venue!

We’ll definitely  be doing more events at Ravel soon, so stay in touch! Join our event mailing list to get notice of our events.

 

 

 

 

 

Event Invite: Diamante’s 2 Year, “Lazy Sunday Smoke” @ Velvet Cigar Lounge

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This email went out to all FTNYC event subscribers – sign up for the mailing list to make sure you get word of exclusive events first!

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Ladies and gentlemen of the leaf,

After a long summer of awesome events, it is my pleasure to announce two upcoming fall FineTobaccoNYC events. But first, two quick updates. The first is that FineTobaccoNYC is now officially sponsored by Astoria Imperial Cigars – we’re proud to be supported by such a great lounge and look forward to developing a business relationship. Second is that FineTobaccoNYC, courtesy of Kelvin Batista, is now maintaining the largest and most comprehensive cigar event calendar in the New York City area. Click the link and bookmark it!
Now for the events! If you plan on coming to either, email me at matthias.ftnyc@gmail.com and RSVP yourself plus however many guests you’ll be bringing!

Diamante’s 2nd Anniversary Party – Saturday, 11/05/2011
We at FineTobaccoNYC are proud to sponsor this special occasion of one of my favorite cigar lounges. The event runs almost all day, so stop by and say hi to David Diamante himself, and come smoke out with the FineTobaccoNYC squad. I’ll be there along with Kelvin, James, Tim (the most recent addition to the FTNYC team), and plenty of friends. There will be a DJ, a raffle, big prize giveaways and no BYO charge! Come support a local shop and have a good time doing it!
What: Diamante’s 2nd Anniversary Party
When: Saturday, Nov. 5th from 1pm – late!


The FineTobaccoNYC “Lazy Sunday Pipe Smoke” at Velvet Cigar Lounge – Sunday, 11/13/2011:

For all of you I’ve heard say you want to learn more about pipes (tobacco, packing, lighting, etc), FTNYC is hosting its first everpipe-smoking event! We will be spending a relaxing Sunday afternoon experiencing the new and exclusive pipe tobacco blends at Velvet Cigar Lounge, and I’ll be giving a brief pipe 101 class. Dan Bsharat, owner of Velvet, has also offered to waive the BYO fee and open the lounge early exclusively for the FineTobaccoNYC event. The shop will be selling pipes, tobacco, and their premium blend cigar, the (fantastic) Velvet Bowery.
What: Our first pipe event, exclusive lounge space, LIMITED availability (RSVP quick!)
When: Sunday, Nov. 13th from noon – 3pm
What to Bring: a pipe/tobacco if you have one, $$ to try the Velvet blends
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Let me know if you have any questions. I hope to see you at these next two events – RSVP soon! Until then, long ashes and God bless.
Warm regards,
Matthias Clock

FineTobaccoNYC Announces New York City’s Largest Cigar Event Calendar

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Ladies and gentlemen of the leaf,

The FineTobaccoNYC team is happy to announce that the largest, most comprehensive NYC area cigar event calendar is now online.

The calendar will be updated constantly as event announcements come in from around the internet, cigar shop mailing lists, and word of mouth. You can find the calendar here, or by clicking the link on the navigation bar above. We will also be posting our own special events on this calendar, so be sure to stay tuned. Daily event announcements are also made on the FineTobaccoNYC Facebook page. Click here and “Like” our page to get instantaneous updates.

To submit an event to the FineTobaccoNYC calendar, email Kelvin Batista using the email address linked here.

Check back often, and long ashes!

Warm regards,
Matthias Clock
Founder, FineTobaccoNYC 

FineTobaccoNYC Featured on CigarFilms.com

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A few months ago FineTobaccoNYC hosted a rooftop HERF with Maraya Cigars. We had the pleasure of having John Nubian and Dan-ell Morales from CigarFilms.com drop by and film the event. They interviewed founder of FTNYC Matthias Clock as well as Senor Cigar Kevin Bristow from New York Grown & Sexy in the City cigar group.  Check out that sunset!

http://youtu.be/DAyXW753P_w

If you’d like to come to a FTNYC, they are open to all cigar smokers! Simply drop by our home page and submit your name and email address!

Cigar Review: La Floridita Fuerte Robusto

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It’s a beautiful day out in Astoria, Queens – not a cloud in the sky, 85 degree weather, and a beautiful back yard to smoke in. I haven’t reviewed in a while, so I figured I’d give this La Floridita Fuerta sitting in my box a try. I didn’t pair any drinks with this cigar besides a glass of water.

 

Blend Specifics:

Wrapper: Honduras
Wrapper: Honduras
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Length/Ring Guage: 5×50

Construction & Appearance

On first glance, this stick seems to be very well constructed, has a good weightiness in hand, and has a great oily sheen. Unfortunately, after closer inspection, it also seems that it is packed a bit unevenly. I’m not a huge fan of the black, white and gold band from an aesthetic standpoint. “La Floridita” is displayed in large Times New Roman font, which makes it appear as if whoever created the label didn’t put a lot of thought into it. The aroma off the foot of the stick, however, is pretty good: hints of leather, a bit of spice, and dark chocolate.

 

Taste & Smoking Characteristics

I was a bit surprised with how this stick kicked off. From what I smelled off of the foot pre-light, I was expecting a bigger kick than I got. The flavor introduced itself as an earthy, bitter cocoa, lacking any of the spice I imagined would be there. The smoke has a certain heavy thickness to it that seems to mask some of the flavor. About a half-inch in, the taste opens up a bit, the earthy sweetness pulls way back to reveal what I’d describe as a sort of savory, meaty flavor with a bit of woodiness and spice on the retrohale. Unfortunately, there’s also a slightly fermented finish, which is probably indicative of a lack of time spent in the humidor – my fault!

 

At 2/3, I’m a bit torn. I’m tempted to say that I’m a bit bored with the flavor profile, but it is possible that this Ligero blend just isn’t my cup of tea. I would like a spice that’s a bit more discernable – at levels this low it just seems like the cigar can’t make up its mind! By about halfway through, I haven’t noticed a lot of change, except for a brief, maybe 2 minute transition into an earthy, sweet, dark chocolate that is very enjoyable. I can also say that the construction is excellent. At halfway, I still haven’t ashed the cigar and the burn is straight.

The final third is where this stick really picks up. The spice on the tongue increases, and the flavor profile becomes a mix of earth, leather, and pepper. Enjoyable, but a little too late in the game for me.

Conclusion

This is not a bad medium to full bodied cigar, and for $5 a piece, it won’t break the bank. There are, however, better sticks for the price. I’d say it is worth a shot if you want to try something new because it is unique, but I probably won’t be picking up any more with so many other great sticks out there that I know I can rely on.

Final Grade: B-

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