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Great Discovery’s of Houston, Texas sells special editions of more than a dozen brands and now offers to retailers – for the first time anywhere – a Romeo y Julieta 1875 perfecto! It’s called the Castle Lane and echoes the much-loved packaging of the now-extinct Royal Jamaica Park Lane shape. Each cigar is wrapped in tissue paper and the cigar itself is a regal perfecto of 6 3/4 inches by 48 ring gauge, using the molds from the Jose Seijas Signature Series Perfecto of the same dimensions. Harold Levinson Associates of Farmingdale, New York now offers smokeshops a two-shape line called the Montecristo Crystal Seleccion and four shapes in the Trinidad Cabinet Seleccion. These are the standard blends made by Altadis U.S.A. in its famed Tabacalera de Garcia factory in the Dominican Republic, but packed in hinged cabinets of 12 for the Montecristos and 16 for the Trinidads, perfect for gifts. One shape in each line – the Montecristo Churchills (7 x 50) and the Trinidad Coronas (5 x 44) are offered in glass tubes. Little cigar introductions slow: The stars of this show over the past three years have been little cigar brands, which were introduced by the bagful and have been hot sellers. With states legislating that these cigars – which are generally the same format as cigarettes – be taxed as cigarettes, the emphasis on this sector was significantly reduced. One new introduction of note was Bodyshot little cigars, made in North Carolina and offered, in a twist, in cocktail flavors including Mojito, Rum & Cola, Trance and Sangria. These are offered in packs of 20. Retailers oppose FDA legislation with letters to Congress: In addition to the display of new products, a letter-writing drive spearheaded by the Nat Sherman company was being organized at the show to oppose the in-process legislation that would give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration oversight control of tobacco. More than 1,000 letters were expected to be sent to individual members by tobacco retailers and operators in their districts by the end of the show. One well-written note included these objections to the bill, H.R. 1108: “Essentially, the FDA, in its sole discretion, could dictate to every retailer in the country how to operate each aspect of selling tobacco products. That is, the FDA can tell me how to run my business with little or no concern about the monetary burdens placed on me or the financial impact of lost sales due to new restrictions. For my retail business and retailers like me across the country, this is a case of regulation without representation. “But my concerns about H.R. 1108 do not stop with the potential for future regulations by the FDA. My concerns are heightened because Section 917 of the bill grants federal agencies (other than the FDA), states, counties and cities the power to adopt a rule, regulation or law that can be more strict than the FDA regulations and ban the sale, distribution, advertising, access to, possession or use of tobacco products. This extension of regulatory powers to state and local governments could lead to a new era of prohibition and place my business and the jobs of my employees, who are also your constituents, in jeopardy. “Only Congress should have the power to ban the sale, advertising and use of tobacco products. These overreaching powers like the FDA’s authority to adopt future regulations without Congressional approval and the ability of state and local governments to ban tobacco products cause me great concern and are the reason why I ask you to oppose H.R. 1108. As a retailer who sells legal products, I need you to protect family-owned retail businesses from the excessive regulatory powers in the FDA bill.” ~ Rich Perelman CLASSIFIED ADVERTISINGCigar Humidors and Cigar Accessories at Humidor Vault! Your online cigar humidor source, with rock-bottom pricing and fantastic customer support!Like sports? Get news and commentary you won’t see in your morning newspaper at TheSportsExaminer.com! Join the examination! A limited amount of classified advertising is available in this space on a weekly basis. For details, call Pat Harris at (213) 365-7965 or inquire by email by clicking here. Have an opinion? You can send it using the “Comment” button below! Don’t forget to register for our drawing for free cigars and accessories! Just click on the “Register & Win” button above; enter today! Looking for a cigar party? Take a look at our exclusive list of hundreds of cigar events across the country, listed by state and date, only on CigarCyclopedia.com!
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Did you know?
“"Sandwich" filler includes both long and short pieces, with the long pieces folded over to form the "sandwich."
