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Lignum-2's Troya to be distributed by Altadis U.S.A. When British giant Imperial Tobacco purchased San Leandro, California-based Lignum-2 earlier this year, its primary interest was in the company’s cigarette and roll-your-own businesses, especially its Rave brand. As the Lignum-2 acquisition is absorbed into the Imperial Tobacco infrastructure, that also means that Lignum-2's primary cigar brand, Troya, will be distributed in the future by Altadis U.S.A. Troya is another ancient Cuban-heritage brand, made in Cuba more or less continuously since its introduction in 1932, and more popular in the U.S. these days than among Havanophiles. It’s a minor, machine-made brand for Habanos, S.A., produced primarily for developing markets as a lower-priced, introductory cigar. The four current styles of the Lignum-2-version of the brand available to American smokers include Troya, made in the Dominican Republic and introduced with considerable fanfare as a top-quality brand in 1985; Troya X-Tra, a stronger blend introduced in 2004 and made in Nicaragua, Troya Clasico, which debuted in 2007 and has been well received since it is made by Pepin Garcia at the Tabacalera Cubana in Esteli, Nicaragua and Troya Reserva Maduro, just introduced at the 2008 IPCPR trade show. Altadis U.S.A. vice president Janelle Rosenfeld confirmed that it will be taking over distribution of the brand, but that the manufacturing arrangements will remain as they are at present. It is the first brand in the Altadis U.S.A. portfolio that is made by Garcia. Altadis U.S.A.’s enormous brand roster has swelled in recent months as the company has also taken over distribution of three newer blends in the Nat Sherman cigar series and the boutique Butera brand, made at Altadis’s Tabacalera de Garcia facility in the Dominican Republic. By our count, the company now distributes an astounding 71 handmade brands plus 11 machine-made and 11 small-cigar brands for a total of 93. Second-place Cigars by Santa Clara distributes, by our count, 76 handmade brands, one machine-made and one small-cigar brand for a total of 78. As both companies are units of Imperial Tobacco, the combined total of 171 brands is more than double the next-best total of 71 belonging to Swedish Match (including General Cigar). Is a mobile smoking lounge the answer? After winning the 2004 Stanley Cup before its home fans in the St. Petersburg Times Forum with a 2-1 win over Calgary in game seven, winger Stan Neckar remembered “half the team was standing outside having celebratory cigars and I was thinking, there has got to be a better way.” Neckar, a now-retired 13-year NHL veteran and teammate Dave Andreychuk, a 22-year star winger in the league, joined together to create a solution, the Mobile Cigar Lounge. Using a giant Airstream travel trailer as the base, Neckar and Andreychuk created a leather and glass, multi-compartment cigar lounge inside, complete with five flat-screen televisions (with satellite reception), a floor-to-ceiling humidor, parquet flooring, granite counters, a wine cellar, espresso bar, an advanced air-filtration system and room for up to 20 people at a time. The Mobile Cigar Lounge is completely self-contained, coming with its own generators and supplies. “There’s nothing like it out there,” says Neckar. “The Mobile Cigar Lounge is a place where people can relax, enjoy good conversation, a great cigar and be pampered. Our guests are very appreciative.” Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, the Mobile Cigar Lounge was launched in January and has been a hit at local events. They’ve already created a new way to tailgate at Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFL games this season with packages that include 15 cigars, free beer and soft drinks, light snacks and “Cigarista” servers for $199 per person per game, or $229 if you’d like limousine service to and from the site (no tickets to the game are included with this). It’s a unique concept and a way to enjoy cigars at any event without having to deal with local smoking bans. The company offers rentals from three hours to multiple days, so far just in the Tampa area, with more locations planned for the future. ~ 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?
“Cellophane sleeves on cigars were introduced into wide use only in the 1940s.
