 Plus: Davidoff Royal Salamones debuts in New York
Los Angeles, June 27 – There’s no reason for cigar imports to continue rising, in the face of a hostile, anti-smoking environment and rising prices on the top brands.
But they are.
Import figures supplied by the Cigar Association of America for April 2007 showed a marked increase in imports for the month, fully 28.1 percent ahead of last year’s pace!
Even more impressive than the 23.6 million-cigar total for April was the count for the first four months of the year with 83.9 million premium cigars imported, 9.4% ahead of 2006 but also a surprising 4.5% ahead of the third-best year on record in 2005.
Naturally, the Dominican Republic led the way. For April, Dominican imports into the U.S. totaled 12.4 million cigars, down slightly from 2006, but now ahead of last year through the first third of the year.
Honduras and Nicaragua had poor months in April of last year and imports in 2007 were up considerably. A total of 5.52 million Honduran cigars came into the U.S. in April; that’s 405% over last year. For the year, Honduran imports have climbed to 16.7% ahead of 2006 at 19.1 million.
Nicaragua had a similar story. Imports rose to 5.46 million in April, a staggering 325% increase over last April. For the year-to-date, Nicaraguan imports are also well ahead of 2006, increasing by 22.2% so far.
Modest import totals for April were also reported from The Phillippines (169,000), Mexico (76,000) and Costa Rica (10,000).
While no one is mistaking the current sales levels for the Cigar Boom of the 1990s, if sales continue outpacing the outstanding year of 2005 – when 329.5 million cigars were imported – it’s not impossible to think that the import totals of the last Boom year of 1998 could be approached: 334.6 million. The all-time record came in 1997 when cigars were nearly a national mania and imports zoomed to a stunning 417.8 million; that total is not in danger of being surpassed anytime soon.
The continuing renaissance in cigars doesn’t stop with the premium category. Imports of all large cigars, which includes machine-made brands, increased in April by 15.5 percent over 2006 and for the year, is 18.5 percent ahead of last year at 243.4 million.
And the continuing rush for little cigars continues unabated. Imports for April were up by 109.3 percent over 2006 . . . that’s more than double! And for the year to date, little cigar imports are now 185.5 percent ahead of 2006 at 140.5 million.
Wow.
Davidoff debuts Royal Salamones:
Michael Herklots, the enthusiastic general manager of the Davidoff of Geneva-Columbus Circle store in New York, reported on the introduction of the new Davidoff Royal Salamones cigar at a gala dinner at Bayard’s in New York City on Monday evening.
“The dinner was attended by about 100 people,” he wrote in an email. “After Grande Reserve cigar service throughout the night, and a big steak dinner, the Royal Salamones was served.
“The cigar, at first light, delivered a blast of spice that disappeared almost immediately, making wonder if I actually tasted that to begin with; a credit no doubt to the tapered foot. The Ecuadorian sun-grown wrapper came through on that burst.
“As the shape opened up, immediately the Dominican fillers kicked in and the cigar toned down quite a bit, smoking round and soft with complex flavors. The fillers are clearly well aged. After the first third, the cigar really took a turn towards full-bodied and maintained straight through to the end. Rich and opulent, the Royal Salamones has the classic creaminess and balance of a Davidoff cigar, but with some very unique flavors on the finish!”
Dessert followed, along with plenty more merriment and Davidoff Cognac, as Herklots noted, “into the wee hours.”
The Royal Salamones measures 8 1/4 inches long by 57 ring and will retail for $45 each or $2,250 in boxes of 50. Expected to be available in the fall, there will only be 100 boxes of 50 (5,000 cigars total) provided for U.S. sale, split between the seven Davidoff of Geneva stores: two in New York and five in Las Vegas.
The wrapper is a special hybrid developed under the direction of Hendrik Kelner and his team in the Dominican Republic. The binder and filler are both Dominican grown, with Olor used for binder and a combination of three types of Seco: Piloto, San Vicente and Corojo.
The cigars themselves will be elegantly presented, with a second band on each (a la the Millennium Blend) and sleeved in cellophane. The Royal Salamones will be sold in boxes containing five trays of 10 cigars each, with each cigar resting in an individual compartment.
It will be sold only at the 53 Davidoff shops worldwide and Herklots expects a quick sell-out, even at $45 – plus local tobacco taxes – per cigar!
~ Rich Perelman
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