The IPCPR is the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association. Their annual trade show is the granddaddy of cigar trade shows where most of the new products are introduced for the year. This was the 77th show and Puff was there.

You can read our broad coverage of the show in “Puff at the IPCPR”. Here we will focus on a few specific new cigars that were introduced.

BRIOSO

Brioso is a new collection of four handcrafted cigars aptly named to describe this dynamic addition to the premium cigar category.

According to Debo Mukherjee, vice president of marketing for General Cigar, “Brioso was created with today’s value conscious, premium cigar consumer in mind.  In Brioso, we feel we have satisfied all the touch points of the smoker who demands high quality tobacco, complex flavor and expert craftsmanship. Since Brioso delivers an excellent smoking experience at a very accessible price point, we are confident that this new collection has all the makings of a consumer favorite.”

Brioso features a blend of Dominican seco and ligero tobaccos which are married to Nicaraguan and Mexican tobacco. A hardy Connecticut Habano binder ensures an even burn and allows the Honduran Jamastran wrapper to take center stage, resulting in a highly flavorful, medium-bodied smoking experience.

Scheduled for release in late October, Brioso will debut with four frontmarks, each presented in a handsome tray display.  Subsequent orders for Brioso cigars will be packaged in bundles of 20 cigars. The Corona frontmark (5 ½” x 44) will sell for $2.99 per cigar, or $59.80 per bundle.  Brioso’s Robusto (5 ½” x 50) will sell at retail for $3.25 per cigar, or $65 for the 20-count bundle, while the Toro frontmark (6” x 52) will sell for $3.49 per cigar, or $69.80 per bundle. Rounding out the collection is the large-ring Gigante (6” x 60) which will carry an SRP of $3.75 per cigar, or $75.00 per bundle.

Brioso cigars will be sold exclusively at retail tobacco stores across the U.S.  As such, they will not be available through Internet or catalog retailers.