May 5, 2021

May 5, 2021

To our Valued Customers:

Please be advised our Summer Planner and Summer Planner Price List will be mailed to you early next week. The prices quoted in the Planner Price List will be guaranteed from May 17, 2021 through June 30, 2021.

You will note JMG will no longer be offering free freight on orders over $1,500.00 going forward due to the rapidly changing prices from our manufacturers. Operating costs and shipping costs have continued to increase due to COVID 19 Pandemic in various parts of the world.

We have been blessed with a reduction in COVID 19 cases in the US due to the rapid deployment of our vaccines. Unfortunately, many countries have lacked the sophistication and resources to deploy similar services to their populations. That has caused a reduction of workers in the countries that manufacture most of the products we distribute.

As you know we have been back ordering items to you as a result of our suppliers’ inability to meet our demand. We continue to do our very best in fulfilling all orders in a timely fashion.

We anticipate supplies increasing in the third quarter of 2021 as more and more companies catch up on their production.

Bear with us during this historic time.

 

Respectfully, 

Charles J. Janigian

World’s Top Cigar Producer Enjoys Boom Amid Covid Lockdowns

December 29, 2020

By Jim Wyss

Locked-down smokers around the world are proving to be a boon for the Dominican Republic’s cigar and tobacco industry.

Already the world’s largest cigar producer, the Caribbean nation is on track to export a record $1 billion worth of tobacco products this year. That would represent a 6% jump over the $942 million it sold abroad in 2019, according to government figures.

The cigar industry has emerged as a bright spot for the region’s largest economy, which is expected to shrink 5.5% this year, as its critical tourism and services sectors are hammered by coronavirus-related restrictions.

As global cigar aficionados have been unable to frequent bars and restaurants, they’re spending more money and time on their smoking habit, said Hendrik Kelner, the president of the Association of Dominican Cigar Manufacturers.

“Initially, we were very worried, because we saw all these stores and smoke shops closing -- some of them for good,” he said in a telephone call from the Dominican Republic. But sales quickly moved online and have been strong, he said. “Despite everything, we are seeing strong export levels -- the tobacco industry isn’t being hurt.”

If Dominican tobacco exports break the 10-digit mark this year, they will become the nation’s fifth billion-dollar export industry, along with gold, electrical products, textiles and medical devices, according to central bank data.

‘Loyal Friend’

The Dominican Republic is thought to be one of the birthplaces of the cigar; islanders were rolling and smoking tobacco centuries before Columbus set foot on the island. When Cuba nationalized its cigar industry during the 1959 revolution, many of the top growers moved to the neighboring island, propelling the Dominican industry.

Since then, the sector has surged amid consolidation, diversification and foreign investment, said Ebell de Castro, the development director for Free Trade Zones and Industrial Parks under the Ministry of Industry.

The country has long been a top producer of hand-rolled “puros,” but now it’s also a leader in machine-rolled cigars and cigarrillos, he said. In 2018, Swisher -- the maker of Swisher Sweets and premium cigars -- moved part of its production from the U.S. to the Dominican Republic. Earlier this year, Imperial Brands sold its Dominican premium cigar plant to a group of private equity investors as part of a $1.5 billion deal.

The cigar export surge comes as the consumption of all kinds of drugs spikes during the virus lockdown, even if some of them may leave users more susceptible to Covid-19 complications. Yet Kelner isn’t surprised by the resilience of the “puros.”

“A cigar,” he said, “is like a loyal friend who accompanies you when times are tough and you’re lonely.”

Plasencia Alma Fuerte Robustus I Named The 2020 Cigar of the Year by Cigar Journal

December 18, 2020

Plasencia Cigars, a world-leading premium tobacco grower, is excited to share the news that European-based Magazine, Cigar Journal, has named the Plasencia Alma Fuerte Robustus I the “2020 Cigar of the Year”. This marks the third Top 25 for Plasencia Cigars since 2016 (previous top 25 ranking in Cigar Aficionado and Cigar Snob Magazine).

Plasencia Cigars CEO Nestor Andres Plasencia stated: “We are both grateful and honored that the cigar tasting panel at Cigar Journal recognized the Alma Fuerte Robustus I as the 2020 Cigar of the Year. We also wanted to thank the publisher of Cigar Journal, Mr. Reinhold Widmayer. Most of all, we wanted to recognize the retailers and public who have welcomed our brand with open arms.”

Cigar Journal’s description of the Plasencia Alma Fuerte Robustus I:  Alma means soul and reflects the core knowledge of the family – to cultivate excellent tobacco. The Alma Fuerte Robustus I embodies exactly that: a blend that is second to none, made from Nicaraguan top-quality tobacco. With the Alma Fuerte Robustus I, we particularly liked the depth of taste, which is particularly noticeable from the second third.

Tasting notes by Cigar Journal:

Pepperiness and caramel/cinnamon sweetness are a good match in this almost black box-pressed cigar. It develops cedary, nutty and coffee aromas with herbal spice. During the smoke it becomes more expressive.

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The Plasencia Alma Fuerte Robustus I is a Nicaraguan puro using tobacco from the vast Plasencia library of tobaccos. The blend is expressed in a 51/2 X 52 Robusto vitola and comes in a 10-count box. MRSP is $18.65.

 For more information, visit: www.plasenciacigars.com, and follow @PlasenciaCigars on social media.