La Estancia - NC/CC MIX

[JoeyGunz]

Meerapfel Brothers Launch La Estancia

Honduran cigar with Cuban tobacco, hand made in Honduras.



The Meerapfel Family has been one of the largest exporters of Cuban tobacco in history dating back around half a century and they still own a huge amount of Cuban tobacco today.

La Estancia is produced in Honduras.

The wrapper and binder are tobaccos from Nicaragua, whereas the filler is a blend of Cuban and Nicaraguan tobacco. The first two sizes launched are a Robusto and a Corona.

The Meerapfel Family has been involved in the tobacco industry since 1876.

For almost 140 years, the family has covered areas of the Industry such as growing, trading, distribution, warehousing & logistics. The Meerapfel Brothers are still active in the sector and are now the 5th Generation.

[PeeJay]

They look gorgeous, when's the split Joe? begging.jpeg

[JoeyGunz]

"exclusive" to our sponsors, so doing a split over buying some singles isn't going to benefit anyone too much, was just curious as to what peole were going to say about the claimed use of Cuban tobacco in the blend.

[SmokeyDave]

Interesting, I cant see how a large stock of old Cuban tobacco would be very useable unless having been kept in optimal conditions (if they mean Cuban tobacco taken out of Cuba before the embargo). Perhaps they are doing that thing of saying it is from "Cuban Seed"

But an interesting twist, thanks for the headsup Joey.

[SmokeyDave]

Copy/Paste from Halfwheel.com:

Earlier this year, a new cigar line began to arrive on retailer shelves in Europe—La Estancia. There’s simply little in its name that makes the cigar exciting, but the who and the what are an entirely different case. La Estancia is a brand created by the Meerapfel family, one of the most storied names in the global cigar business, and the cigar is a hybrid: part Cuban, part non-Cuban.

Ever since the embargo on Cuban products began on 1962, cigar makers have wondered what will happen when the embargo ends. As decades have passed and the tobacco-growing operations in other countries has advanced, more focus has turned to the idea of pairing the uniqueness of Cuban tobacco with the flavors and styles of other tobaccos from other nations—something currently not offered by Cuba’s Habanos S.A.

The Meerapfels are not the first, they are not even the only ones offering a cigar with both Cuban and non-Cuban tobacco, but they are good candidates for being the first ones to succeed. In the U.S., those that recognize the Dutch name know it because of CETAC SA, the company responsible for producing the highest-quality African Cameroon tobacco. In Europe, the growing abilities of the 138-year-old company are not lost on people, but the family serves as the distributor for Arturo Fuente, Padr?n and others. That distribution prowess is likely to prove the difference in the success of La Estancia.

“We were always waiting for the end of the embargo, but it seemed like the embargo is never ending,” said Jermiah Meerapfel. “We wanted to bring something new to the industry.”

Currently, the La Estancia is offered in two sizes: a Corona that retails for €6, and a Robusto that retails for €7. It is made at undisclosed factory in Honduras, using a Nicaraguan wrapper and filler tobaccos from Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras and Nicaragua. Production is starting off small, but the company expects the cigar to be offered around the world, with the exception of the U.S., by the end of the year.

For the Meerapfels, these two sizes are just the start.

“You can’t put all the candy on the table,” said Meerapfel. He cautiously hinted that a Cameroon and Cuba hybrid was something the company was interested in, but not where they wanted to start. There is no Cameroon tobacco in La Estancia, largely because of the price. In order to keep the cigars at €6-7, using a Meerapfel Cameroon wrapper—arguably the most expensive tobacco used today—was out of the question. In addition, the use of Cameroon wrapper could also make Cuban customers shy away.

There will be a a shorter fat robusto added to the line at a later date, a size that has done well in Europe.

For the Meerapfels, there is a clear focus on offering these cigars as alternatives to Cuban cigars. The box-counts are 25, because that’s largely what Cuba uses, the sizes were chosen, because that’s what Cuban smokers consume and the blend was created in order to satisfy those smokers desires.

[ValeTudoGuy]

I would happily be proven wrong, but it sounds like a waste of Cuban tobacco.

[peanutpete]

do they say what percentage of Cuban tobacco is used I mean how much can they have? enough for 1000 boxes 2000 10000? also why can it not be sold in the US if it is pre embargo tobacco?

[monkey66]

Smoke + taste = opinion
[emoji85] [emoji86] [emoji87]

[rascal]

do they say what percentage of Cuban tobacco is used I mean how much can they have? enough for 1000 boxes 2000 10000? also why can it not be sold in the US if it is pre embargo tobacco?

Very old cigar family I have heard its loads they have and not pre-embargo. The question for me though is it put there to form part if the blend and create a good taste or just cause it's good marketing.

[PeeJay]

Only one way to find out!

[Sean]

They look very interesting

[Edamski]

Am I missing something here but the impression I get is that they grow there own Cuban tobacco and just blend it with others? I thought the embargo only applies to sales to America?

I'd be interested in trying one of these

[tippexx]

I could be wrong but I think this is just old wives tales and marketing bull aimed at the US market. As far as I'm aware Cuba doesn't sell or export raw tobacco to anyone. Cuban seed tobacco on the other hand is pretty much universal to every tobacco growing country. These will be NCs blend fiddled to try and achieve something resembling a Cuban taste.

[SmokeyDave]

I could be wrong but I think this is just old wives tales and marketing bull aimed at the US market. As far as I'm aware Cuba doesn't sell or export raw tobacco to anyone. Cuban seed tobacco on the other hand is pretty much universal to every tobacco growing country. These will be NCs blend fiddled to try and achieve something resembling a Cuban taste.

Same thoughts as me Tipp, how can a family outside Cuba claim to have Cuban leaves that are post embargo? Surely all tobacco grown after the embargo is owned by Habanos?
It would be nice to know the % of supposed Cuban leaf as well, a very small amount I'd guess, just enough to make the 'claim' official.

[tippexx]

I believe the company is Dutch, so it is possible that they have warehouse full of vintage tobacco, but one does wonder about the quality, because if it were any good they could have rolled super premium, extra dupa, only Sheikhs and Oligarchs need apply smokes out of it ages ago.

The question I suppose is, if it does exist, what was it intended for all those long years ago? ..... Snuff?