So I’m back from Indianapolis, where I had the honor of attending Jaws’ Indianapolis Cigar Party, an event benefiting the Jaws Youth Playbook and Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana’s BackSack Program.  For any of you who might not know, the Jaws Youth Playbook was founded by ESPN Monday Night Football Analyst Ron “Jaws” Jaworski.

It was an awesome night – Johnnie Walker was a fellow sponsor, and I got to spend time with my bro, Ricky Rodriguez from CAO (miss ya, Bro!) and my fellow innovators over at Macanudo.  Celebrities, scotch, and a couple of Retros – now that’s a Super Bowl Party!

We  joined Bacardi, fellow innovators and artisans, as sponsors of Rolling Stone’s Super Bowl party.  Held at the brand new Crane Bay venue in Indianapolis, the party hosted pro-athletes, rock stars like the Gym Class Heros and actors who sampled our hand-rolled cigars (rolled by Leo himself) while sipping on rum cocktails and, of course, preparing for the big game.  Head over to the Rolling Stone site to check out an awesome video of the event!

Want to win some FREE cigars?

If you have a yearly pre-game ritual, host a neighborhood bash, or have a cigar game line up like us, we want to know about it! Take a photo of your game day ritual and tag La Gloria Cubana on Facebook or mention us on Twitter and you will automatically be entered to win some FREE La Gloria Cubana cigars!

We’ll announce three randomly selected winners next week.

Good luck and don’t forget to enter the team of your choice. We’re all about friendly competition here.

Enjoy!
Team La Gloria Cubana

Have you heard the news?  The Rabito de Cochino hit number 18 on Cigar Aficionado’s 25 Best Cigars of 2011!  Said CA “The Rabito de Cochinos are balanced and elegant, with substantial woody notes, followed by hints of cocoa and toast.”

We couldn’t have said it better ourselves.

Hello everyone and Happy New Year!

So, it’s 2012 and I’m back on the road bringing the Artesanos Retro Especialé to new towns and shops.  But really, where else would I be, bros?

We’ve got two scheduled this month but more will be coming in February and March so keep checking our events page here to be sure you don’t miss the Retro train.

Hope to see you in the new year!

Every Christmas, I head back to Philly for the holiday.  It’s been a true joy spending these past few days back in the old neighborhood, spending time with family and hanging with my mom.  This time of year it seems everyone takes time to reflect and think back on the past year, and I’m no different.  Over these past few days, I’ve had a chance to slow down, enjoy time off with the family and think about all the great places 2011 has taken me. It’s truly been a blessed year for me, the team and La Gloria Cubana.

My New York trips are top of mind – we’re a few days away from New Year’s Eve in Times Square, and that fancy Swarovski crystal ball reminds me of some of my favorite bracelets. . . but I digress.  As I’ve written a time or two before, New York is one of my favorite towns.  The food is phenomenal, the people are incredible (at least all the ones I’ve met) and the energy of the entire city puts me on a high.  I could go on and on.

As usual, this year’s Big Smoke NYC was amazing.  We had our traditional Super Roll (nothing like some traditions at the end of the year, right?) and a long, long line of people waiting to sample the Artesanos Retro Especialé  Even Rudy Giuliani, former mayor of New York City and LGC fan, was waiting for one (well, I really didn’t make him wait, former mayors get to skip the line).

Traveling these past two months introducing the Artesanos Retro Especialé has been an adventure. I’ve sampled awesome new food like Steel Head Trout in Michigan, been stopped a few times at airport security (hey TSA, it’s Tom Ford cologne, not explosives – capisce?), and had the honor to meet many, many veterans along the way.  So as I begin to wrap up this year and think about next year’s newest blends and innovations, I really have to thank all the great people that make what I do so damn enjoyable.  Bear with me, this might take a while.

My thanks and gratitude go out to these great people and a lot more I’m sure I’ve forgotten.

My teammates, Yuri and Leo and all my brothers in the Dominican Republic
The wonderful staff at the Factory
The 10th Mountain Division
Bill Hroncich
Paul Benfer
Bill Chillean
Ken Lee
Tim and Illeana Black and their new son Levi
Mikey Vee
Paul P.
Juan Cancel
Matt Swick
Larry Monte
Shorty
Gary P.
All our LGC fans
And numerous others who are too many to mention but just as important to me

Happy New Year, and a tip of my hat to 2011 – hope 2012 is as great as you were, bro!

Cigar Aficionado just gave us a boost for the holidays – a quick review of our Limited Holiday Edition Artesanos de Obelisco Collection.  See the review here.

We say, if you don’t get this in your stocking  this year, give them coal next year!

It was a very happy Thanksgiving for us – in their November 22nd issue, Cigar Insider gave the Artesanos de Obelisco a 90, an excellent score!  Noted the review “It smokes evenly with notes of raisin, earth and roasted nuts.”  Sounds like the perfect end to a holiday meal to us!

This past weekend, after our latest Retro event in Michigan, the amazing GCC events team and I ventured out to dinner at Rocky’s in Northville, MI.  Being a man who is always looking to experience new things, I decided to order the Steel Head Trout.  Never heard of it before, the name caught my attention and thus the order was placed.

When my order arrives, I swear it’s Salmon.  Looked like Salmon, tasted like Salmon – nothing wrong with salmon but I wanted my Steel Head Trout! So now of course, I need answers. We call the waitress over and I inquire. Maybe my reputation travels, because she immediately went back and grabbed Rocky himself, the restaurant’s owner and chef.  Rocky, being a man who is passionate for his craft and definitely knows his stuff, was ever so happy to show us I was in fact mistaken and truly eating Steel Head Trout.

So, hats off to Rocky, for schooling this Philly boy on the difference between Salmon and Steel Head Trout.  Now I know the difference and you know the story of MG, Rocky and the Steel Head Trout.

A big thank you to the gracious staff at Rocky’s for a fine evening. I highly recommend this restaurant and the Steel Head Trout. That is, of course, if you like Salmon.

Last week I got to visit one of my all-time, favorite places, New York City.  My trips to NYC are always fabulous and inspiring, but this trip was extra special because I had the honor of debuting the Artesanos Retro Especialé  at Club Macanudo.

I co-hosted this special event along with another team of luxury brand innovators – Giuseppe Aquila, Joel Blumburg and Bryan Hulser of Montegrappa, Italy’s most revered manufacturer of fine writing instruments.  The Artesanos Retro Especialé was introduced along side of Montegrappa’s latest innovation, “Chaos”, the artisan crafted pen designed by brand ambassador and film legend Sylvester Stallone.  It was truly a great evening and the perfect pairing of handmade craftsmanship.  I invite you to browse through our photos posted in the gallery section on this site.

On behalf of Team La Gloria, I would like to extend a special thank you to Mauricio and the staff at Club Macanudo for making all of our guests feel especially welcome and at home.  Always a pleasure working with those guys, they are a true class act.