halfwheel

4 days ago | halfwheel.com | Charlie Minato

Max Bichler has announced that he will be leaving his role as the national sales manager for Rocky Patel Premium Cigars, Inc. His last day will be Friday, June 13. Bichler has spent nearly two decades at the company in a variety of roles, climbing the ladder from local sales rep to his current position, which saw him in a hybrid sales and executive role. Bichler told halfwheel that he has no plans yet, but plans to take time off and work on his golf game.

4 days ago | halfwheel.com | Charlie Minato

Cigar companies love to celebrate anniversaries by releasing new cigars. For the most part, companies will celebrate major anniversaries—those ending in a -0 or -5—of the company’s founding, the founder’s birthday or of a specific line. I’ve never tracked which year is responsible for the most major anniversaries, though I’m aware that certain digits mean more to certain companies. For example, in a year that ends with a -1, it’s important to look at Davidoff, which was founded in 1911.

4 days ago | halfwheel.com | Charlie Minato

Imports of premium cigars started 2025 down 8.7 percent according to a report from the Cigar Association of America (CAA), an industry trade group. The CAA says that the U.S. imported 48.404 million premium cigars in January and February, down more than 4.5 million cigars during the same period in 2024. The slow start is neither surprising nor predictive.

4 days ago | halfwheel.com | Charlie Minato

Yesterday, Laudisi Enterprises began shipping the new Caldwell Crafted & Curated Savages Mal Caída. It’s a 6 x 54 box-pressed toro that uses a habano-seed wrapper from an undisclosed origin, a Sumatra-seed binder from an undisclosed origin and Dominican fillers. The cigars were rolled at Tabacalera Mina del Rey in the Dominican Republic. Each cigar has an MSRP of $15.75 and production is limited to 200 boxes of 10 cigars.

5 days ago | halfwheel.com | Charlie Minato

It’s a banana-flavored cigar that has a split personality. Today, CLE Cigar Co. will begin shipping the Asylum 13 Split Personality, the company’s newest flavored cigar for the Asylum brand. Split Personality is made to make you think of a banana split; the cigars are infused with banana flavors and the company says that it also has flavors of almond and caramel. It is made by the company in Honduras, though the blend is not disclosed.