Its almost that time! Hope you all are getting ready to enjoy the Super Bowl this Sunday – who is your money on!? Got this message in from General Cigar and wanted to pass it on, looks like General will be at the Indianapolis Zoo for the poker game and then a few parties over the weekend. Enough of me chatting, on with General’s Announcement.

General Cigar will be the toast of Indianapolis this weekend, with sampling events that are on par with the Big Game itself. In fact, two of the three events that General Cigar is participating in have been named to BleacherReport.com’s highly-publicized ranking of the “10 Best Parties of Super Bowl Week.”

According to Alan Willner, General Cigar’s vice president of marketing said, “General Cigar has long been known for associating our brands with high profile events that elevate the cigar smoking occasion. This year, we’ll once again be at the best parties leading up to the ‘Big Game’ to bring the ultimate cigar smoking experience to A-list athletes, celebrities and football enthusiasts.”

Last night’s Jaws Cigar Party was hosted by none other than Ron Jaworski at Nicky Blaine’s cigar bar in downtown Indy. This fundraiser benefited Ron’s pet charities — Jaws Youth Playbook Foundation and Gleaners Food Bank’s BackSack program.

An array of General Cigar favorites, including La Gloria Cubana Artesanos Retro Especiale, CAO OSA Sol and Macanudo Cru Royale, as well as Macanudo Vintage 1997 Maduro were available for Ron’s guests which included his ESPN boothmates. We’ll provide more details on the event, including photos, next week.

Tonight (Friday, Feb. 3) is the SPP Sports Poker Tournament to be held at the Indianapolis Zoo. General Cigar will be on hand to sample Punch, Grand Puro and Grand Cru cigars to event hosts Devin Hester, LeSean McCoy. Other noteworthy names expected to attend are Patrick Warburton (Rules of Engagement) and Quinton Aaron (The Blind Side) and a slew of NFL greats. Stay tuned for more info.

Saturday night is the big Rolling Stone party at the Crane Bay event center. To celebrate Bacardi’s 150th anniversary, General Cigar has teamed up with the premier rum brand and will serve La Gloria Cubana and CAO La Traviata to a roster of A-list guests. Jeff Gordon, Joe Jonas, Marc Anthony, Nikki Reed and Andy Roddick are all expected to attend.

Outside of Indy, General Cigar is once again participating in Franco Harris’ annual Immaculate Reception. This year’s event will be held in Sin City and will benefit Soldier’s Angels. Franco’s beloved Punch Grand Cru cigars will be on hand for guests to smoke and savor.

** Event recaps and photos will be available following the Big Game.

As many of you know, I am a fan of the CRA ( Cigar Rights of America ) and I speak highly of them every chance I get. If you are not familiar with the organization, please look on the far right side of this site and click the black and white CRA logo – it will take you directly to their site. For the regular readers, you know that I do not normally post CRA news but with 2012 looking like a much more restrictive year when it comes to smoking laws with more than a couple states talking about full – state wide smoking bans. I will continue to post information as I hear it but I will keep the juice bits after the click. Would like to hear what you think about the news, please leave a comment and let me know!

The following is taking in full from CRA public release information – for more, please go to cigarrights.org :

The New Year continues to bring progress for the effort to keep the U.S. Food & Drug Administration out of this cigar passion that we share.

New co-sponsors of H.R. 1639 include: Steve Scalise of Louisiana, John Larson of Connecticut, Steve Stivers and Steve Austria of Ohio, Steven Palazzo of Mississippi, and the Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform from California, Darrell Issa.

Additional new sponsors are expected in the coming days and weeks.

Legislative Updates By State

New York

Last week, CRA went to two state capitols on issues of national significance. First, it was Albany, New York to address legislative efforts to obtain a tax cap for cigars in the Empire State. The Assembly and Governor Cuomo need to support AB 1093. Send them a message to support this critical legislation for the tobacconists, residents and tourists of New York

Indiana

Then it was off to Indianapolis to combat the proposed state-wide smoking ban in Indiana , and to deliver a message about the proposed City of Indianapolis smoking ban. Short of efforts to defeat the legislation in the Indiana Senate, the legislation needs to carry the critical exemptions for cigar shops, cigar bars and lounges, gaming facilities among other venues. Tell your members of the Indiana legislature to defeat HB 1149, but if they vote for it, it better carry the essential exemptions!

We’re hopeful Mayor Greg Ballard will veto the proposed City of Indianapolis smoking ban, holding his ground on private club exemptions.

Kentucky

House Bill 289 has once again been introduced in the Commonwealth of Kentucky by Representative Susan Westrom, D-Lexington, calling for a comprehensive statewide smoking ban. She has the support of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, so it’s time to let your voices be heard in Frankfort — allowing them to hear the ‘other side of the story!’ Call your member of the Kentucky House and Senate! Tell them to stand up for small business and personal choices! No Smoking Ban for Kentucky!

Maryland

Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley and pro-tax allies in the Maryland legislature are threatening not only the price of cigars, but the very existence of small businesses throughout Maryland and the jobs they represent, by pressing their agenda of a new 65% OTP tax rate. In the words of House Minority Leader Anthony O’Donnell, the Governor’s budget “redefines wealth, and takes aim at the middle-class.” Contact your members of the Maryland legislature, and tell them “No New Cigar Taxes!”

Kansas

CRA is monitoring legislation in Kansas , as they revisit the issue of smoking in gaming facilities. They need to learn, banning smoking in casinos is like begging for a tax increase. The definitive body of economic research, from the Federal Reserve Bank of all places, clearly demonstrates that smoking bans at gaming facilities – means lost jobs and revenue. CRA is sending these studies to the appropriate legislators in Kansas.

Illinois

Once again, positive legislation will be on the docket as the Illinois legislature considers legislation to offer “smoking licenses” for select bars and restaurants. We’ll keep you posted on committees and contacts as the bill advances.

H.R. 1639 / S. 1461 – Traditional Cigar Manufacturing and Small Business Jobs Preservation Act

Did you know that on April 26, 2010, December 20, 2010, and July 7, 2011 the U.S. Food & Drug Administration publicly posted their intent to regulate cigars in the Federal Register?

Some of the measures FDA could consider, as we believe they are, include:

Ban on walk-in humidors, self serve cigar displays, and mail-order cigar sales;
Ban on all flavored cigars, that are enjoyed by legal-age adults;
Deface ornate, decorative cigar boxes, often considered an art form with grotesque images;
Ban on cigar events where free cigars (samples) could be available to legal-age adults;
Limits on cigar marketing and advertising;
Imposition of new ‘user fees’ [tax] on cigars, to finance regulations;
Limits on special release and small-batch cigars, due to mandates that cigar blends be submitted to FDA for pre-approval before release;
Limits on nicotine levels on cigars to near zero, severely impacting the flavor of cigars;
Ban on marketing cigar merchandise.

Macanudo, America’s best-selling premium cigar brand, is adding two new large-ring frontmarks to its lineup.

Making their retail debut this week are Macanudo Café Gigante and Macanudo Maduro Gigante.

Created in response to consumer demand for large-ring offerings, both the Macanudo Café and Macanudo Maduro Gigante cigars measure 6” x 60. Each will be packed in a 25 count box and sold for an SRP per cigar of $7.99, or $199.75, SRP per box.

“Macanudo fans have told us they get more bang for the buck out of large ring cigars, so we came out with the Gigante frontmark to round out the Café and Maduro lines. With so many cigar smokers reaching for large-rings these days, the new Gigantes are sure to become top-sellers,” said Bill Chilian, director of marketing for Macanudo.

CAO La Traviata will introduce the popular “Luminoso” frontmark in a new Maduro version, making its retail debut later this week.

Following in the footsteps of the highly successful Ecuadoran-wrapped CAO La Traviata Luminoso, the new Maduro version features a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper to lend a touch of sweetness to the critically-acclaimed blend.

At 4.5” x 50, the new Rothschild will be available for an SRP of $5.10 per cigar, or $153 for a 30-count box.

“CAO La Traviata ‘Luminoso’ is one of our top sellers, so it was only natural that we gave CAO fans a new take on one of their favorite cigars,” said Ed McKenna, CAO’s senior brand manager. “Rick Rodriguez and I are looking forward to receiving some great feedback about CAO La Traviata Maduro Luminoso on our website, caocigars.com.”