This 19th cigar weekend of AmiCigar was a luxurious escape for passionados and novices alike who seek to delve deeper into the art of cigar craftsmanship and enjoyment. This event combined refined leisure, education, and camaraderie, providing a perfect backdrop for those who appreciate the finer things in life.
It started with smoking at the Hilton Molino Stucky, Venice, on May 29th, 2025 at their beautiful Skyline Rooftop bar, where 100 smokers from 25 different nations met (www.skylinebarvenice.it). We smoked Saint Luis Rey La Cuna – Edicion Italia. During the afternoon we moved to Bassano del Grappa and we smoked the Por Larranaga Petit Coronas with a glass of Ferrari sparkling wines as after dinner.
Nostrano del Brenta cigar factory
The next steps on Friday were a trip to the Nostrano del Brenta cigar factory (www.tabacchicoltorimontegrappa.it) and a luncheon at the Bavarian Cornale restaurant (www.cornale.com). There we had Partagás Shorts and Ramón Allones Specially Selected. The day ended with a buffet dinner in the heart of Bassano del Grappa at the Danieli restaurant (www.danielibassano.it) with Bond Roberts Minutos and Dobles.
Reza Valibalouch of La Casa del Habano Antwerp was awarded the Hombre AmiCigar 2025
On Saturday, May 31st, we visited the Montegrappa historical factory (www.montegrappa.com) where we learned about the art of writing instruments and their history since 1912, followed by the AmiCigar Smoke with Partagás Serie P No. 2 from 2005. We went to lunch at the Al Ponte restaurant (www.alpontedibassano.com), which was as excellent as the Hoyo de Monterrey Epicure No. 1. The final evening was celebrated at CA’ 7 restaurant (www.ca-sette.it), where we had delicious food, drinks, a special raffle and many interesting conversations with the whole crowd. Alireza Valibalouch of La Casa del Habano Antwerp was awarded the Hombre AmiCigar 2025. The cigars included were Juan López Selección No. 1, Vegas Robaina Famosos and Piñar del Rio Varius.
The trip ended with the bye bye brunch at the Palladio hotel (www.hotelpalladiobassano.com) and a delicious Rafael Gonzáles Lonsdale from 1995 was offered for the Heroic Lunch we had at the Diesel farm that Sunday (dieselfarm.com).
Next year, the possible last AmiCigar event, will be held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, from April 23 to 26, 2026. We’ll see who takes over after Gino Ianillo’s first 20 years. Thank you, Gino!
The Hombre AmiCigar winners:
2009 Andrea Vincenzi
2010 Luigi Larocca
2011 Simon Chase
2012 Min Ron Nee
2013 Ajay Patel
2014 Robert Fox
2015 Larry Valeriano
2016 Nobuhiro Nakamura
2017 Alex Iapichino
2018 Roberto R. Pardal
2019 Magali de la Cruz
2020 & 2021 n/a
2022 Christian Fantinato
2023 Peter Dansky n Agnes Kylipatrick
2024 Reinhold Widmayer
2025 Alireza Valibalouch
