JM Tobacco, Inc., a Los Angeles, California, retailer and producer of premium cigars, has acquired all assets, marketing rights and the Zoidian brand name from George Hafoury, founder and former owner of the ten-year-old Glendale, California, company.
JM is replacing the original Zoidian selections with an entirely new and different lineup of four shapes and blends. They will be made at the same Dominican factory as all of JM’s cigars. The company is spotlighting Zoidian at IPCPR 2017, as well as JM’s full-premium Española, their first introduction in 1996, which has continued in limited production until now.
JM’s president, Anto Mahroukian, reports, “These Zoidian cigars bridge the gap between our principal JM’s brand of cigars … all retailing for less than $3 … and our flagship Española, at $7-$8.” Zoidian’s suggested retail pricing falls between $4 and $5 for its four classic Cuban shapes … Robusto, Toro, Churchill and 6-3/4″ x 62 Gordo Grande.”
The Zoidian shapes come in Natural (Sumatran) or Maduro (San Andreas, Mexico) wrappers. The binders are true Connecticut Broadleaf, and the fillers are Cuban seed Dominican leaf.
Quoting Mahroukian, “JM is noted for its use of Cuban sandwich fillers, which wrap short- and medium-length leaves and remnants (but not chopped) inside one or more long filler leaf(ves). In addition to maximizing economy, they virtually eliminate burn problems in all our JM’s cigars. By selecting remnants from top-quality long-filler cigar brands, our flavor and body properties surprise even the most discriminating palates. Of course, we include Cuban sandwich filler in our Zoidian brand.”
Zoidian Natural / Maduro
Origin: Dom. Rep.
Wrapper: Sumatra / Mexico San Andrés
Binder: Connecticut Broadlead USD
Filler: Dom. Rep.
Sizes: Robusto, Toro, Churchill, Gordo Grande
Price Range: USD 4.- to 5.-
Packaging: Bundles of 16/20 cigars
Launch & Availability: September 2017