Smokeshop

24 SMOKESHOP April 2016 L a Matilde Cigars are the vision of master blender Jose Seijas who retired from Altadis U.S.A. in 2012 after nearly 40 years, having risen to vice president and general manager of the world's largest cigar factory, Tabacalera de Garcia. Matilde's name comes from the very first cigar factory in the Dominican Republic; Seijas wanted to pay tribute to those first cigar makers. The company debuted its Renacer line at the 2013 IPCPR trade show and shipped it the following year. Last year, La Matilde introduced its maduro ver- sion, the Oscura, and teamed up with Quesada Cigars to handle distribution. Since last summer, La Matilde changed factories, and today Jose runs the com- pany with Enrique, his 32-year-old son. Enrique sat down with Frank Seltzer to talk about all of the recent the changes. SMOKESHOP: Last year you moved out of your own factory in La Romana and teamed up with Jochy Blanco and his Tabacalera Palma facility in Santiago. Why? SEIJAS: Basically, were looking for more flexibility. We could have stayed at that factory for a little while longer but we kind of outgrew it. We needed more flexibility, which gives us the ability to respond to the market. SMOKESHOP: With the new factory will the blends change? SEIJAS: No not at all. The Renacer is Ecuador Habano wrapper, Dominican binder, and Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers. It is a straight medium-bodied cigar and it has nice coffee and dark chocolate notes to it, giving it a bit of sweetness. It comes in four sizes: Coro- na 44 x 5 1/2, Robusto 54 x 5 1/4, Toro Bravo 54 x 6 1/2, and the Grande 60 x 6. Oscura, which has three sizes—Coro- na, Robusto, and Toro Bravo—uses San Andres wrapper with Sumatran binder and Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Penn- sylvania filler. It is a bolder smoke than Renacer; it starts with a nice peppery taste, then it goes down to milk chocolate sweetness and then it gets a little bolder at the end. It is a medium-plus to full CIGARMAKER Q&A > Enrique Seijas, La Matilde Cigar Co. Gearing for Growth The name "Seijas," already well known within the premium cigar industry, is even more visible these days as La Matilde Cigar Co. continues to evolve and expand its offerings. BY FRANK SELTZER Photo: Osvaldo A. Garcia

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