Ozgener Bringing Blending Events On The Road
Tim Ozgener has a particular way of making cigars. When the owner of Ozgener Family Cigars goes to cigar factories, he likes to smoke components in miniaturized form, testing out the individual tobaccos that make up potential blends. The little smokes, rustic and small, are called puritos. Tonight, Ozgener is embarking on the first of a series of in-store events where he is going to invite cigar lovers to smoke along with him, in a series called Tim Ozgener’s Behind The Blend.
The idea was to bring the cigar factory experience to the consumer without them having to travel to the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua or Honduras, where handmade cigars are rolled. “Going down to these countries sounds sexy, but it’s not easy and it’s not cheap,” says Ozgener. “Why not bring it to them?”
Consumers attending Behind The Blend will smoke like a cigarmaker, trying out two finished cigars, and two of the components inside them. For example, they will receive an Ozgener Family Cigars Bosphorus (sizes will vary based upon the event and supply), and two smaller cigars made entirely of one component leaf in that blend, such as Nicaraguan Seco from the country’s Jalapa Valley, and Habana 2000 wrapper grown in Ecuador.
They will have the same experience with a second cigar, the Ozgener Family Cigars Aramas, with two of its component cigars, a purito made of Dominican Corojo Ligero, and a purito made of Mexican San Andrés.
By smoking the individual components, a smoker gets to know how each ingredient impacts the flavor and the power. “Does this make your palate dry? Does it make it salivate?” says Ozgener.
The puritos, like the finished cigars, are made in the Dominican Republic at Ernesto Perez-Carrillo’s Tabacalera La Alianza factory. Each purito is 5 1/2 inches long by 40 ring, and unlike finished cigars, are rolled strictly for flavor, and not for beauty. The events also feature a 16-page booklet talking about the microclimate, soil and other details about the leaves, plus attendees will receive a lighter, cutter and disposable ashtray. Pricing to attend the events depends on the retailer hosting the experience.
The first event is taking place tonight in McKinney, Texas, at Viso Cigar Lounge. Several more events are scheduled in Texas, Tennessee, Florida and North Carolina, and more are expected. To find an event, click here.
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