During the 2023 PCA Convention, Gurkha Cigar Group announced the release of the Year of the Dragon, paying respect to the Chinese Zodiac Year: 2024. Announcing a limited release of 1500 numbered, red piano finish boxes with ornate gold dragons on top, each box would contain 15 Figurado (6 3/4×52) cigars made with El Artista in the Dominican Republic. These sold out to retailers within a matter of days. What Gurkha did not announce at the time, was a special collaboration planned to be released throughout the Year of the Dragon: 2024.
Releasing exclusively with Cigar Snob Magazine, this week Gurkha announced the full collaboration of the Year of the Dragon 2024. The project is the first collaboration of it’s kind – 5 different manufacturing partners to release an entire project incrementally throughout the year. Each box contains a humidor seal and is the perfect collector’s item commemorating the Year of the Dragon 2024.
The first Year of the Dragon was released as a 15 count, Ferrari red box adorning 2 dragons on top. Working with El Artista Cigar Factory, the 6 3/4×52 Figurado shaped cigar is made in the Dominican Republic. It began shipping in December of 2023. Releasing just in time for the Chinese New Year that begins in February of 2024, Gurkha Cigar Group partnered with AJ Fernandez to create a 6 5/8×52 box pressed cigar in a 10 count commemorative green box. The next collaboration will release in April and is a 10 count black commemorative box, 6 5/8×54 toro cigar by Ernesto Perez-Carrillo. Oliva Cigar Company is making Gurkha’s next collaboration that is set to ship in June in a 10 count, 6 1/2×60 Figurado cigar, orange commemorative box. The final installment of Gurkha’s Year of the Dragon will be made by Oscar Valladares in a 10 count, 6×52 toro cigar, yellow commemorative box.
In addition to the cigar releases, Gurkha is also presenting a 200 count humidor at this year’s PCA show in March. The humidor will contain 80 cigars (20 of each of the new collaborators’ blends). “Each of the boxes are designed as small desktop humidors,” says Jim Colucci, president of Gurkha Cigars. “In addition, the master humidor makes for a beautiful collection of Year of the Dragon Memorabilia.”
“We have owned the Dragon trademark since 2009. We thought it only fitting to do something huge in commemoration of the Year of the Dragon, especially since we’ve always had big dragon releases over the years,” commented Colucci. Gurkha Cigar Group has owned not only the Dragon trademark, but a series of dragon trademarks over the years including Dragon Fire, Dragonfly, Dragonslayer, Imperial Dragon, Red Dragon, Royal Dragon, Dragon Lord, and more.
“We are extremely excited about this project,” says Juan Lopez, VP of Sales for Gurkha Cigars. “It truly feels like a one of a kind opportunity to release and work with these modern day legends of the industry. My team and I are excited to share this with the cigar smoking community and can’t wait to show everyone the finished product.”
Be on the lookout for the full release of Gurkha Cigar’s Year of the Dragon to come throughout the 2024 year. The project is limited to 2,000 boxes of each of the next four releases.
