One of the most anticipated booths we visit every year is Arturo Fuente. It is arguably our most visited PCA trade show article we write every year. It was also a busy year for Arturo Fuente as they were one of a handful of brands with several new releases, beat maybe only by Steve Saka. Arturo Fuente is in the same booth they have used since 2021, a black central cube with glass display cases all round featuring current and new products all sprinkled in.
Usually, the new products are placed in the cases that flank the door to the booths central meeting room. The outer perimeter of the booth features display cases as well and these feature auxiliary products, some new and some that are more than just standard Arturo Fuente products such as the Stefano Ricci collaboration products, the Arturo Fuente: Since 1912 book by Aaron Sigmund, accessory items and a few other interesting items that pay homage to the family’s history.
Carlos Fuente Sr. passed away in 2015, and he would have been 90 years old this year. Naturally, there are some things we saw being released that will be honoring Don Carlos’ legacy.
Arturo Fuente Don Carlos 90 Años
This is perhaps the most special release in the Arturo Fuente booth this year. It is a commemorative release celebrating what would have been Carlos Fuente Sr.’s 90th birthday. It features two wrappers, Cameroon wrapper from the Meerapfel family, and then a Corojo-seed wrapper from Chateau de la Fuente is placed over it. It uses the same Dominican binder and filler that is used on the standard Don Carlos blend.
- Wrapper: Cameroon/ Dominican Grown Corojo-Seed
- Binder: Dominican
- Filler: Dominican
- Size: Unknown
- MSRP: Undisclosed
Carlito told me that the cigar is rolled and aged as it normally would as a Don Carlos, aged, and then the second wrapper is rolled onto and then the cigars age again. This particular method, I believe, is the first to be done on any cigar although it is not the first cigar to use two wrappers.
The box contains 90 cigars and in the center, there are three five packs stacked on top of each other. The other loose cigars on either side are on trays that come up to reveal more below. An exact price and release date are currently unknown but I was told it would still probably ship this year.
Fuente Fuente OpusX 25th Aniversario Tributo
According to Tommy Curtis, this is the same cigar that originally shipped in the Elie Blue OpusX humidor a few years ago. It is now getting a standard box release for retailers in small qualities like most of the OpusX products.
- Wrapper: Dominican Republic
- Binder: Dominican Republic
- Filler: Dominican Republic
- Size: 7 x 50 Churchill
- MSRP: $1,250
This is a limited production that is already on its way to retail stores.
Fuente Fuente OpusX El Trece Magistral 13
This is one of several special allocated boxes that retailers can only get by purchasing a certain number core line boxes. They are a limited production and are already on their way to stores.
- Wrapper: Dominican Republic
- Binder: Dominican Republic
- Filler: Dominican Republic
- Size: 6 7/8 x 56
- MSRP: $36 (Box of 26, $936)
Arturo Fuente Don Carlos Sangre de Toro
Carlito mentioned something about this project to me previously but wouldn’t say too much other than it was something he was working on. It is the first Arturo Fuente cigar to use Mexican San Andrés wrapper. The name Sangre de Toro is Spanish for Bull’s Blood. Production is expected to be limited but an exact number was not given. I was also not given an exact shipping time but I was told that it will most likely ship this Summer.
- Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés
- Binder: Dominican Republic
- Filler: Dominican Republic
Arturo Fuente Rare Pink Vintage 1960’s Black Pink
We first saw Black Pink teased last year, with just the outside of the box teased in the booth but no one would talk about it. Now, the cigars have been unveiled and so has the information. It is the same as the original Arturo Fuente Rare Pink Vintage 1960’s blend except with a Connecticut habano wrapper.
- Wrapper: U.S.A. (Connecticut Habano)
- Binder: Dominican Republic
- Filler: Dominican Republic
- Sizes: Work of Art (4 7/8 x 46/60), Happy Ending (5 1/2 x 53), Signature (6 x 46), and Black Panther (undisclosed)
- MSRP: Undisclosed
Production wasn’t confirmed but expect it to be limited. Black Pink is expected to ship this Summer.
Fuente Fuente OpusX Toymaker’s Vintage Series
We started seeing Arturo Fuente ship five count boxes of existing lines last year. This year however, they will use this format to launch a new concept – Fuente Fuente OpusX Toymaker’s Vintage Series, an extended aged collection of aged OpusX cigars. The Toymakers Vintage Series is the result of an abundance of extra cigars that the company has been storing in the aging rooms, saving them for potential use later. Now Carlito says it is time to start putting them to use and this is part of that result.
Currently, these are the cigars that will be part of this release:
- Toymaker’s Vintage Series Belicoso XXX (Year 2014)
- Toymaker’s Vintage Series El Gran Opus (Year 2020)
- Toymaker’s Vintage Series Keeper of the Flame (Year 2020)
- Toymaker’s Vintage Series LBMF (Year 2015)
- Toymaker’s Vintage Series PerfecXion 888 (Year 2020)
These will be extremely limited to 1,000 five-count boxes of each cigar. I was told multiple times these will go to very select accounts who support Arturo Fuente the most. There was no release date or MSRP given.
Bellow is the unveiling of the Dupont x Fuente project:
