November 11th is Veterans Day in the United States. This is a day to honor all of our military veterans. But we should never forget our active troops, especially those serving overseas under life-threatening conditions. To relieve some of the stress, troops really enjoy and appreciate cigars. That is why we established a Cigars for Troops Program, where you can send any type and any amount of cigars directly to our troops in the field. There is no middleman and no overhead, since all cigars donated are sent directly to the troops. Read more.

There are cigar events, and then there are major cigar events. The following major annual cigar events are coming up this month, and are definitely worth a trip out of town if you don't live nearby:

• Cigar Aficionado Magazine's 14th Annual Big Smoke Weekend in Las Vegas will happen during November 13 to 15, 2009, at the Venetian Resort and Casino. I attended this event back in 2007, and it is a definite must for all cigar aficionados. For more information, visit cigaraficionado.com.
• Tampa, Florida's annual Cigar Heritage Festival in Ybor City is scheduled for November 21, 2009, and will include a live broadcast by radio personality, Cigar Dave, and an attempt by Wally Reyes to break the Guinness World Record for the longest cigar.   I attended this festival back in 2006, and it is the biggest and best FREE cigar festival in the country. Visit cigarheritagefestival.com for all of the details.
• Cigar Aficionado Magazine's Big Smoke in New York is scheduled for November 24, 2009, at the Marriott Marquis. Visit cigaraficionado.com for more details.

• Avelino Lara, the cigar maker who supervised the rolling of Cuban Cohiba cigars for Castro back in the 1960's, passed away on October 27, 2009, at the age of 88. In the 1990's, he helped establish the Graycliff brand of cigars in the Bahamas.
• General Cigar has announced that Michael Boehlke, 48, of Kent, WA, has won the $10,000 grand prize in the national Partagas Cigar Cave Contest. Boehlke beat out hundreds of contestants by submitting the winning essay about him being relegated to the rainy outdoors to enjoy his beloved Partagas Black Label cigars. The Snoqualmie Casino, the retail establishment where Michael purchased his four-pack of Partagas cigars, has also won and will receive Partagas-branded leather seating for its cigar lounge.
• A new website about pairing whisky, cigars and chocolate was just launched by Sip Smoke Savor, Inc. Check it out!
• On November 9, 2009, actor Mark Wahlberg and cast members of the HBO show "Entourage" will host a celebrity golf tournament on Monday, November 9th, at the Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles, to benefit the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation. Montecristo will be the exclusive cigar sponsor of the event, where players and guests can enjoy Montecristo Classic and White cigars along with cocktails in the clubhouse.

Sometimes first is last and last is first. The Oliva Serie O line of cigars actually predate the Serie G and Serie V lines, which we have previously reviewed and enjoyed immensely. Therefore, it seemed like a review of the Serie O was long overdue. However, will the first in the series of Oliva Serie cigars finish first or last in our rankings? Read my review of the Oliva Serie O Toro cigar for the answer.

On October 31, any cigar would scare away most nonsmokers, and probably many cigarette smokers, too. But a few select cigars might even scare off some cigar aficionados, such as the big and bold Maxx Freak by Alec Bradley. Try one if you dare, but newer cigar smokers beware! In the spirit of Halloween, if you would rather take advantage of some scary one-hour deals on a variety of premium cigars (from now until October 31), then check out Famous Smoke Shop's Cigar Monster. Boo!

If you are a fan of Acid cigars by Drew Estate, Cigar.com now has a special on a sampler pack of three cigars for only five bucks. Offer expires November 30, 2009. To get the special price, just follow the link in our cigar forum. For more special deals on cigars, visit our Cigar Bargain Hunter.

The new Montecristo Cigar Club has opened at Fed Ex Field in Washington DC, and is the only one in America to be located in a football stadium. The club is also now the largest cigar lounge in our nation's capital. Here's more from Altadis, USA: Read more...

We could write about new smoking bans, regulations, taxes, etc. almost everyday, but that would be sickening. However, occasionally we must take some time to comment on the extreme measures taken by politicians, regulators, and others who attempt to limit our rights to enjoy fine cigars. The latest victims in the attack are flavored cigars. The FDA may soon ban some flavored cigars in the U.S., pending the outcome of their investigation. A national ban in Canada has already been adopted, and should take effect in July 2010. The Mayor of New York City is expected to approve a ban on flavored cigars that was passed by NYC Council last week, 46-1, and should take effect sometime around February 2010.

Flavored cigars are enjoyed by connoisseurs and new adult cigar smokers alike, but some believe that they are produced for the purpose of tempting minors to smoke tobacco. Instead of enforcing the regulations on the sale of tobacco products to minors, flavored cigars are being banned completely, as an excuse to continue the momentum toward an eventual ban on all tobacco, not just for minors, but for everyone.

Just look at all those state and local smoking bans. They started with indoor bans in the workplace, and now smoking bans have spread to the great outdoors on pubic golf courses, parks, and beaches in some places. The ball is rolling, expect higher taxes on tobacco, more regulations, and more restrictions. If you enjoy cigars enough to do something about it, don't complain to me, contact your elected representatives and voice your opinions, and/or consider joining Cigar Rights of America.

More About Flavored Cigars

Ernst Schneider, the former head of Davidoff Cigars, passed away on Tuesday, October 13, 2009, at the age of 88. In memory of Ernst Schneider, the Oettinger Davidoff Group provided us with the following: Read more...

We have discussed the importance of aging your cigars before on this website, but now may be a good time to emphasize the "necessity" of aging those cheaper bundled cigars before smoking them. During these hard economic times, value-priced cigars are becoming more attractive to many cigar smokers, even to connoisseurs. However, to get the most bang for your buck, cheaper cigars often need to spend some time in your humidor to improve their taste and burn. Read Dr. Mitch Fadem's advice on how you can improve your smoking experience with cheaper cigars.