Episode 28 | Plasencia Alma Del Cielo

Yo yo yo yo yo. We're back again for another podcast episode of the Sticks and Stones podcast. Sticks and Stones is the podcast where we talk life, we talk love, we talk the brotherhood of the leaf. Speaking of today's episode, we are going to be toasting up the Placencia Alma de Siello. This is a beautiful octagon pressed cigar. This is a premium cigar at $25 plus dollars. You know, make sure you have a good occasion, a good reason to be buying a stick like this. Or, you know, if you if you just got it like that, cool. God bless you. So, for this, I'm going to cross cut it or crown cut it, however you prefer to say that. So, give it a little crown. And what I'm enjoying this evening, I figured stray from the brown liquor. We're going to do a gin and tonic. This is Indian River tonic and botist gin. Oh, that's good. Okay, let's light it up. So, not the easiest to do this in the wind cuz the wind is bending the flame. So, we have all known and loved the Placencia brand, the Placencia family, way before we even knew Placencia existed. And what do I mean by that? They roll and produce for some start to finish. So I have to double check. The last time I checked, they do the entire production from seed grow to packaging and ship out for Rocky Patel. Okay, so the Elma Dell Cello is marketed as the first ever high elevation cigar with tobacco grown in Fina San Julian in Kondga. Situated at over 3,500 ft above the sea level, Melina Torres, wife of Don Netor Placencia, spent much of her childhood on this family-owned mountain farm surrounded by coffee plants and golden grain fields before her father had to sell it. The family bought it back in 1998 and Netor planted tobacco there. It flourished and that tobacco is now the heart of every Alma deli. The name translates to soul of the sky. That's beautiful. Fitting for tobacco grown at that altitude. So, let's talk about the Netor Placencia Jr. blended almaad deli with select long fillers harvested on the San Julian farm plus a wrapper from Halapa and additional long fillers from other placencia estates in Nicaragua making it a Nicaraguan puro through and through the region's cool nighttime climate lack of shade and fresh mountain springs all contribute to the t tobacco's unique character so it comes in 10ount boxes. And it comes in the Celesti or Rabusto 4 and 78 x 52. The Boreal or Toro 6 and 1/8 x 54 or the A man Amaniser A M A N E C E R Hexagono 6x 60 which is what I'm smoking a six-sided pressed cigar. Now, anyone who knows me, follows this podcast or any of my channels, you know that I disdain box presses, but I ain't mad at the at the Octopress. That is tasty, man. Okay, so as I said, price runs roughly 25 to 30 per stick, depending on the size in the retailer. So, the blue and gold design works beautifully on the presentation both in the box and in the hand. The Alma series uses a threeband design where the primary band sits in the middle and the hexagon-shaped box for the emancer is standout packaging choice. The cigars come without cellophane. I actually sometimes I like that with this. I do. I understand why the cellophane is there, but it just it feels like it feels cheap. There are palmetto bugs flying all around me. They look like [ __ ] pterodactyls. They're so big. Want to put a saddle on one of these [ __ ] and ride it like Avatar. So, the flavor profile. Most reviewers converge on a mediumbodied full flavored experience with strong complexity. Here's what comes through across the smoke. In the opening is a rich creamy sweetness of marzipan and honey accented by subtle hints of nougat. I Yeah, I can see that. Midsmoke, creamy sweetness, waves in between hints of bread, baking spice, orange zest, and nuts. Retrohale is a unique wasabilike spice that tingles the nostrils but isn't peppery. Yeah, I can confirm that. On the finish is a harmonious crescendo with a refined touch of ginger spice that lingers gently. Overall, the smoke stays creamy throughout with a very pleasant mouth feel. Even if you smoke cigars every day, this one doesn't fatigue you. So, construction notes is generally well regarded, but not without issue. There have been reports of the wrapper splitting and unraveling, and the footband pulling off part of the wrapper is a notable complaint, especially given the price point. The Boreal seems to be the most consistent consistently well constructed of the three sizes. I mean, that is [gasps] it is phenomenal. I'm going to say I think there's a there's a little tear in the outer wrapper. Um, which, you know, for 25 to $30 stick, you shouldn't be seeing, but you know, whatever. I'm not critical to [ __ ] like that. So, critical reception scores cluster in the 88 to 92 range across major review outlets. The burial burner score burner scored the boreal a 90. But caution, there is a distinct taste on the finish that you will either love or hate. It's something to try as a single before committing to a full box at this price. Cigar Co-op noted, "The Amadel Ciello delivers enjoyable, well-balanced, and nuanced flavors right out of the gate. And the tobacco does have more unique flavor profile compared to Placencia's other releases. So where does the Alma deli fit or sit in the Placencia portfolio? Almadel Cello joins a portfolio that includes the 1865 Alma, which I do like that one. The Alma Fora natural, the Almadel Campo, and the Alma del Fuego. uh the Placencia Reserve, their rarest and oldest tobacco for their Hippanimus brand. So, I mean, guys, this is uh this is a great cigar with the whole backstory with uh Nester Jr. buying back the farm in the mountains, 3,500, you know, feet up in elevation. Like, how do you not buy this cigar? You know, how do you not try this thing out even if it's one single one and you never smoke it again? So, if you don't know about the Placencia family, here's their origin story. In 1865, Cuba, it all started in 86 1865 when Eduardo Placencia made his way from the Canary Islands across the Atlantic Ocean to grow tobacco in Cuba's legendary Viea Abaho region. In 1890, his nephew Sixto Placencia Wararez started working for him. By the early 1900s, Sixto had developed his own farm and the family built a serious reputation as premier tobacco growers and exporters. Then came the Cuban Revolution. Political upheaval forced the family to flee Cuba in 1963, initially relocating to Mexico before establishing operations in Nicaragua 1965 and later expanding to Honduras during Nicaragua's civil unrest in the 1980s. Even in Honduras, the setbacks kept coming. In 1978, Sandinistina rebels burned Don Sixto's farm to the ground, forcing the family to start over with nothing. They rebuilt in Honduras, waited out the conflict, and eventually returned to Nicaragua in the 1990s, emerging stronger than ever on two fronts. So Nester Placencia senior, the living legend. In 1986, Nester Placencia took over the tobacco operations and was the first Placencia to start manufacturing cigars on a large scale for other brands. His enormous tobacco reserves and deep knowledge of his craft helped him launch brands like Oliva, Rocky Patel, Alec Bradley, Five Vegas, and Kasa Magna to international fame. I told you guys they roll for everybody. Those are just the people that they ran operations for. So they did the they seed, the grow, the roll, everything. Today, Nester Placencia oversees thousands of employees across four factories and eight plantations, producing over 40 million cigars each year. What a feat. He is considered the world's premier expert on tobacco cultivation and a living legend within the cigar industry. His quote from Smoke magazine in 2000 says it all. Anyone who tells you they know everything there is to know about tobacco is either a liar or a fool. Ain't that the truth? The scale of operations. Placencia supplies premium tobacco to approximately 70% of the global premium cigar market. Today, over 30 different, okay, these palmetto bugs or potato bugs, whatever the [ __ ] they are, having like a battle royale bumping into each other and [ __ ] They supply premium tobacco to approximately 70% of the global premium cigar markets. Today, over 30 different brands trust Placencia to produce their cigars. Their farms span Nicaragua, Estali, Halapa, Kandega, Omei, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Panama, making them the single largest premium tobacco grower on Earth. Their competitive edge rests on three pillars: total vertical integration. From growing their own seeds to fermentation, rolling, and aging, they control 100% of the process. A library of aged tobacos, one of the largest reserves of well-aged leaf in the world, generational knowledge, 160 years, and five generations of accumulated expertise that simply cannot be replicated. So they launched the branch in 2017. The fifth generation led by Nester Jr., Gustavo and Joseé Luis Placencia launched their own premium cigar brand, stepping into the spotlight after decades of producing cigars for industry giants. It was a seismic movement. I remember when they came out, they had the they had the black and gold octagon press gold and the silver bands. The family that had been the secret engine behind the entire premium cigar world finally put their own name on the brand. Put their own name on the band. So, the current lineup, the Alma Ferta, the flagship. It earned a three point rating and was number nine cigar of the year from cigar fishado in 2017. Fullbodied Nicaraguan puro with Cuban seed tobacco from Halapa. Notes of dark chocolate, coffee, prunes, and cinnamon. Features the signature hexagonal press VLAS. The sixto series. Price range $16 to $27. Great cigar. That's the the black and gold uh band. The Alma Delcampo, the creamy medium to full body entry entry into the Alma series. A beautiful oiled Nicaraguan wrapper cigar with aroma of dark cocoa, dark earth, leather, cedar, and dark fruit, earned a 92point rating with notes of nougat, caramel, and nutmeg. The Alma del Fuego built around volcanic Lego tobacco from Omatei Island focused on the spice and power of the volcanic tobacco delivers medium to full body sewn sunrown Nicaraguan rapper. Alma de Deliello, which is what I just smoked. The newest member of the Elma family 2025 first ever high elevation cigar grown at 3500 plus feet infin julian covered in detail. Cover that in detail. The Cetcha series vintage harvest release celebrating specific crop years. The Coneta 149. I do like it. I do love that cigar. showcases fine Honduran tobacco aged 7 years with notes of earth leather coffee, coffee bean, and spice. The Conetcha 151 has recently been named Honduras's best brand by Cigar Journal. Reserva original is recognized as the world's first and only certified organic cigar. Crafted using tobacco grown without chemicals or additives, a smooth, mediumbodied experience with notes of cedar, leather, and subtle spice. the most accessible price point in the lineup at around $7 to $17. So, limited editions, Placencia has released Lunar New Year editions, Year of the Dragon, Year of the Snake, and a and special humodor sets. The Almati Alma del Fuego Le Humodor is a collector's piece. Now, I think this is year of the horse this year. So throughout the 2000 and 2010s, Placencia cut their water usage by 50% through fertilization systems and opened a preschool and child development center for their employees and local communities. This isn't marketing fluff. It's a family operation with deep roots to the to their communities where they grow. Placencia is arguably the most important family in the modern premium cigar world. Before 2017, they were the invisible force behind dozens of cigars you've loved. They're building under their own name. Every release carries the weight of 160 years of accumulated mastery. The Alma series is where to start. And the Alma Fuerta and the Alma Deliello are the two lines that best showcase what makes this family singular. I've been a fan from the very beginning. So my guess is companies like Rocky Battel tell the placencias, "Hey, we're looking to come up with a cigar and we have a name and we have an idea of what we want it to taste like. Get at it. Grow it for us. Roll it for us." And with the largest surplus of fermented tobacos, they probably have the [ __ ] there ready to roll. I mean, they these guys make millions of cigars a year. Just imagine that. You have so much tobacco that you can put seeds in the ground and grow tobacco plants. You can grow, harvest, ferment, and age tobacco leaf. Not just for yourself and your many lines of tobacos, but like everybody in the free world. You know, you you heard the different brands, Rocky Patel, Five Vegas, Alec Bradley. I mean, that's huge. You have to have a [ __ ] ton of tobacco just sitting there to be able to roll for that many people, plus yourself. I'm just saying, guys, pretty phenomenal. This thing is staying. It's staying It's staying creamy. I love the backstories of these cigars, guys, because it doesn't do anything for me, the taste, but you know, to know that this tobacco was grown at 3,500 plus feet. And and I love this brand. I love this company. For all I care, this [ __ ] could have been grown in Newark, New Jersey. I don't care. But the backstory is just beautiful. I mean, even if it's fake, if it's not fake, if it's true, it's I love it all. I love it all. But it's I mean, they're undisputed. Their [ __ ] that these guys make is unbelievable. You know, from the very first cigars they came out with, I smoked the very first ones, the the gold band, the the the silver band, and the um the black octagon press. It was amazing. And the way that the guy at the cigar store, I'll never forget it. It was actually Corona Family Cigar in Orlando, Florida. I was there visiting. I used to live in Orlando. And I was there visiting because I left or No, no, no. I lived there. I lived in Orlando in 2017. So, I' I'd go to that store regularly. You know, the the manager is walking me down. He's like, "Hey, you know, here's here's this this uh brand. There's these three cigars, you know, blah blah blah blah blah." You know, I was like, "Oh, it's a new thing." He's like, "Listen, you you've smoked everything. Everything in here has been rolled by these guys." So, they roll for for, you know, different different levels of production, you know, because like Rocky Battel, they they grow the seed. They plant the seed for Rocky Battel. grow the plant all the way to to marketing and you know rolling out and um uh packaging and whatever. But they do some stuff for everybody. They have a hand in every single cigar from what I understand. So they do some stuff for Fuente. They do stuff for everybody. So if you think you don't know them, you're wrong. Cuz if you smoke cigars, you have smoked a cigar that the Placentia family have had a hand in. And I'm actually loving the pairing of this Jennonic and this Almadel Siello. Almadel Siello. I I think I am yet and I'm trying to think. I'm yet to find a cigar or smoke a cigar. Think of a cigar that I smoke from Placencia that I didn't like. I didn't enjoy. The Alma del Fuego wasn't bad. Just it wasn't thought what it wasn't what I thought it was going to be, but it wasn't bad. You know, it's it's red and gold. I thought it was going to be super spicy. I thought it was going to be super bold. You know, I thought I had to, you know, have a big meal beforehand, and it actually wasn't. It was good, but just not what I expected. Yeah, I can. The baking spice and like the citrus. Yeah, I'm I'm I can see it. See, let's see what kind of tunes I've got playing. So, recently I have been doing a lot of networking events and what is the good mix? So, like I'm doing and and a friend of mine does a networking event every single day. So, like what is what is the good is there a formula, right? Have you found a formula? Do you do networking events? Like I do networking events all the time. I did one this morning. And here's what I found from networking events. I found that you go to these networking events and you meet people, right? You exchange business cards and then you have meetings with these people afterward to try to figure out one-on-one what they really do and how you guys can really help each other. I go to these networking events and I meet all these people and I'm trying to connect with these people and I had a meeting today from from a networking of somebody I met at a networking event and just to figure out what what we both do and how we can both help each other. I get it. If you're in business and you're in business for yourself, which every real estate broker is is in it, you know, business for themselves. You have to do these networking events. But how many do you do a week? Like what is the benchmark? Do you go to one every day? Do you go to one every day that you go to regularly? Do you go to new ones every day? If you're going to do the everyday thing, I would say do a different one every day because you don't want to run into the same people over and over again. You want to you want to meet new people. That's like that's the the purpose, right? You you need to meet new people so that you could expand your network and you meet new people and you you start to know the people that they know. And it's kind of like, you know, a domino effect. What are the KPIs, right? What are the benchmarks? When do you give up on a certain event because you're not getting anything from it? H, that's a question. Come on, Bruno. My heart break my heart. I can't lie. I'm really enjoying myself with this drink, this cigar. It's a great stick, guys. It's creamy. It's beautiful. It's wonderful. It's It's got balance. It's got, you know, it's got all the flavors. Kicking off the weekend. Kicking off the weekend. traveling on Monday. Maybe I'll hit a uh cigar lounge out there. Take you guys with me. Okay, so I don't think you guys want to see me dance. I'm going to finish the rest of this bad boy because it is amazing. Highly recommend you get one of these. I'm going to call it for this episode. So stay blessed. Love your families. Love your loved ones. Tell your people. Tell your tribe that you love them every chance that you get because you never know when it is going to be your last. Stay blessed. And above all else, keep it rolling,