Big Smoke Sails Into Miami Beach
Palm fronds rustled in the warm ocean breeze as the sun was setting behind the Eden Roc Hotel, one of Miami Beach’s most iconic resorts. Cigarmakers were putting the final touches on their display booths at the hotel’s tranquil Garden and Aquatica pool area while bartenders behind the Bacardi bar readied their speed racks for the cocktails to come. Then, the music started, the velvet ropes were unlatched and hundreds of lighters began to ignite the Big Smoke Florida, a cigar-friendly event held on the evening of Friday, May 8, in south Florida.
Like all Big Smokes, some of the cigar industry’s biggest names were in attendance–Rocky Patel, Litto Gomez and Ines Lorenzo-Gomez of La Flor Dominicana, Pete Johnson of Tatuaje Cigars, Christian Eiroa of CLE Cigars, Tim Ozgener of OZ Family Cigars, Michael Herklots of Ferio Tego, Billy and Gus Fakih of Artesano del Tobacco—but a few other distinguished guests also showed up at Eden Roc. Governor Ron DeSantis (currently on the cover of the May/June issue of Cigar Aficionado) spent the evening at the Big Smoke where he took pictures and shook hands. DeSantis wasn’t there to talk politics. Rather, he was there to enjoy a cigar and get a better, first-hand look at an industry that’s so important and culturally relevant to the state he governs.
Of course, there was no shortage of cigars, as the list of exhibitors and cigar brands was extensive: A.J. Fernandez, Aging Room, Alec Bradley, Artesano Del Tobacco, Arturo Fuente, CAO, Camacho, Casa Carrillo, C.L.E., Cohiba, Espinosa Premium Cigars, Ferio Tego, H. Upmann, J.C. Newman, La Aroma de Cuba, La Aurora, La Flor Dominicana, Macanudo, My Father Cigars, Nub, Oliva, OZ Family Cigars, Padrón, Plasencia Cigars, Rocky Patel, Romeo y Julieta and Tatuaje.
The crew from Boveda was on hand, passing out their protective bags with their proprietary humification systems, to ensure that everyone's haul remained protected for the trip home.
VIP ticket holders not only got early entry at 5:30 p.m., but received an exclusive selection of Cigar Aficionado’s Top 25 Cigars of 2025:
- Cigar No. 3: Tatuaje Black Petite Lancero
- Cigar No. 4: Cuesta-Rey Centro Fino Sungrown Pyramid No. 9
- Cigar No. 5: Trinidad Espíritu No. 3 Belicoso
- Cigar No. 6: Rocky Patel Emerald Robusto
- Cigar No. 13: La Flor Dominicana 30 Years Chisel
- Cigar No. 14: Aging Room Quattro Nicaragua Concerto Impromptu
- Cigar No. 18: Oliva Serie V Melanio Maduro Robusto
Food and drink are always provided at Big Smokes, and for this Miami event, large pans of paella were arranged in festive heaps at food stations all around the Eden Roc Garden. The bar offered a range of refreshing drinks that played perfectly into the tropical theme and Miami Beach vibes like the Bacardi Ocho Old Fashioned, Santa Teresa 1796 Cojonudo, Teeling Coconut Cooler or the Dewar’s Lemon Wedge. For those who preferred their spirits straight, there were unlimited pours of D’Usse Cognac VSOP, Patron El Alto Tequila and Aberfeldy single malt Scotch (12-, 16- and 21-year-old). Hatuey Cuban-style lager was available as well.
And while Captain America: Brave New World and Avengers: Endgame star Anthony Mackie showed up unannounced (he’s a cigar lover too), the real heroes of the story were all of the guests who came to participate in the cigar party and meet the makers behind some of their favorite cigar brands. Some drove across state lines, while others from different parts of Florida sat in Miami’s stand-still traffic just to be part of this good life celebration. One determined cigar lover came as far as Alaska simply because, according to him, there simply aren’t cigar events like this in America’s “Last Frontier.”
If you missed Big Smoke Florida, you can still buy tickets to the Big Smoke Las Vegas Weekend here. It takes place at the Horseshoe on November 6 and 7.
