Diamond Crown Gets A New Size And New Look
When J.C. Newman launched the new version of Diamond Crown in 1995, it was a groundbreaking cigar. Every size in the line was 54 ring gauge, considerably fat for the mid-1990s. Now, nearly 30 years later, J.C. Newman has revamped the packaging of Diamond Crown and added a new size.
The new look of Diamond Crown will be seen at Cigar Aficionado’s Big Smoke held at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino. On Friday and Saturday nights, J.C. Newman will be passing out Diamond Crown Classic No. 4 cigars featuring the modernized bands and presentation.
Diamond Crown is actually even older than its 1995 relaunch, as the brand was made by J.C. Newman in its early days, back when the company (which was founded in 1895 by Julius Caeser Newman) was rolling cigars in Cleveland using Cuban tobacco.
“My great-grandfather first rolled it a century ago,” says Drew Newman, fourth-generation owner of J.C. Newman. “Shortly before World War II, the brand went dormant until my grandfather, Stanford J. Newman—an inaugural member of Cigar Aficionado’s Cigar Hall of Fame—and Carlito Fuente reintroduced it to celebrate our company’s 100th anniversary in 1995.”
In Newman’s opinion, the Diamond Crown had what he believes to be the most elegant and sophisticated packaging on the market when it was launched. “Of course, the quality of printing and packaging has greatly improved in the past 30 years,” he adds. “In preparation for our company’s 130th anniversary next year, we want to elevate the packaging of Diamond Crown Classic so that it matches the outstanding quality of the cigar. The new bands and labels are some of the most sophisticated and technically challenging art that Vrijdag has ever printed.” Newman is referring to Netherlands-based Vrijdag Premium Printing, the company responsible for some of the industry’s most detailed and brilliant cigar bands.
The boxes are also bigger, now holding 20 cigars rather than 15. All Diamond Crowns are made by Tabacalera A. Fuente in the Dominican Republic.
In addition to its new look, Diamond Crown is also getting a new size, the Diamond Crown Classic Belicoso No. 9, which measures 6 inches by 50 ring gauge. The cigar has a suggested retail price of $17, and will begin shipping next week, but the first consumers to receive the cigars will be guests at the Friday Big Smoke All-Access Party in Las Vegas, open to guests who have purchased tickets for the entire weekend event. (All-Access tickets are sold out, but you can still purchase tickets to the Big Smoke evenings on Friday or Saturday nights.)
The blend remains the same: Connecticut shade wrappers, Dominican binder and Dominican filler. “To be clear, the cigars have not changed,” assures Newman. “Since 1995, we have sold tens of millions of Diamond Crown cigars. Diamond Crown continues to be very popular, and the Fuente Family’s outstanding quality and consistency has never wavered.”
