Cigar Aficionado

Tampa’s J.C. Newman Cigar Co. has teamed up with Milwaukee Humidor Co. to release a special cigar humidor that celebrates the 250th birthday of the United States. It’s called the America250 Cigar Humidor, and it features a map of the nation made from American woods and comes packed with 50 all-American puros inside. The humidor was on display at the PCA trade show this weekend and is expected to ship to retailers before Memorial Day.

Each humidor has a map of the United States on its lid that was intricately assembled using marquetry. The states are made with a range of woods from different tree varieties. According to J.C. Newman, artisan Jason LeGear of Milwaukee Humidor Co. shaped each state from a wood that is native to that particular state, and every part of the humidor, from its various woods down to its metal hinges, was grown or made in the United States. 

Inside the humidor, there are 50 cigars of The American Perfecto. The smoke is made entirely with U.S. tobaccos and rolled in Tampa, Florida, at J.C. Newman’s El Reloj factory. It’s a new size for the all-American brand, crafted with a tapered head and foot that measures 6 1/4 inches by 50 ring gauge. 

Both the cigars and the humidor are adorned with the official America250 branding of the United States Semiquincentennial Commission. “J.C. Newman is proud to roll official cigars of the 250th Anniversary of the United States,” said Drew Newman, great-grandson of company founder J.C. Newman. “We are equally proud to release this limited-edition series of America250 cigar humidors. Cigars have been an important part of our country since its founding. Therefore, it is only fitting that we celebrate America’s 250th birthday with a humidor and cigars handmade in America.”

The America250 Cigar Humidor is a limited edition. J.C. Newman says 50 humidors are planned for release, and each has a suggested retail price of $2,750. The humidors can hold approximately 100 to 125 cigars.