Cigar Aficionado

If Oscar Wilde or Winston Churchill were still alive, you could bet your last shilling that they’d be at the James J. Fox store in London this week. On Thursday, one of the oldest tobacconists in the world will launch the James J. Fox Selección, a new Honduran cigar brand with packaging that evokes the old Cuban collaborations from long ago. 

According to the company’s records, James J. Fox’s history as a tobacco trader goes as far back as 1787. The shop has been at the same St James Street address for centuries, serving everyone “from commoners to kings,” and will naturally be the site for the new brand’s premiere. The James J. Fox Selección is a follow-up to its existing Fox House Blend, though commercial manager Jimmy McGhee says that this cigar line is less full-bodied but more refined thanks to a carefully considered blend of Honduran wrapper, Honduran binder and a filler combination of Honduran and Nicaraguan tobacco that never gets too strong. 

“After several tasting sessions and much back and forth, we finally found a blend we unanimously agreed upon,” McGhee says. 

The line is offered in three sizes: Selección No. 1, which measures 4 inches by 50 ring gauge (£25 or about $33); No. 4, at 5 5/8 by 46 (£29 or around $38.50); and Selección No. 7, 5 1/2 by 54 (£35, or $46.40). All formats come in 20-count boxes designed to resemble old Cuban packaging, particularly the collaborative Cuban releases that were made in the past exclusively for James J. Fox such as the Punch Néctares or Hoyo de Monterrey Royal Hunt. 

“The box design honors our tradition for developing bespoke lines in partnership with some of the most prestigious Cuban cigar houses,” McGhee explains. The period-piece look was achieved by affixing traditional slide-lid boxes with a yellow ribbon drawn across the top row of cigars. The ribbon is attached onto the short side of the box with a dress stud. Adding to the effect is a warranty seal decorated with the facades of James J. Fox’s two flagship stores—the one in London and the other in Dublin (the Ireland location will be launching the James J. Fox Selección on the first of July).

The cigars are made in Honduras at the Danlí Cigar Factory and overseen by Hamlet Paredes who also oversees Bond Roberts, a line made for the cigar auction platform of the same name. Bond Roberts is a business venture between Rob Ayala and Robert Fox, James J. Fox’s managing director, but these are entirely separate cigar brands. 

After the launches, the James J. Fox Selección cigars will be available for purchase at either of the retail locations or online within the United Kingdom. The company plans to offer international shipping and distribution in the future. 

“The historically evocative phrase, ‘specially selected by James J. Fox London & Dublin’ stamped on every box has never felt more appropriate or more well-earned,” McGhee adds. 

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