Where's the OpusX?
It is already July and frustrated retailers have seen only one shipment of the elusive and highly coveted Fuente Fuente OpusX cigars.
The brand is usually shipped four times a year in very small quantities to select cigar shops around the country, selling out almost instantly upon arrival, but now OpusX has grown even scarcer.
Last year's floods in the Dominican Republic (home to Chateau de la Fuente where OpusX tobacco is grown) have affected OpusX's stock and distribution, leaving the cigar-smoking population starved for the brand.
"Last year, we had the flood in the Dominican so most of the farm was underwater," said Wayne Suarez, an executive at Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia. "There was 60 percent less planted than usual. Even though the 2007 crop will not be used for many years, Carlito [Carlos Fuente Jr.] has cut back on the shipments because he does not want to deplete current inventory levels, but maintain a certain amount of Opus stock."
To find out more about the Fuente Fuente OpusX shipments for 2008, see the upcoming Cigar Insider, due out July 8.
