Many of the younger cigar smokers won`t remember this but back in 90`s it was called the “Cigar Boom.” At the time, there was a certain cigar based out of Connecticut; it was called Astral and it was $18.00-$28.00 (expensive by today’s standards).

It had a Connecticut broad leaf wrapper and was a Dominican binder rolled in the Dominic Republic similar to the Diamond Crown.

During the boom the company stock-piled tobacco and later went belly up because it marketed the cigar to be sold only through the wine wholesalers.

Well that tobacco sat there for years until Rocky Patel came across it and bought it all. That same tobacco turned into the 1990 vintage and 1992 vintage we have today. The rest is history and put Rocky Patel on the map.

And what happened to Astral? Well, its name was bought by General Cigar and released as a $4.00 to $8.00 cigar. Like all the other “money” names General marketed, it killed Astral once again.