Tobacco Business

[ 26 ] TOBACCO BUSINESS [ NOVEMBER / DECEMBER | 21 ] released as limited production cigars, they gained a following and landed on several of Cigar Aficionado ’s top 25 lists. However, Nodal, who confesses to being very competitive, never let himself get comfortable. He found that while boutique cigars may be viewed as small in terms of production numbers, there were big business opportunities to be had in releasing cigars for a niche customer base. Boutique Attitude While the designation of “boutique” sparks many dif- ferent definitions and ideas today, when Nodal entered the industry, there was not as much distinction between boutique and larger brands. Ernesto Perez-Carrillo, whom Nodal refers to as the “Godfather of Boutique,” was leading the way in terms of experimenting with blends and releasing products that challenged the industry norms. Defining what boutique means in today’s tobac- co industry is something that even Nodal admits is difficult to do. “Everybody applies different terms to ‘boutique.’ A boutique brand can be X amount of cigars compared to a larger production. Or it might mean for some cigars that come from a small company, compared to those coming from a big company. For me, boutique cigars are an attitude, and it’s a focus on quality, perfection and the type of tobacco, he says.” The best boutique companies spend a lot of their time and effort on attention to detail. Smaller compa- nies may have a vision driving their product develop- ment and innovation, but they may lack the resources to extend that vision long term, and they may not have access to the tobaccos required to make certain cigars a mainstay in the market. Regardless, boutique is an attitude, and it’s about focusing on things that can be controlled, such as quality, rather than focusing on quantity and sales quotas, Nodal says. Nodal’s musical background helped him not only in business but in shaping his view of the boutique cigar category. “Inspiration can come from different things, and I love to be inspired,” he says. “There are some parallels with music. People will tell you, ‘I don’t like jazz,’ or, ‘I only like jazz.’ With so many types of music, it’s hard to say that you only like this or that. Inspiration can come from different sources. You’ve really got to be open to look for it and to be inspired.” Over the course of his life, Nodal has learned how to draw inspira- tion from many different places, occasions and other sources. When it comes to cigars and blending, a particular wrapper can serve as a jumping off point toward a great cigar. Inspiration, he explains, can also come from a combination of filler tobaccos that he’s never worked with before, and that, when combined together, opened his eyes to new possibilities. Food from different countries can also inspire a blend, as can experiences that are had while traveling. Working with different people to create a cigar and to run a busi- ness can also be inspiring. “It falls back to music,” he says. “When you listen to music, you have all these duets or collaborations from different and fantastic musicians; they create something together that is different to what they did alone. When you have an idea together, it comes together differently because it’s in a different style and sound. For me, that’s what a collaboration is.” One collaboration that has opened a lot of doors for Nodal is the one he has formed with Tabacalera USA. After having success with Aging Room and having several of its cigars rank high with Cigar Aficionado , Nodal found himself enamored by the Romeo by Romeo y Julieta, a cigar released by Tabacalera USA in 2012. After smoking the cigar regularly, Nodal began realizing that if given the chance, he’d love to make his own interpretation of the brand. He approached Javier Estades, the president of Tabacalera USA, with the idea, ignoring his friends and colleagues who told him he’d likely not even get the