Looking back at what can only be described as a stellar show in New Orleans, the 2015 ICPCR yielded a vast field of competitors for your hard-earned cigar dollars.

According to Cigar Afficianado magazine, My Father Le Bijou takes top honors, but I would like to offer some alternatives to this hard-to-find cigar that also earned a permanent place in many humidors.

Christian Eiroa’s CLE, who make their own wonderful cigars, has produced a boutique brand “designed” by photograoher Edgar Hoill. Known by his photographic creed, “One Shot One Kill,” or OSOK, his Nicaraguan tobacco cigars are something to be noticed. I especially like the Travesio, a 5.5″ “pyramid” with 1/2″ unfinished foot. It lights easy, smokes clean, and gives you more flavors than you expected, even when your expectations were high to begin with.

At the end of 2014, Rocky Patel scored a major coup in the cigar world by hiring Hamlet Paredes, former master roller at the Partagas factory in Havana, following his emigration from Cuba to the United States. Hamlet now has his own line distributed by Patel, the Tabaquero, and they are quite special. Immaculate construction, complex flavors and a medium to full body make this a cigar to keep around.

The rep we spoke to at the Alec Bradley display gave us samples of what he said was the only cigar at the convention to pre-sell out (we didn’t verify this claim, but it still sounded cool…), the Sanctum. A medium bodied beauty with lots of complexity and variety of flavors, the Sanctum should please anyone who likes premium cigars.

Curivari’s owner, Andres Throuvales, was probably the most engaging person we met at the show, and his Buenaventura line has been pleasing smokers ever since. I personally like all Curivaris, and the Buenaventura is no exception. Very pretty cigar with lots of flavor and lots of smoke in a medium-bodied presentation. Definitely worth finding if you have not seen or tried them.

USA Distribution had a very small corner booth at the show, complete with a live roller they hired from Bobalu Cigars in Austin. They were showing and sharing a cigar they called Hidden Treasure, and it is aptly named. Primarily Dominican tobacco with a nice dose of ligero leaves made for a very pleasant smoke that was smooth but still had enough strength to keep my attention. Unfortunately, like their name, they are so far a bit hard to find, but rest assured they are worth the effort.

New in 2015 but released prior to the show, the Perdomo Craft series made quite an impression. Specifically blended to match up with craft beers, the maduro, sungrown and Connecticut lines all lived up to their billing. My favorite was the sungrown paired with a triple IPA, although the maduro with a strong stout was a very close second. And the Connecticut with a lager was also an excellent pairing. If you are a fan of craft beers and enjoy them with your cigars, this line is not to be skipped.

There were many many other cigars worth mentioning, including the Euforia by GMD, Garo’s excellent maduro, the Arandoza red, white and blue lines, and too many others. It was an excellent show with very few low points. I look forward to the opportunity to cover future shows and share what I have found.