"We need to talk about Punch"

[El Presidente]

Here I am this perfectly brilliant Tuesday morning enjoying a Punch Petit Corona De Punch. I am actually loving it, leather, cream, earth. I am pairing it simply with soda water and ice...partly because it is only 10am but truthfully because we have run out of Scotch on the deck. You go away for a few days and Czar society has crumbled...not a bottle of wine in the house....not a bottle of spirits. Friday afternoon on he deck must have been huge Smithy !!!!!

Where was I ......yes...Punch.

When you have a second take a look at Trevor Leask's magnificent www.cubancigarwebsite.com and the Punch section. Has any Marque had so many discontinuations in history?

Yet this is not a discussion about HSA and discontinuations (so don't make it one).

This is a personal observation.

Three of my favourite cigars have been the Punch Royal Seleccion No 11, Punch Black Prince, Punch Super Seleccion Number two. All Corona Gorda, all very different flavour profiles and in my opinion all vastly superior to the Punch Punch (the only Punch Corona Gorda remaining today).

So when the Punch Punch as sold alongside the other Punch Corona Gorda's...why did it outsell the others combined by some 20:1?

I could never work out why and still scratch my head today. Being at the coalface of a B&M I can't tell you how many times in the late 90's, early 2000's I would extol the virtues of the Punch RS 11 or the SS2....only to see them go for a Punch Punch (if a Punch at all). I assume it was because it had a band.

Here in this one vitola was Cuban tobacco at its best. Four cigars of the same vitola and four completely different flavour profiles. When rationalisation (bean counters) came in, the trimmed it down to one and simply kept the best selling cigar. Now the Punch Punch is no star in terms of sales. It is a laggard with until recently plenty of new stock showing 2009 box codes (in the words of "The Robot" from "Lost in Space" ...."Danger Will Robinson...Danger!!!!")

Right across the Punch Line there s no star sales performer and yet they have always been amongst the best of Cuban cigars....Punch Double Corona...those great cabs of Punch Churchill, Punch Petit Corona etc. They are magnificent cigars at their best and consistency is higher than most other Marques. The least consistent has been the Punch Punch (post 09 stock has seen a revival) and yet outside of the cheap Punch Tubes (which is the mainstay of Punch sales), the cigar world yawns.

I love the Punch artwork. I love the history/heritage of the brand and most of the cigars that it has produced. Yet, the cigar public in the main does not care....and yet....The Punch Regionals have across the board been very successful in terms of sales!

Punch has a problem. Does anyone know what Punch actually stands for as a marque? If you put 10 Cuban cigar smokers in a room and said the first word that came into their head when you said "Cohiba" "Montecristo" "Ramon Allones" "Partagas" you would get a quick response. Do the same with "Punch" and I suspect you would get confused looks and 10 different answers if any at all.

What needs to be done with Punch? Take the time to go through the link to Trev's website and look at the heritage of cigars. it deserves a future but it needs to stand on ts own feet in terms of performance, sales.

What are your thoughts of Punch?

[cottierm]

And don't forget the Petit Punch Rob! The best minuto by far in the 90s.

Best,

Michel

[OZCUBAN]

Hi All

My first real Cuban cigar was. "Punch" .....Punch Punch to be exact

I will always have a soft spot for this Marque as some of my best Cigar moments have been "Punchy"

I have to agree with Rob on this one his words echo my sentiments exactly ,some of my favorite cigars have been punch

And sadly there are quiet a few from this lineup that I have missed out on altogether,which is very saddening because I know the quality and flavor and complexity this brand is capable of .

I don't know exactly what has happened to this Marque apart from bean counter interference.

The Irony for me is it should have been the Punch Punch, that should have gone,most of the Corona Gordas which have been deleted are of a MUCH higher Quality/Taste. Expieriance

I am aware that Punch did have a large portfolio with a lot of duplicates especially the Corona Gorda

IMHO what they should have done was to keep the "BEST" of the Marque ,and promote them more ,or by the same token bring back a Legends of the past type concept ,I am sure they would sell well and bring a higher profile to the brand .

I guess the reason I started on what I now with hindsight as not as good as some of the others is that I was not aware the others existed ,but I am glad that I found just a few

My only advice to the Punch brand would be to listen to your customers ,they know what they want ,the brand has an extraordinary heritage don't throw that away

OZ

P.S I really miss the Punch Petit Punch

[Colt45]

Perhaps Punch might be the perfect marque for Tabacuba / Habanos to use to test a licensing agreement with a privateer - known well enough,

but not a Montecristo, Partagas, etc.

Privateer gets use of the brand, blends, etc, can use the Habanos marketing arm if needed, but has autonomy with regards to production (while maintaining Punch tradition). Still technically a Habanos product, but privately produced in a Punch only factory using Punch only employees, hired, trained, etc by the Punch company.

[Lotusguy]

And don't forget the Petit Punch Rob! The best minuto by far in the 90s.

Best,

Michel

Not just in the 90s! Amen and RIP

[OZCUBAN]

Perhaps Punch might be the perfect marque for Tabacuba / Habanos to use to test a licensing agreement with a privateer - known well enough,

but not a Montecristo, Partagas, etc.

Privateer gets use of the brand, blends, etc, can use the Habanos marketing arm if needed, but has autonomy with regards to production (while maintaining Punch tradition). Still technically a Habanos product, but privately produced in a Punch only factory using Punch only employees, hired, trained, etc by the Punch company.

Great reply Ross

I never thought of it from that angle,and looking at it that way ,it would stand a better chance of success I think

Maybe as is life it is time for some of these Habanos birds to leave the nest as to speak

And this concept could be used not only on Punch

OZ

[El Presidente]

I was with tmac77 in Toronto last year at one of the local B&M's. Just a leisurely afternoon walk after lunch and a few cigars. I can't remember the name of the store but there was a box of Punch Black Prince on the bottom shelf a full decade after discontinuation.

Says it all.

[jedipastor]

I've hardly smoked any Punch sticks. What I've had was wholly forgettable, with the exception of some '98 coronas which are pretty good.

[NJP]

I too have obviously missed the best of Punch. I have none in the humidor and will not seek one. My experience with Punch has not been fantastic and it is my loss.

[danclough]

Punch cigars are the reason I am a cigar smoker today. Randomly picked one up in Jamaica, and I've been hooked ever since.

[ChanceSchmerr]

I was with tmac77 in Toronto last year at one of the local B&M's. Just a leisurely afternoon walk after lunch and a few cigars. I can't remember the name of the store but there was a box of Punch Black Prince on the bottom shelf a full decade after discontinuation.

Says it all.

Going to reply fully to the post, but to clarify this (because the same thing happened in Victoria here - Multiple boxes of Punch Black Princes showed up on the shelves of a B&M).......The reason some discontinued Punches showed up magically in Canada recently (last couple of years) was because of a Trademark ruling that prevented Cuban Punch Cigars from being sold in North America (IE Canada along with U.S.) since the Dominican "Punch" Brand owners won a lawsuit to that effect. The ruling was eventually overturned/expired, and when it did, the Canadian Distributors were allowed to distribute Punch cigars again.....but in the meantime, their stock was now vintage, as they had not returned the Punch boxes they had originally picked up years ago, they'd instead just waited for the ruling to be overturned.

That's why you could find Black Princes in Canada until recently. You can still find other discontinued Punches here, including Margaritas, Churchills, Petit Punches, RS 12's.....The only problem is - who wants to pay $350 for a box of Punch Petit Punches?!?!?! Damn taxes!

[ChanceSchmerr]

Prez, Great post as always!

I love Punch, among my favorite marcas with RA, SLR, ERDM.....but it wasn't always so. For years after I started smoking cigars, I could never understand the blend and flavours. It took 3 years but once I turned on to what the flavours were and started to enjoy that tart fruit, rich spice, leather and cream......I was hooked. I can never keep Punches in my Humidor long, because i'm forever sharing them with others to show them how great the marca can be. I think this uniqueness is what makes it a great blend, but what also hurts it on the overall market - it's a hard flavour to really like right away, so repeat sales aren't easy.

It's a damn shame what has happened to the brand, but there is hope. For one thing, the blend and basic profile has not become a victim of ignorance (like RyJ). What does the brand stand for? I think this is the biggest question, because I think it's an easy flavour to distinguish, and a popular one, because of the many successful RE's. I think given the British roots that no longer seem to have any relevance, it really does need an re-invention, something to set it apart from the established big boys, CohiMonteJuliUpmann. Something fun maybe, kind of like the "Crazy Uncle" of the cigar family? I'm no marketing guru, but I do see potential in the brand.....and potential for re-growth.

At the end of the day, the focus needs to be on the high quality AND uniqueness of the Blend and Marca. It's not too hard to identify NC's that can bring similar taste profiles or sensations to Montecristos, Upmanns and even Cohibas sometimes, but what is even close to a Punch? If there is a similar NC cigar to Punch, I've never found it. That Uniqueness needs to be rejuvenated, IMHO.

Of course, I'm in agreement on the Punch Punch cigar.....probably the only Punches I've not liked. All the rest I've had have been gangbusters awesome.

If you've tried it in the past and not liked it, try it again....you'd be very surprised what you'll find!

[Hypersomniac]

I only started smoking a year ago, after an unbelievable Cohiba Siglo VI in Rome, so I haven't smoked a whole lot of cigars yet. Hearing of all these great cigars that have been discontinued makes me a little sad that I am missing out on so many good cigars that were made in the years past. The only Punch I have tried was a Punch Petit Coronation (from the tube), it was so so. I do, however, have 4 Punch Black Prince (2001) that I got from a friend, a Punch Punch, and a Punch Petit Coronas del Punch. Those Punch Black Prince's are the oldest cigars I have in my collection, and I haven't been able to bring myself to smoke any of them yet, but I think that may change soon.

[Hohenthal]

Just had a Super Selection 1 (ORE JUL 03), colorado claro, yesterday -

toasted tobacco, campfire, chocolate, 5 spice mix, rumpot berries, "oaky" vanilla, bread dough, dark, sweet - wonderful!

I got the impression, every time they cancelled one of the Punch Cigars (first SS2, then SS1, RS 11, Petit Punch, then PCdP) it oddly happened to be the strongest of the portfolio left at the time.

One wonders if that can be due to sales numbers alone or if someone has conciously decided to get rid of the marqua over a ten years plan.

Sorry if that sounds paranoid but it is weird to say the least.

One of the last old style cigars left, enjoy them as long as they are around, keep buing the left over Super Selections and Royal Selections etc., maybe they will change their minds after all?!

Cheers, Alex

[seanbeer]

young punch punch is good, young RS11 needs age. that's a problem, and ppl don't like to wait these days. plus aged cigars are way too pricy for many and you are not able to find many.

Young generation smokers are now forced to buy few months old cigars. many don't even have a chance to smoke a properly aged cigar. Who wouldn't choose a punch punch as its more accessable when young.

I got a box of 07 RS11 and a box of 10 punch punch, I smoked one from each box and then my conclusion was: put hte RS11 away until 2017 and smoke the punch punch now.

god dman it , i love Punch, my first DC was a Punch DC, unforgetable stuff....

[hoyopr]

Rob, my thoughts on Punch are good one's, first local herf I attended with the HB crew, "Mitch" asked what I thought about Punch and I mentioned I'd never tried one. He passed me an aged Punch Black Prince and it was amazing.

Didn't find them so opted for a box of RS11, and a 5'er of the SS#1 from Czar, those and the PPCdP & PC's are what I always kept on hand for Punch.

These I always found destinct and true to what I expected from Punch in flavor profile.

In the humi I'm down to 1.5 SLB of RS#11 and most of a CAB of SS#1, non of the PC's.

I will probably need to try the PP, as I haven't been overly impressed with Mag46, HdM Ep#1, RyJ Ex#3 of late.

It is a little disapointing with many of the discontinued items over the past few years, especialy with Punch as I said I always found them unique and very much part of my rotation.

[nikesupremedunk]

As a newcomer to CC's, for some reason Punch never really appealed to me. Along with other smaller marcas like RG, ERDM, and SC, they never really stood out like the more marketed brands like Cohiba, MC, and Partagas. I wanted to try Punch Punch as I also love CG vitola, but they still weren't too high on my wishlist. Instead I bought a box of Upmann 46. I was lucky enough to have my first punch which was the RS11 from the vintage stock a few months ago but I was very disappointed with them. And as the Pres's post indicates, most of the good punch line up has been discontinued so I will never get to find out how great it was at one point. I don't want to see the marca disappear, but from a newbie's point of view, they really don't stand out too much overshadowed by the big brands. I hope they continue to make the Punch Punch and the Punch DC as I want to try them sometime, but I don't really see Punch becoming as big as Cohiba or MC...

[mk05]

Hmmm, when I was being introduced into the whole cigar thing, I was told there were 4 brands to stay away from. RyJ, HdM, Montecristo, and Punch. 4 marcas that are a shadow of what they used to be. And for that end, I agree - I love old blends of RyJ Churchills, HdM DCs, Montes, and Punch. Now? Well, they just don't make it like they used to.

My favorite Punch is the '60s Petit Coronas del Punch. That cigar and the Santa Felipe's are what vintage Cuban cigars are all about.

Punch Regional Benelux Punch Royal of 2009 was good.

[in0gravity]

Looking at Trevor's site Punch has the third most Regional Releases after Bolivar and Ramon Allones. This suggests to me that there is a fan base out there also with the distributors. Also noticable is that the Robusto and Dobles format were chosen three times by different distributors.

So why not make these standard cigars?

It was also mentioned here somewhere that Punch is due to receive a limited edition for 2013. If it is true, Punch will get some further attention, maybe similar to Ramon Allones when the LCDH and LE cigars came out.

Overall I like Punch, a personal favorite is the Royal Selection No. 11. Unfortunately never had the chance to try the Black Prince or Super Selection No. 1.

regards

Lars

[LeafLover]

The Punch PCDP I have mas quantity of and it is equal with BPC in my palate's eye. My two boxes of RS 11 I save for special occasions. Would love to get my hands on some Punch Long and Skinnies, specifically the Ninfas.

[Lotusguy]

Mmmmm - Ninfas!

[Smallclub]

And don't forget the Petit Punch Rob! The best minuto by far in the 90s.

The PP was not a minuto but a perla (like the Monte 5), significantly smaller.

[davidsan]

The Punch Sabrosos have been some of the best smokes of the year for me. Punch Punch is definitely one of my go to cigars if they are on song. Although when speaking with a lot of what I call my casual cigar smoking friends, none of them have a clue what Punch Punch means.

I have about half a box left of my Punch Petit Corona's left, a great HQ box that will always be special as it was my first ever order from FOH.

[anacostiakat]

Big fan of Punch. Sadly, as stated my most favorites are disco'ed.

I still enjoy the Punch DC and the Punch PC's. I have some '04's that I am smoking occasionally now. Excellent cigars.

Woe is us. . .

[jedipastor]

The recent ones I've had just taste totally generic to me. They're not "bad" as is gross, just bad as in boring ... I like the generic Cuban tobacco flavor, but would rather get some other things along with it. Someone told me there was a silent blend change in the last few years (for the worse), not sure if that's true or not.