1689 Cigar Blog

Tucked into the northern highlands of Nicaragua, where red clay soil meets the Honduran border, sits one of Central America’s most storied cigar-producing regions. The Vega de Jalapa cigar factory draws its name and its identity from the Jalapa Valley itself, a region that has quietly become one of the...

Whether you stumbled upon the Vega de Jalapa name through a late-night rabbit hole of Nicaraguan tobacco research, a recommendation from a brother at the local lounge, or because you’re a regular here at 1689 Cigar Co., you’ve arrived at the right place. The world of premium cigars is full...

Nicaragua has officially taken the crown. It is now the world’s leading exporter of premium handmade cigars, finally pushing the Dominican Republic out of the top spot. But if you think all Nicaraguan tobacco is just a "pepper bomb" designed to blow your palate out, you’re missing the point. Most...

There are things you don’t fully understand as a child, but you never forget them. For me, one of those things was cigars. I can still picture sitting in the room with my grandpa. He would pull out a cigar with a kind of quiet joy, the kind that comes...

  If you’ve spent any significant time in a local cigar lounge, you know the vibe. It’s usually a mix of sports talk, politics that might make your grandmother blush, and a thick cloud of smoke that, while delicious, often carries conversations that don’t exactly align with a worldview rooted...

  Three wrappers. Three moods. One question every cigar guy asks sooner or later: which one actually wins? That’s what the Brotherhood Collection is built around. Not celebrity names. Not novelty. Not fluff. Just a straight-up lineup of premium cigars built around the wrappers smokers come back to again and...

Let’s be honest. Not every moment of your life is a milestone. You aren't always celebrating a child’s birth, a promotion, or a hard-won victory in the boardroom. Sometimes, you’re just mowing the grass. Sometimes, you’re sitting on the porch staring at the sunset, or you’re in the garage tinkering...

A quick primer on pipe tobacco and pipe smoking for newbies and cigar aficionados alike.

  Walking into a humidor shouldn't feel like a trip to the local DMV. It shouldn’t be a confusing mess of labels, prices, and pretentious jargon that makes you feel like an outsider. At 1689 Cigar Co., we believe a good cigar should be simple to enjoy: solid construction, good...

  Tobacco. For some, the word conjures images of smoke-filled backrooms and rebellion. For others, it’s a health-hazard warning on a box. But for the Reformed Christian, tobacco carries a different weight. It’s not just a hobby; it’s a theological statement. It’s about the intersection of creation, grace, and the...

Let’s get one thing straight. Pipe smoking isn’t for the hurried soul. It’s for the man who understands that some things in life: good theology, aged bourbon, and a fine tobacco blend: require time. If you’re looking for a quick hit of nicotine to get you through a shift, go...

1689 Cigars Unity Barberpole Premium Barberpole Cigar | Dual Wrapper Luxury Blend | Medium to Full Body The 1689 Unity Barberpole is a premium barberpole cigar designed for smokers who want complexity, balance, and a visually striking presentation. Featuring a dual wrapper cigar construction, this blend twists together light and...

The Black Patch The Forgotten Kingdom of American Dark Fired Tobacco And the Night Riders Who Fought Back Most cigar smokers have heard of Connecticut Shade. Very few have heard of the Black Patch. This stretch of land across western Kentucky and northwest Tennessee once produced some of the strongest...

Tobacco is grown around the world, and each of the areas it is cultivated in impacts the leaf itself. Sit back and take a tour of the world of cigar tobacco.

The Story of the Connecticut Cigar Wrapper The Land, The Farms, The Families, And The Question We Must Ask If you want to understand the soul of American cigar history you have to start in one place. The Connecticut River Valley. From Windsor down to Suffield and south through Hartford...

Courage, Controversy, and the Call for Davidic Men Yesterday I used a little click bait to get your attention. I wanted to talk about courage. Real courage. Not the counterfeit kind that passes for bravery on the internet. We are now standing at a crossroads where courage must be examined...

Why the World Needs More Joel Webbons (And Fewer Anonymous Keyboard Warriors) I used to respect “anons.”In the tech world I came from, “anonymous” meant the little guy swinging at Big Tech, corrupt governments, and corporate overlords. It meant whistleblowers and hacktivists who faced prison or worse. In that world,...

Anonymous Accounts Are Not Courageous They Are Afraid of the Light There’s this strange little trend online where people hide behind anonymous accounts, throw stones at anyone doing real work, and then claim they’re being bold. But that isn’t courage. It isn’t masculine. It isn’t prophetic. It’s the digital version...

The Early Church Fathers and Their Normal Use of Wine When you look at the first generations of Christians, one thing becomes really clear. They did not argue about whether Communion should use wine. They simply used it because that is what Jesus handed down. It was the same drink...

When “Literalists” Stop Reading Literally: A Baptist Tension on Wine and the Lord’s Supper Baptists have always prided themselves on being people of the Book. When it comes to baptism, we insist on the plain reading of the text. Baptize means immerse, so we immerse. No sprinkling, no pouring, no...