Episode 131
Cigar Newbies & Boutique Chasers— 👀 Patina's Connecticut | Mo Maali | Box Press Ep. 131
Keep the cigars you buy from drying out, use Boveda. Click here to get cigar care tips: https://hubs.la/Q01BLsBF0
Mo reveals a new release for Patina Cigars! Founder of Patina Cigars, Mo Maali believes a cigar is a two-hour vacation, a cost-effective psychiatrist session, and a barrier-breaker. Cigars ARE the best way to bring people together, including Mo and Boveda's Drew Emmer at PCA 2024, the preeminent event for premium cigar and pipe industry.
00:00 This is Box Press
00:14 A COVID podcast that launched Patina Cigars
01:30 NEW RELEASE: Patina Oro de Nicaragua cigar
02:17 Unique cigar wrapper to try
03:07 Dream of owning your own cigar line?
04:27 Nicaraguan American supplies tobacco—shout out to cigar makers Raul Disla and Gus Cura
05:06 Giving Boveda a try when you store cigars
05:48 Shout out to James Brown of Black Label Trading
09:39 Patina represents age and beauty
17:14 New to cigars? Or so-so on Connecticuts? Pick up a Patina Connecticut cigar
What is Boveda? Boutique cigar brands like Patina Cigars protect blends with Boveda 2-way humidity control—that brown pack that you find in the box with your cigars. Boveda preserves the flavor and character of premium cigars by keeping them at ideal humidity. At home, continue to use Boveda in your humidor to keep cigars from drying out. With Boveda in your humidor, you'll enjoy full flavor and a perfect smoke from every cigar.
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Transcript
- Patina Cigars.
- Yeah.
Speaker:- Tell me the story.
Speaker:- So we started
Speaker:2017 officially.
Speaker:- Not that long ago.
- No, but long.
Speaker:- A lot of work.
- Yeah.
Speaker:- Yeah.
- Yeah, so.
Speaker:It actually started though,
Speaker:everything started in 2014 with a podcast.
Speaker:- With what?
- A podcast?
Speaker:- Yeah, really?
- A cigar-review site.
Speaker:That's how it all started.
Speaker:- Really?
- Yeah.
Speaker:- What were you doing before that?
Speaker:- I'm a CPA by background.
- Seriously?
Speaker:- And I traded commodities. Yeah.
Speaker:Yeah, corn, soybean. I
worked for a grain company.
Speaker:- Where's home?
- Chicago.
Speaker:- Okay.
- Yeah.
Speaker:- Moving grain around.
- Yeah.
Speaker:From where it was grown
to where it needed to go.
Speaker:- And now you're in the cigar business?
Speaker:- Now I'm in the cigar business.
Speaker:How about yourself?
Speaker:- So when I came upon Boveda,
Speaker:I just spent a significant
amount of my adult life
Speaker:in the music business.
Speaker:I used to road-manage bands
Speaker:and I ended up doing
music-package development
Speaker:for Target and Best Buy outta Minneapolis.
Speaker:Did you grow up in Chicago?
- Yes, sir.
Speaker:- What neighborhood?
Speaker:- On the south side of
the city called Ashburn,
Speaker:and then in the suburbs
called Orland Park.
Speaker:- So you're not too far from Tinley Park
Speaker:in the beginning?
- Mm-mm.
Speaker:- Yeah, and I used to sell lumber
Speaker:to the Edward Hines Lumber Company.
Speaker:- Okay, yeah.
Speaker:- They were all over the place.
Speaker:- They had that big music
venue over there too.
Speaker:You've probably been there.
Speaker:- Was this new for the show?
Speaker:- Yeah. So we released
it just before the show.
Speaker:- Oro de Nicaragua.
Speaker:- Yes, sir.
Speaker:- Tell me about what I'm smoking.
Speaker:- Ecuador. Habano. Oscuro.
Speaker:- Mm.
Speaker:- Over Sumatra binder.
Speaker:- Mm.
Speaker:- Connecticut Broadleaf and
Nicaragua in the filler.
Speaker:- Did you know Tags? Tom Taglia?
Speaker:- I did not.
- Down in Chicago.
Speaker:Toward Indianapolis, he had a couple of...
Speaker:At least one store.
- Okay.
Speaker:- He's a guy that I went to school with.
Speaker:- Okay.
- Yeah. All Chicago guys.
Speaker:They all taught me how to drink.
Speaker:- Mm-hmm.
Speaker:- Which is why I gave up
drinking a long time ago.
Speaker:(Host laughing)
Speaker:- That's why I never started.
- Yeah.
Speaker:(Mo laughing)
There you go.
Speaker:- All right?
Speaker:- Yeah. Mm.
Speaker:Oh, that's beautiful.
Speaker:And the wrapper. That's a unique wrapper.
Speaker:- Yeah, it's nice.
- It's got a nice,
Speaker:oily finish to it.
Speaker:What am I tasting?
Speaker:- Greatness?
- Yeah, I'm tasting...
Speaker:(both laughing)
I'm tasting greatness.
Speaker:(Mo speaks indistinctly)
- What do you put in this?
Speaker:Greatness.
- Yeah.
Speaker:- That's good.
- Yeah. Nah.
Speaker:- Mmm.
Speaker:So you've known our guys from the get go.
Speaker:- Oh man. Yeah.
Speaker:I've known Nate [Beck]
Speaker:for at least three years.
Speaker:- Is that him singing right now?
Speaker:- Probably.
- It could be him.
Speaker:- At least three.
Speaker:JP [Awad], I met last year, I think.
Speaker:And then Mike [Stous]...
Speaker:I don't even know... Where is Mike?
Speaker:- Stous is around.
- Yeah.
Speaker:- Stous in the house.
Speaker:- Yeah. Last year, the year before.
Speaker:So yeah, man, I've
known them a little bit.
Speaker:Good guys.
Speaker:- This has met your expectations?
Speaker:The dream of having a cigar line?
Speaker:It's been a lot of work.
Speaker:- It's exceeded it in some ways and...
Speaker:I didn't think it was gonna be easier.
Speaker:It's not any harder than
I thought it would be
Speaker:because I figured it would be really hard.
Speaker:I wasn't under any delusions
Speaker:that it was just gonna happen overnight.
Speaker:And just like anything in life,
Speaker:if it's not an organic growth,
Speaker:you're on a faulty foundation
Speaker:and you're more likely
to have a bigger fall.
Speaker:But if you're building along the way
Speaker:and there's, like, a
step-by-step process to it,
Speaker:foundation is strong,
Speaker:your mistakes are made
at the appropriate levels
Speaker:versus being high up
Speaker:and making a mistake that could
bring you all the way down.
Speaker:So each mistake is a learning
lesson and is recoverable.
Speaker:So that's how I look at it.
Speaker:But yeah, man, it's been really hard,
Speaker:and establishing legitimacy
is the first step.
Speaker:And thankfully, I think we've
done that in a lot of...
Speaker:At least within the industry.
Speaker:Now, it's like, how do we
get that to the consumer?
Speaker:And that's the biggest part.
Speaker:- Hm.
- So.
Speaker:- This is awesome.
Speaker:- Thank you.
Speaker:- You gotta be super proud of this.
Speaker:Who makes your cigars?
Speaker:- Nicaraguan American [Tobaccos S.A.]
Speaker:Master Blender, Raul Disla
is the guy I work with.
Speaker:Phenomenal.
Speaker:Gus Cura is the tobacco guy
and I just gotta mention them
Speaker:because not a lot of people know them
Speaker:and they're the engine that
makes it all go in there.
Speaker:So.
Speaker:- I've had a great
experience with your cigars.
Speaker:- Thank you, sir.
- It's such a privilege
Speaker:to sit with you.
Speaker:- No, man. Privilege is mine.
Speaker:- Yeah, no, it's cool. It's...
Speaker:We've had a chance at this particular show
Speaker:to talk to some legends in the industry.
Speaker:We sat with Litto [Gomez].
- Yeah.
Speaker:- And heard his story.
Speaker:Last year, we sat with Carlito [Fuente].
Speaker:- Yeah, I saw it.
- He's really
Speaker:a significant reason why
Boveda has been successful
Speaker:because he was the first adopter.
Speaker:He took a risk on Boveda.
- Oh yeah, yeah.
Speaker:- He agreed.
- Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker:- Yeah, he took it on.
Speaker:It became a part of his culture.
Speaker:- Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker:- And your personal experience
Speaker:with the men and women
in this room over the...
Speaker:It's really not that...
Speaker:I mean, it must seem really
long in some respects,
Speaker:but five, six, seven years, really,
Speaker:or eight years, seven
years, eight years from...
Speaker:It's as long as my career with Boveda.
Speaker:- Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker:- Lots happened in that period of time.
Speaker:- A lot. A lot of changes.
Speaker:So, you know, the first cigar I ever did
Speaker:was actually with James
Brown of Black Label Trading
Speaker:for my podcast that I was
doing with my buddy, Drew.
Speaker:And that kind of introduced everything
Speaker:in the world of cigar making.
Speaker:And the landscape since then until now,
Speaker:is vastly different.
Speaker:Not only in the way cigars are sold,
Speaker:but the way cigars are consumed.
Speaker:And COVID was a big catalyst
Speaker:in that change, too.
- Sure.
Speaker:- We're facing a really
interesting time, I think,
Speaker:that's been unprecedented
in most of our lifetimes,
Speaker:like, in terms of a global
scale and financially speaking.
Speaker:So my biggest thing is like,
Speaker:how is the cigar industry gonna navigate
Speaker:that changing economic
environment going forward?
Speaker:So that's more of what I think
Speaker:is gonna be the biggest
change for us going
Speaker:for the next couple of years.
- Say more about that.
Speaker:What's the challenge to the
industry as we know it today?
Speaker:Where do you see
Speaker:the biggest roadblock to overcome?
Speaker:- Well, I think the...
Speaker:We've seen inflationary
pressure, which, you know,
Speaker:whether it's cigars, the grocery store.
Speaker:I mean, you can't go to
McDonald's for under $20 anymore.
Speaker:Not if you're having
a self-respected meal.
Speaker:- Used to be five bucks.
- Yeah.
Speaker:It used to be five bucks.
Speaker:Dollar menus, they didn't exist.
Speaker:So the cigar industry has not been immune
Speaker:to those pressures as well.
Speaker:I mean, things are just more expensive.
Speaker:Now, the thought was, if we
make money harder to get,
Speaker:and we raise interest rates and
it's harder to borrow money,
Speaker:we're gonna get less money
sloshing around in the system
Speaker:and this and that.
Speaker:But by and large, that
really hasn't happened.
Speaker:So you still have a lot
of money in the system
Speaker:that's chasing whatever.
Speaker:And the cigar industry has
seen an influx of money
Speaker:from new entrants, you know,
so more people wanting tobacco,
Speaker:the cannabis industry wanting
some of the wrapper leaf
Speaker:and things like that, so all
those trickle-down effects
Speaker:that make it more
expensive to do business.
Speaker:And I think that's gonna continue
Speaker:for the foreseeable future.
Speaker:- And I walk around this floor
Speaker:and I look at some of these newer lines,
Speaker:and there's some people
Speaker:that are doing a really excellent job,
Speaker:and the retailers are like,
"Where am I gonna put them?
Speaker:Where am I gonna put these?
Speaker:How am I gonna shoehorn these guys in?"
Speaker:- Absolutely. Yeah.
Speaker:It's very competitive out there right now
Speaker:and there's a lot of
really, really good cigars.
Speaker:But the amazing thing is
Speaker:you always seem to find your niche
Speaker:and you find those stores
Speaker:that really kind of want to be
a part of what you're doing.
Speaker:- Mm-hmm. Like Cigar Jones.
Speaker:- Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker:- You find there's a
regional concentration
Speaker:because you're from the Midwest?
Speaker:Do you think there's a natural-
Speaker:- No, actually. No.
Speaker:It's interesting.
Speaker:It's kind of really spread out.
Speaker:You know, Chicago
obviously is very strong,
Speaker:but yeah, Arizona, Philadelphia,
Speaker:those are some of my biggest markets.
Speaker:So we're trying to build Texas
Speaker:and we're doing very well in Wisconsin
Speaker:and gonna try to start
getting California going
Speaker:and eventually maybe Florida.
Speaker:But yeah, it's just
exciting. Little by little.
Speaker:- So the concept behind Patina
as a branding mechanism...
Speaker:How did that evolve?
Speaker:- To me, Patina represents age and beauty.
Speaker:- Mm.
Speaker:- And it was like,
Speaker:Patina might cover,
let's just say a statue,
Speaker:but underneath it, it's still
whatever it originally was.
Speaker:And it's like, us as people,
like, my beard is getting gray.
Speaker:- Patina.
- Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker:My gray is Patina.
- But the underlying beauty
Speaker:is still there.
- Yeah!
Speaker:But the underlying beauty is
still there! It's still me!
Speaker:But you know, same concept.
Speaker:No matter what we go through,
Speaker:no matter what our looks change like,
Speaker:we're still ourselves, right?
Speaker:Underneath it.
- Yeah.
Speaker:- So that's kind of Patina
Speaker:and I think it applies to artifacts,
Speaker:but it also applies to us as human beings.
Speaker:- Yeah.
- So, yeah.
Speaker:- That's awesome. I like it.
Speaker:It's a lot deeper than
I expected it to be.
Speaker:- Yeah, I know, man.
- You thought about this.
Speaker:- Oh, absolutely. Yeah.
Speaker:I'm a pretty surface-level
per... No, I'm just kidding.
Speaker:I'm not. I'm actually,
unfortunately very deep.
Speaker:- Super deep?
- Yeah. That's the problem.
Speaker:- And so the podcast.
Speaker:Tell me about your
experience in podcasting
Speaker:and how you tripped on this.
Speaker:- So, one day, my bud...
Speaker:So I had moved down to
Tulsa, Oklahoma, for a job.
Speaker:That's when I was doing
the commodity stuff.
Speaker:And I was moving back to Illinois
Speaker:and my buddy was like, "Hey, man.
Speaker:There's these things called
podcasts that people are doing.
Speaker:We should do a cigar podcast."
Speaker:Now, mind you, in 2014 there wasn't...
Speaker:You know, podcasting was
still a relatively new...
Speaker:So by 2015, I believe, is
when we actually started it.
Speaker:We had planned it and all this stuff.
Speaker:And so we just started
talking about cigars,
Speaker:and then we start having
retailers and brands
Speaker:send us cigars to review
and stuff like that.
Speaker:We were one of the first people
Speaker:to do like Southern Draw
and Black Label, you know,
Speaker:some of the first.
Speaker:Fratello-
- The Rose of Sharon.
Speaker:- You know?
Speaker:And so this was even before...
Speaker:This is when Southern Draw
Speaker:just had the Kudzu and Firethorn, I think.
Speaker:- Did you have Robert [Holt]
in and talk to him about-
Speaker:- We didn't, no.
Speaker:It was just purely by mail or-
Speaker:- And your experiencing the cigar,
Speaker:and you're talking about
Speaker:what your experience is.
- Sure. Yeah.
Speaker:At that time, we were just
Speaker:doing reviews.
- Guys smoking cigars.
Speaker:- Yeah, and then we became the smoke...
Speaker:So then we meet James Brown,
Speaker:he does that cigar for
us that we did in: Speaker:and it ended up being released in 2016.
Speaker:But the podcast was really the gateway
Speaker:into the world of cigars.
Speaker:And, you know, the
connections that we made
Speaker:through some of that stuff
really allowed Patina to happen,
Speaker:I guess is what I would say.
Speaker:- Talking about cigars.
Speaker:- Talking about cigars, yeah.
Speaker:- James Brown, that's...
Speaker:We sat with him last year.
- Mm-hmm.
Speaker:- Lovely. What a great story.
Speaker:And talk about a guy that's got Patina.
Speaker:- Yeah, right. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker:He's got some nice patina.
Speaker:- Yeah, and he's, you know,
really committed to art.
Speaker:- Absolutely.
Speaker:- And a design mentality.
- Yep. Absolutely.
Speaker:And you see it in his stuff.
Speaker:So yeah, man, you know,
he kind of allowed us
Speaker:to learn a little bit more
about that and then we...
Speaker:My cigars were originally made
Speaker:at a factory called
Mombacho [Cigar Factory],
Speaker:who unfortunately is no longer around.
Speaker:And I'd moved to NACSA in 2019,
and we've been there since,
Speaker:which is a wonderful factory.
Speaker:But yeah, the journey has been
interesting, full of turns.
Speaker:So...
Speaker:But you persevere because
if you're looking at it
Speaker:from an outside perspective,
Speaker:you see the final product
Speaker:like you see the cigar on the shelf.
Speaker:Well, there was a million steps in between
Speaker:that cigar being tobacco and
then getting on the shelf.
Speaker:And it's the same thing
with building a cigar brand.
Speaker:There's a lot of stuff
Speaker:that people don't take
into consideration or see
Speaker:until they're actually in it.
Speaker:- Have you endeavored to chronicle at all,
Speaker:to be able to tell the
story with some depth?
Speaker:I just think there's a lot of people
Speaker:dreaming about their futures
Speaker:and what they might do to
make their mark on the world
Speaker:and how they're gonna make a living,
Speaker:how they're gonna build a life,
Speaker:feed their family and so forth.
Speaker:Have you had a chance to...
Speaker:...keep the story together? I mean...
Speaker:- By and large,
Speaker:but not necessarily with intention.
Speaker:And I think it's like anything else,
Speaker:when you get really
caught up into something,
Speaker:you become tunnel vision
to a certain extent
Speaker:because you become a task master.
Speaker:Like, "What do I need to get done,"
Speaker:versus sometimes thinking about, "Wow,
Speaker:look at all that we have done."
Speaker:Like, I have people in my life
Speaker:that will sometimes have to remind me
Speaker:about how far we've
come, because honestly,
Speaker:sometimes it feels like,
"Man, why am I even...
Speaker:Have we even accomplished anything?
Speaker:What are we doing?
Speaker:Is this even the right thing to be doing?"
Speaker:And then people are like, "Hey man,
Speaker:do you remember when you
weren't in this store,
Speaker:or you had two lines and
now you have five or..."
Speaker:So, it's good to...
Speaker:If you have the right people around you,
Speaker:I think it is easier to
chronicle such a journey.
Speaker:because they'll remind you
Speaker:of some of the stuff that you forget.
Speaker:- And actually, opportunities like this,
Speaker:and we love telling
other people's stories.
Speaker:Our whole vibe in the industry
Speaker:is we're an asterisk on the industry.
Speaker:We do one thing really well.
Speaker:Each one of these people
Speaker:that have been a part of our journey,
Speaker:telling their story has been our focus.
Speaker:- Absolutely.
Speaker:- And as a compliment to that,
Speaker:we're tagging along.
- Yeah.
Speaker:- You know, we're present for the story.
Speaker:So more conversations, more podcasts,
Speaker:more videos, more-
- Absolutely.
Speaker:- You know?
Speaker:- These are the opportunities
that allow brands like Patina
Speaker:to reach people that maybe
would've never otherwise
Speaker:heard of the brand.
Speaker:So what you're doing for
guys like me, especially,
Speaker:is beyond measure in terms
of how impactful it is
Speaker:and how much it means to me, you know?
Speaker:And I'm sure other guys
that are in my situation.
Speaker:Funny story about these pictures.
Speaker:So when Mike had messaged
me and said, "Hey, Mo,
Speaker:you want to take a picture
Speaker:so we could do the Boveda For My Humidor?"
Speaker:And I told him, I said, "Let
me lose a few pounds first.
Speaker:I wanna look a little better." (laughing)
Speaker:So yeah, "When I lose a couple pounds,
Speaker:maybe we'll get on the wall."
Speaker:- Yeah. Well, and that's not uncommon.
Speaker:We talk to Erik Espinosa with regularity
Speaker:about replacing his more robust physique
Speaker:with a more contemporary
Speaker:because if you see Eric
now, he's pretty ripped,
Speaker:and you know, he's been
working with Guy Fieri
Speaker:and they kind of have a contest about-
Speaker:- Yeah, yeah.
Speaker:Right, right, right.
- Who's more chiseled.
Speaker:But really delightful personalities,
Speaker:all with unique stories.
- Absolutely.
Speaker:- Passion, commitment to this industry
Speaker:and remarkably,
Speaker:all of them share some
very specific traits
Speaker:about the way they regard others,
the way they treat people,
Speaker:the way they approach life.
- Absolutely.
Speaker:- It's a real privilege
to tell these stories.
Speaker:It's a privilege to sit with you.
Speaker:Patina is a marvelously accessible cigar.
Speaker:If you're new to cigars,
and you go try that...
Speaker:That first one I had was a Connecticut.
Speaker:- Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker:- I don't know what you call that.
Speaker:- Yeah. Just a Connecticut.
- Just a Connecticut.
Speaker:It's a really...
Speaker:Patina actually took me from
a bias against Connecticuts
Speaker:to being open to Connecticuts.
Speaker:The Rose of Sharon, you
mentioned, from Southern Draw.
Speaker:That was a Connecticut that
captured my imagination.
Speaker:Some of what Carlito's done
Speaker:with the Arturo Fuente
Connecticut is special.
Speaker:- Yeah.
- The Oliva Connecticuts.
Speaker:I mean, there's things that
we get taken on a journey.
Speaker:Patina should be a part of your journey.
Speaker:- Thank you.
Speaker:I look forward to watching you
continue to grow and succeed.
Speaker:We wanna be a part of it.
Speaker:- Oh, you guys are. Yeah.
Speaker:Every, every box comes with Boveda, so...
Speaker:- We appreciate that.
- Yeah.
Speaker:- Thank you. We wanna
continue to tell your story.
Speaker:- Absolutely. Thank you.
- Mo Maali,
Speaker:just really a privilege for us.
Speaker:- Yeah, thank you so much. I
appreciate the opportunity.
Speaker:- Thank you.
- Yeah.
