James J Fox

19/09/2024

Bond Roberts launched the 109 Linea D Number 1 at our Flagship on St James’s Street, London on Tuesday 17th September. Friends and aficionados of Bond Roberts who joined us on the evening were the first people in the world to sample the cigar in our cigar sampling lounge.

If you are unfamiliar with Bond Roberts, it is a company established in 2019 by passionate cigar experts Robert Ayala and Robert Fox. The long-time friends with their extensive knowledge of the cigar industry – Ayala, leading the world’s most popular cigar forum, Friends of El Habano, and Rob Fox, MD at James J Fox – created the cigar exchange platform for aged, vintage and rare Cuban Ci**rs to offer a secure and trusted trading environment.

The 109 cigar is the second release from Bond Roberts, following on from the Petit 109 Linea D Number 6.

Hamlet Paredes, who has been friends with the Bond Roberts duo for more than two decades was tasked with creating the blend for the ci**rs. His vast experience of the cigar industry and hands-on approach is established, but the trust & knowledge amongst these three gentlemen is what has delivered their desired outcome.
Rob Fox said, "Hamlet Paredes blended the ci**rs to create a complex mix of medium strength rich, clean and sweet to***co flavours, creating a classic vitola which evolves through the thirds. Our investment in the Bond Roberts business, our collaboration with Friends of Habanos, Rob Ayala and Hamlet and the development of the Bond Roberts cigar have been some of the most important of my career, and I'm immensely proud of the results we've achieved”.

Bond Roberts ci**rs are exclusively available at James J. Fox, jjfox.co.uk and our Selfridges London store as well as St’ James’s.

17/09/2024

We are delighted to host a gentleman from a legendary cigar family at James J. Fox for a cigar sampling event on Wednesday 2nd October. The man we are welcoming is Mr. Jorge Luis Padron of Padron Ci**rs. He is in London for just the one night, so we had to make this event to show our appreciation to him and give UK cigar aficionados an opportunity to meet a cigar expert from one of the leading families in the industry.

The cigar we will be sampling on the evening will be the Padron Damoso No. 15 (6’’ x 52). Not the Padron we have become accustomed to through the years, instead a Connecticut wrapper with a medium-to-full body and flavour. 19 St James’s Street has enjoyed history with Padron; the Nicaraguan brand were specially commissioned to produce our commemorative 225th Anniversary ci**rs in 2012. It has been a while so it will be a great reunion on the evening with a member of the family.

We will be pairing the cigar with a selection of drams from English Whisky brand The Lakes. Joining us will be Hemil Haria, UK Brand Ambassador for The Lakes Distillery as he details the whiskies we will be trying, including their latest unique Galaxia bottling. The Lakes have created a great impression in the world of Whisky with multiple awards awarded to many of their bottles.

Book your place now:
https://www.jjfox.co.uk/sampling-evening-with-jorge-padron-wednesday-2nd-october-6-30pm.html

11/09/2024

A return to our events with a great pairing of two fantastic brands, Arturo Fuente & The Facuncdo Collection, with an additional tasting of the fantastic Santa Teresa 1796. We smoked the medium-to-full bodied Arturo Fuente Don Carlos No.2 – a 6’’ x 55 piramide vitola cigar. The Dominican cigar company is one of the biggest cigar brands in the world, renowned for their incredible, but more importantly, consistency in flvaour and construction. There are only a handful of brands who are considered elite by cigar enthusiasts and Fuente is certainly one of them.

Through sheer coincidence we were given the pleasant surprise to be briefly joined by Joshua Meerapfel. The Meerapfel family history in the cigar industry is significant, with their most prominent aspect being the development of to***co in Cameroon and Central African Republic. They have worked with Arturo Fuente for decades, providing their famed Cameron wrappers on some of their ci**rs. The Don Carlos collection is a range that has this particular wrapper and we were delighted Joshua came by the shop to talk to guest and add more to an already enjoyable evening.

We paired the cigar with five rums. Yes, five. There are four rums in the Facundo Bacardi range, Neo, Eximo, Exquisito and the outstanding jewel of the collection, Paraiso. We were again joined by David Behan, brand ambassador for Bacardi, who informed and entertained guests with his great charisma and expertise. At the end we poured a glass of Venezuelan Rum, Santa Teresa to finish the evening. With a wonderful insight to the work Bacardi are doing, we’re delighted to know all in attendance who wasn’t familiar with either Fuente, Facundo or Meerapfel, now know their quality.

We have three events in October so take a look at what is to come…

16/08/2024

We hope you have all enjoyed a great summer, enjoying the sun and the outdoors at home or abroad. Now we’ve reached September, we’re delighted to return with our cigar sampling events for Autumn. We currently have five scheduled dates, starting on Thursday 5th September with an outstanding pairing of two powerhouse brands hailing from the Caribbean, Arturo Fuente and Bacardi.

We will be sampling the Arturo Fuente Don Carlos No.2 on the evening. Fuente ci**rs are highly rated by almost all cigar smokers – without doubt one of the top tier cigar brands – and Don Carlos No.2 is one of their most popular and highly scored ci**rs, as seen in Cigar Aficionado magazine.

We will pair the Fuente cigar with 4 rums from two brands within the Bacardi portfolio. We will be joined by a brand ambassador to guide guests through the tasting experience of Bacardi’s most premium rums. We will be sampling both the Eximo, Exqusito and Neo expressions of the premium Facundo Collection along with the outstanding Venezuelan Rum Santa Teresa 1796.

Join us as we resume out Events at James J. Fox

31/07/2024

We are delighted to have released our first product for this collection – a collaboration with one of the most distinguished brands in the cigar accessory industry, S.T Dupont.

As the James J Fox “Monogram” is our endorsement of quality, the natural choice for the first product in our “Monogram” range is a pairing of a S.T. Dupont Ligne 2 lighter and a Cigar Cutter & Stand.

Both items in the set will be finished with black lacquer panels with the “Monogram” logo, and gold featuring diamond point and microdiamond tip decoration. The sets will be limited edition, numbered one to fifty and presented in a S.T. Dupont large, lacquered gift box.

Find out more information here: https://www.jjfox.co.uk/blog/news/the-monogram-collection/

12/07/2024

The rain may have been intense in London this past Tuesday, but that didn’t stop a group of us to come together to discuss ci**rs, watches and whiskey. We were delighted to be joined by E.P Carrillo cigar ambassador, Ken Silverio, and Cuervo y Sobrinos Sales Director, Sonia Campoli for their insight into their respective brands as we had a first-hand look at both. Also joining us was Alfonso Scherzi from TOR - The New World Ci**rs Distributor and Daniel McNutt from Apex Luxury

We sampled the E.P. Carrillo Encore Noir, which is new to their portfolio in the UK market. The Noir is a follow-on from their award-winning Encore Majestic. Produced in just one vitola - Majestic No.2 (5 3/8’’ x 52) – the cigar has layers of flavour as it combines to***cos from multiple regions. With a flavourful maduro wrapper producing fantastic espresso and dark chocolate notes around a predominantly peppery blend of Nicaraguan and Dominican filler, this medium-to full bodied cigar is another testament to great work by the legendary Perez-Carrillo family.

Sonia gave a brief introduction before indulging in questions from guests about the watches and brand. We had on display recent releases from their Robusto and Buceador collections. To different styles but fantastic timepieces from a brand with an amazing history. We will be hosting another cigar evening with Cuervo y Sobrinos in the Autumn as they showcase another exciting new release.

The Noir was paired with a whiskey with quite a unique flavour profile. Since the cigar is bold and flavourful, we went for a strong American Whisky, produced by Stoll & Wolfe, distilled in Pennsylvania. A cask strength level whiskey at 58.75%, their 7 Year Old Single Barrel Rye came across incredible smooth, providing a “toasty” and a distinctive savoury note (practically meaty) making its flavour profile balanced with a subtle dark chocolate sweetness and light hints of to***co.

03/07/2024

E.P Carillo Cigar Sampling Evening - Tuesday 9th July 6:30pm

We will be sampling a new E.P Carrillo cigar on the evening of Tuesday 9th July and we'll be joined by brand ambassador Ken Silverio and Tor Imports Alfonso Scherzi. The cigar is an evolution from the Cigar Aficionado Magazine's 2018 Cigar of the Year, Encore Majestic, R.P Carrillo Encore Noir. This is a more full bodied cigar, with a bold maduro wrapper boasting strong notes of cocoa, espresso and leather. An excellent addition to the legendary Ernesto Perez- Carrillo's portfolio of ci**rs.

We will be joined by Cuervo y Sobrinos International Sales Director Sonia Campoli and Apex Luxury Director, Daniel McNutt as they discuss the global watch brand and their new releases. The brand has an existing relationship with ci**rs and we are delighted to welcome them back to James J. Fox to talk more on their historic connections.

Join us for another wonderful evening of luxury lifestyle on St James's Street. This is our last event ahead of a summer break, so don't miss out and book your place today.

https://www.jjfox.co.uk/e-p-carillo-cigar-sampling-evening-tuesday-9th-july.html

28/06/2024

It was a spectacular three days in London for the first “in person” Habanos World Days. We can only imagine the work and planning it took in delivering this event, but the result was a truly remarkable celebration of Habanos Ci**rs in London for the global audience of cigar enthusiasts to admire and enjoy. Congratulations to Habanos S.A and Hunters & Frankau for a wonderful display to celebrate Cuba, Trinidad 55th anniversary and luxury lifestyle.

On Friday we hosted a cigar evening for James J Fox to pay homage to Trinidad Ci**rs. We were one of 55 retailers to host a cigar event in celebration of Trinidad to ci**rs, so we would like to extend the congratulations to all retailers who took part in celebrating too.

On arrival we greeted guests with an aficionado favourite, Trinidad Reyes, and a specially curated cocktail for pairing. Taking the name Habanos World Days into account, we took products from different corners of the world to make our cocktail: Amazzoni Gin – Brazil, South America, Hayashi Honten Jidai Yamahai Junmai Ginjo Sake – Japan, Asia, Figs – Morocco, Africa, Fever Tree Indian Tonic – UK, Europe.

Shortly into the evening guests proceeded to light up their Trinidad Esmeralda as we paired the cigar with two cognacs, the Tesseron X.O Passion and the Tesseron Extra Legende. The Esmeralda is the current star of the regular Trinidad portfolio, so for that reason we opted for this pairing with some wonderful cognac.

We would like to thank Sean Croley, Sales and Marketing Director for Hunters & Frankau and Jose Maria Lopez, Development Co-Vice President for Habanos S.A for joining us and giving a speech to guests on the evening. On such a landmark night we were honoured. Thank you to Stuart and Rob Fox for also coming into London to celebrate with us. It was a pleasure to have Arnaud Dean, Sales Director for Europe and Africa for Tesseron and Yann Lucas of Berkmann Wine Cellar join us to talk about the cognac on the evening. And of course, to the cigar enthusiasts on the evening, we thank you for joining us on the evening to make it a very special evening.

13/06/2024

Habanos World Days Trinidad Cigar Evening
Friday 21st June 6:30pm

Book your place at our sampling evening here:
https://www.jjfox.co.uk/hwd-trinidad-cigar-evening.html

Habanos World Days is returning in a spectacular way this summer as we are set to celebrate with three days of Habanos events dedicated to the 55th anniversary of Trinidad in London.

Habanos S.A and Hunters & Frankau are to host three major events in June on Thursday 20th, Friday 21st and Saturday 22nd. An amazing program has been organized for this landmark occasion in London and we are delighted to be involved with hosting a cigar sampling on the evening of Friday 21st June.

At James J. Fox we will be sampling two Trinidad ci**rs. We will start with the Reyes and a Welcome Cocktail. Then afterwards we will be pairing two Tesseron Cognac - Extra Legende & XO Passion - with the Esmeralda.

06/06/2024

We will be two retailers, James J Fox Flagship and La Casa del Habano James J Fox in Harrods, of 55 across the UK simultaneously hosting sampling events on the Friday evening. We anticipate many of the most respected and knowledgeable cigar aficionados across the world joining the events in London and the UK for what will be a fantastic occasion.

While the events on Friday will not be sampling the Trinidad Cabildos (2024 Habanos Edición Limitada) – that privilege is reserved for the Saturday night Gala Dinner – retailers will be providing an evening with Trinidad ci**rs of their choice. The ci**rs will be paired with the fine spirits they feel pair best with the cigar.

At James J Fox we will be sampling two Trinidad ci**rs. We will start with the Reyes and a Welcome Cocktail. Then afterwards we will be pairing two Tesseron Cognacs - Extra Legende & XO Passion - with the Esmeralda

Book your place now:
https://www.jjfox.co.uk/hwd-trinidad-cigar-evening.html

24/05/2024

An aficionado level evening took place on Thursday 16 May as a pairing of the highest quality was put together at James J Fox. Sampling one of the most renowned Habanos, the Partagas Lusitania, and pairing with a selection of Craigellachie Whisky, guests were offered one of our greatest pairings to date.

Sensational is the word that comes to mind and for many a reason. The Lusitania was paired with some sensational drams of the 17 (India’s personal favourite whisky), 23 and the extraordinary 37. We were delighted to be joined by the amazing India Blanch Whisky Ambassador for Bacardi’s malt whisky. Her expertise on Craigellachie enabled us to find the amazing flavours within the whisky.

Our friends at JPHA were also in attendance, as he collaborated with us for this exclusive evening. The Craigellachie 37 as well as the entire collection of Craigellachie expressions are available through his online retail store jpha.co.uk.

Thank you to all who joined us for the evening. It was a great evening for the cigar and whisky aficionado. David and India will be back for another event later in the year.

12/04/2024

On Thursday 16th May we will be working with the great Whisky team at Bacardi-Martini for a prestigious event as we host an evening pairing a Partagas Lusitania with Craigellachie Whisky. Tickets are available instore and online

The Lusitania is widely considered to be the most popular cigar in the world for Cuban cigar enthusiasts – both because of the brand flavour profile of Partagas, the size and the prestige of the cigar. It is more than a cult classic, it is the epitome of the ultimate Habanos cigar experience. A double corona vitola, 7 5/8’’ x 49, has a general smoke time for around 90 mins, so through out that time we will be presenting a collective of Craigellachie whisky.

On arrival guest will enjoy a Whisky Spritz cocktail which will feature Craigellachie 13. After lighting the ci**rs, guests will have three Craigellachie on their tasting mats – 17, 23 and a sampling of their marquee 37 year old (RRP £2999)

Joining us from Bacardi-Martini will be their Whisky brands ambassador India Blanch to go through what each expression of Craigellachie delivers and why the Speyside distillery is so highly revered.

This event is perfect set up for cigar and whisky lovers as we combine two amazing brands for a fantastic sampling experience at our St James’s Street flagship.

The Sampling Evening starts at 6:30pm

22/03/2024

We were delighted to have organised a cigar sampling evening ahead of the St Patrick’s Day Weekend. We went for the emerald green banded Plasencia, the Sixto I. The is truly a sit down and relax cigar because at 6’’ and 60 ring gauge it required at least 90 minutes, so for that reason we brought in a selection of Teeling Whiskey to pair for the evening.

We were delighted to be joined by Davidoff Market Manager, Roy Sommer for the evening to talk about the cigar and why Plasencia are one of the most premium cigar brands in the world.
Joining Roy was Robert Caldwell, Teeling Whiskey Global Ambassador, along with Bacardi-Martini’s Malt Whisky Ambassador India Blanch and Development Manager David Behan. Together they produced a fantastic display of Teeling and Whiskey passion. Rob expertly explained the brand and three of the four whiskey had on the night – Small Batch, Single Malt and Single Malt Crystal, while India discussed Teeling’s Single Malt Black Pitts.

Thank you to all the brand ambassadors and the guests for engaging in a fantastic cigar and Irish Whiskey pairing. And also for the great photo at the end of the evening.

01/03/2024

What a sampling evening we had this leap day. While some cigar aficionados were out in Havana for Festival del Habano XXIV, some were with us in London to enjoy a wonderful pairing of ci**rs, cognac and armagnac. In collaboration with The Whisky Exchange and TWE Events we were delighted to have the legendary Dawn Davies MW with us to demonstrate the delights of cognac with ci**rs. It was a fantastic evening and we would also like to thank Alex Thompson and Isabella Shorter from TWE for their help on the evening. And a special mention to Anna from Paxton and Whitfield for helping out with the cheese selection for the evening.

Checkout our blog post about the evening as we disclose the spirits and ci**rs for the pairing as well as more information on The Cognac Show
https://www.jjfox.co.uk/blog/news/the-whisky-exchange-james-j-fox-presents-ci**rs-and-cognac/

16/02/2024

We have finally completed the work to the humidor room, the shop floor and museum. Our doors have re-opened today and we couldn’t be happier with the work - completed on time and to an amazing standard. Thank you to our team for the job they’ve done in the last few days to finish the work, Beckford Contractors for the professional work they deployed throughout the refurbishment and to Massimo de Munari and DeArt for their expertise and craftmanship to design our new walk-in humidor.

But a special thank you to Tazminah Edoo, our store manager, for overseeing the project and working tirelessly to guarantee its completion with the best possible result. And also for grilling all of us at the shop on health and safety protocols during the work ensuring we’re all safe during a busy time. Great job Taz!

We hope you all enjoy the improvements and we look forward to seeing you soon.

The James J. Fox Team

22/01/2024

We had an amazing start to our 2024 event schedule, pairing two world renowned brands, Davidoff and The Dalmore, for a great sampling evening on a freezing cold night in London.

We were delighted to be the hosts for the launch of Davidoff’s Late Hour Petit Panetela, giving guests the first opportunity in the UK to sample the cigar.

The evening started a little earlier for some guests as Roy Sommer led a group of 10 to the Churchill War Rooms for a private tour of what life would have been like during the tense days and nights of the Second World War. The unique experience was thoroughly enjoyed by all, and it is a recommendation for any student of history for just a brief insight to how they orchestrated victory.

After, we all convened at the shop for the sampling evening. Joining Roy was The Dalmore’s Thomas Bentley as he presented Dalmore’s 15, Cigar Malt and King Alexander III to go with Davidoff’s Churchill “Original Series” and “The Late Hour” Petit Panetelas. Guests had a tin of each for them to enjoy beyond the evening, with the small hand-rolled ci**rs being perfect for the freezing temperatures in London right now.

The Churchill-inspired evening, celebrating his 150th year, was complete with an appearance from the great man himself, Winstan. The final speaker of the evening finished with an inspirational and rousing speech to cap a perfect start to 2024.

Thank you to guests for making it to the shop and CWR for a full lounge to celebrate this release. Thank you to Roy for all his work on bringing a great event to James J Fox, Thomas for his expertise on the evening and to Winstan. And a big thank you to Steven Mulvey for his photography in the Churchill War Rooms on the evening.

12/01/2024

Dear Customers

We would like to inform you of planned refurbishment work in our shop during late January and early February.

As followed, our current schedule for temporary closure of the shop is:

Saturday 20th January - Sunday 28th January
Closed

Monday 29th January - Saturday 3rd February
Open (Works will continue in the shop. Noise might be a slight inconvenience)

Sunday 4th February - Thursday15th February*
Closed (*The shop may be open on Thursday 8th, Friday 9th & Saturday 10th February. To be confirmed.)

Friday 16th February**
Grand Opening (**Date is subject to possible change)

02/01/2024

After the hustle and bustle of the Festive Season we are now on the other side full of optimism in many regards for 2024. Happy New Year to all! On Thursday 30th November 2023 we hosted our final cigar event of the year, our customary Churchill’s Birthday Event. We were delighted to host guests on the shop floor to enable a few more people to enjoy our most celebrated event. We paired the iconic Romeo y Julieta Churchill with two cognacs from Tesseron (Lot No.90 and Lot No.76) and the classic Pol Roger. A big thank you to Tesseron’s European and Africa Sales Director Mr Arnaud Dean and Spirit Cartel Brand Ambassador Mr Campbell Rankine for joining us on the evening and speaking to guests about the amazing Tesseron Cognac brand.

Thank you to all the guests in attendance, and too all guest across the year as we organised our most packed event schedule to date. 14 Events in 2023 with ci**rs from Cuba, Honduras, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic and Mexico being paired with Whisky, Cognac, Rum, Tequila and Gin. We had a great time organising it, collaborating with some legendary master blenders, cigar brand owners and expert drinks ambassadors.

Our first event for 2024 is on our events page at jjfox.co.uk. We will explain more this week, but with Davidoff and The Dalmore being the pairing, need we say more? Tickets live now!
https://www.jjfox.co.uk/events

05/12/2023

Ahead of our Churchill's Birthday Cigar and Cognac Evening we sampled all four of Tesseron's X.O Classique Collection and discussed what ci**rs we would pair with them.

We talk about the two cognacs we enjoyed on the night for the first part of the review. Four excellent cognac paired with some of the finest hand-rolled Habanos and New World ci**rs. Read more to find out this cigar and cognac pairing.
https://www.jjfox.co.uk/blog/cigar-reviews/cigar-pairing-with-tesseron-cognac-part-i/

28/11/2023

We are delighted to announce that our much-loved Churchill’s Birthday Cigar Evening will be taking place on Thursday, November 30th, at our St. James’s flagship shop, located at 19 St. James’s Street. This event has become a cherished tradition for us, as we come together to celebrate the enduring legacy of one of our shop’s most esteemed patrons, Sir Winston Churchill.

This year we will sample the Romeo y Julieta Churchill Habanos. It has been our regular go-to in recent years, and was also one of the cigar brands Churchill enjoyed the most.

This year, we are thrilled to present Tesseron Cognac. For this evening, we will be offering two cognacs from their XO Classique Collection: Lot No. 90 X.O Ovation and Lot No. 76 X.O Tradition. We are pleased to welcome Tesseron's European and Africa Sales Director, Arnaud Dean, and Brand Ambassador for Spirit Cartel, Mr Campbell Rankine, who will share why they produces some of the world's finest Cognacs, with the evidence right in your glass.

And of course, guests will be welcomed with a glass of Churchill's favourite Champagne, Pol Roger.

Tickets have sold out quickly and we look forward welcoming guests at 6.30pm on the evening.

If you’ve missed out on this sampling evening, we will have our next as soon as mid-January. Keep posted for more information.

17/11/2023

07/11/2023

On Thursday 16th November we will host Lord Carnarvon and Foundation Ci**rs founder, Nick Melillo, for the UK launch of Highclere Castle Victorian.

The Highclere Castle Victorian has been greeted with high acclaim in the United States of America, earning high ratings from many of the reputable voices on ci**rs. On 16th November, led by George Frakes of 1573 Ci**rs, Foundation Ci**rs will launch this new line to the UK market. This will be Nick Melillo's only UK event for 2023, so it is guaranteed to be a special night.

We will be pairing the Toro size cigar with Highclere Castle Gin (we’re working on the cocktails, but one will be a true British favourite – The Gin and Tonic). The gin has been created exclusively using the ingredients and botanicals from the grounds of Highclere. This is a unique gin, favoured by many luxury bars and restaurants in the world – including The Stafford Hotel, directly opposite our St James’s flagship.

Join us for our penultimate event of 2023 for another exclusive night at James J Fox. Tickets availale online. Book your place now
https://www.jjfox.co.uk/foundation-ci**rs-x-highclere-castle-cigar-event.html

03/11/2023

We were delighted to celebrate the launch of the Por Larranaga “Larranaga 47” at our St James’s Sampling Lounge on Wednesday 1st November. But it wasn’t just us, 47 cigar retailers across the country held sampling events to sample the Larranaga 47 for the first time. Led by Hunters and Frankau, the night started with a video message from Jemma Freeman (Executive Chairman of Hunters & Frankau) and José Antonio Cejas Diaz (Hunters & Frankau Corporate Director) introducing the Larrañaga 47.

The Por Larranaga Larranaga 47 or PL47 for short is a classic “Churchill” vitola (7” x 47 ring gauge) presented in an impressive unvarnished SBN wooden cabinet holding 50 ci**rs in four rows (13-13-13-11). A first for a UK Habanos Regional Edition. It is the 2021 release, following on from last year’s Ramon Allones Private Stock 230 (2020). Only 1500 numbered boxes have been produced which will be made available exclusively to the UK market.

A big thank you to Hunters and Frankau, Jimmy McGhee and all our guests who joined us on the evening. The PL47 is available online and instore at St James’s