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A Visit To The Great Smoke 2017

Smokey Butts and I made a trip to the 11th Annual The Great Smoke 2017 on February 18th, 2017 in Lake Worth, FL. This was our first visit to The Great Smoke and we had a great time. We highly recommend this event. Our review with photos and a video are below.

The Great Smoke 2017 was hosted by Smoke Inn Cigars. Smoke Inn Cigars has 11 locations in South Florida, including Vero Beach, West Palm Beach, Delray Beach, and Pompano Beach. We purchased VIP tickets for $225 which included a private seating area, a private bar with waitstaff service, and a private buffet. General admission tickets cost $135 and included a general seating area, bar, and food. All attendees received a nice selection of premium cigars.

Smokey used his magic Trump crowd calculator and estimated there were at least 1 million people there. I used my Trump crowd calculator corrector algorithm and estimate there were a few hundred people there.

Cigars

VIP attendees received a commemorative bag with approximately 34 premium cigars. Unlike most events, these were truly premium cigars with no duds in the bag. General admission attendees received a commemorative bag and ticket book, and picked up their cigars by visiting each of the booths. Erik Espinosa, Nick Perdomo, Jose Sejias, E.P. Carrillo, Matt Booth (Smokey Butts’ boyfriend), and Rocky Patel were scheduled to attend but I didn’t see most of these cigarlebrities. We caught a glimpse of E.P. Carrillo and Rocky Patel’s relatives. We also saw Ray Lewis hanging out in the back of the Rocky Patel booth.

Food and Drink

The food was outstanding for all attendees. They had Asian food, chili, Southwest food, BBQ, and more. There was plenty of food and the quality far exceeded the food at similar events. Samuel Adams provided the brews and Russian Standard Vodka provided the spirits. There were a bunch of other spirits vendors handing out samples. Honestly, this was quite a shock. At other similar events, the food and drink went quickly leaving attendees wanting for more. Not at The Great Smoke!

Entertainment

The Great Smoke 2017 had lots of entertainment. Blues Dragon, fronted by Mark Telesca, provided a few hours of rockin’ blues. They are a great band. Also, the Spearmint Rhino Gentlemen’s Club had two portable stripper poles and a variety of entertainers attracting the eye of the male attendees. Yes, I said portable stripper poles! Additionally, a couple of nice looking ladies peddled The Great Smoke t-shirts that you could buy off their back. See the photo below of Smokey Butts purchasing a t-shirt. There was also a photo booth where you could don a variety of funky and fun clothes and get a series of photos taken to commemorate your visit. At the end of the event there was a raffle of thousands of dollars worth of cigars, humidors, gaming chairs, etc.

Venue

The Great Smoke 2017 took place at the American German Club, an outdoor facility that worked perfectly for the event. The weather was fantastic. High 70s with a nice breeze to blow away all the smoke. Beats the hell out of the ominous cloud of smoke that descends on you at events like The Big Smoke and CigarFest.

People

The most enjoyable part of attending cigar events is hanging out with fellow cigar lovers. Blue collar, white-collar, young, old, etc., cigar smokers are a special group of people. We all get along and enjoy each other’s company without pretense. This event was no different. Smokey and I shared a table with a bunch of great guys from the area. OK, most of them were originally from Jersey but migrated to Florida in their retirement years. One of the Jersey boys was nice enough to bring his Dad with him. From personal experience, it is a wonderful experience to take your Dad to a cigar event. We also spoke with a bunch of other fellow smokers at the various booths and throughout the facility.

Other Events

Although Smokey and I could only attend the main event, there were a number of other events before and after The Great Smoke 2017. Quesada Cigars sponsored a pre-event dinner at Ruth’s Chris steak house in West Palm Beach. Also, Rocky Patel Premium Cigars sponsored a pre-event party at the Smoke Inn Casa de Montecristo in Boynton Beach. After the event, Espinosa Cigars sponsored an after-party at the Spearmint Rhino Gentlemen’s Club in West Palm Beach. And for your recovery needs, Recluse Cigars sponsored a brunch the day after The Great Smoke 2017 at Smoke Inn Casa de Montecristo in Boynton Beach.

Videos and Pictures

The Great Smoke-Banner
The Great Smoke-Banner
The Great Smoke-Spirit Sampling
The Great Smoke-Spirit Sampling
The Great Smoke-Spearmint Rhino Booth
The Great Smoke-Spearmint Rhino Booth
The Great Smoke-Soda and Water Bar
The Great Smoke-Soda and Water Bar
The Great Smoke-Smokey Buys a Shirt (Caricature)
The Great Smoke-Smokey Buys a Shirt (Caricature)
The Great Smoke-Raffle Prizes
The Great Smoke-Raffle Prizes
The Great Smoke-Outside View
The Great Smoke-Outside View
The Great Smoke-Food
The Great Smoke-Food
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 6
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 6
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 5
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 5
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 4
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 4
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 3
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 3
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 2
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 2
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 1
The Great Smoke-Cotillion 1
The Great Smoke-Commemorative Bag
The Great Smoke-Commemorative Bag
The Great Smoke-Cigar Pavillion
The Great Smoke-Cigar Pavillion
The Great Smoke-Blues Dragon Band
The Great Smoke-Blues Dragon Band
The Great Smoke-Beer Bar
The Great Smoke-Beer Bar

c.gar

c.gar loves all things cigar-related. He typically falls in love with cigars that are discontinued shortly thereafter. His first cigar was a Swisher Sweet with a wood tip. Sadly, these are still in production.

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