Kate, Murray and I didn't know what to expect during our first industry party in Toronto hosted by our supplier, Kretek. We're still kind of new to the cigar scene in southern Ontario.
We knew, at minimum, there'd be cigars and there'd be beer and, to be honest, if the event was nothing more than that, it'd be worth the two-hour drive anyways.
Turns out the event was a lot more than that. We got inundated with deals on everything from brand new ashtrays to free cigars we'll be handing out to customers.
Heck, there were two FULL pigs on a spit.
While we're talking about the pig, I turned to Murray and Kate whilst they were tearing through the crunchy skin of the beast, and asked them, "Did it occur to you that we just ate a pig fresh out of its casket?"
There's no surer way to ruin a perfectly fine meal than shining light on the reality of what we just did. Ha!
Oh well...it was a delicious swine and none of it got wasted. Trust me.
Arguably the coolest part of the entire day was the Steamwhistle truck handing us free beer.
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The guy in the sweatsuit straight out of Rocky VI is Brian. He was a good guy who, at one point, brought out a pellet gun for reasons he never got into but I believe it had something to do with a gopher causing havoc on the grounds of the Lions Club.
All in all, it was a great experience and Kretek hosted one hell of an event.
We picked up a ton of new stock for the store including the PSyKo Seven Maduro and the Asylum 13 7x70, which will officially be the biggest cigar we carry once it comes in.
Now, I don't mean to gloat, but I thought it'd be worth sharing the loot bag I got from attending the event.
Not a bad haul, eh?
So remember: the next time we are selling tickets to an event, make sure to buy one for yourself. The value of the cigars and other swag is WAY more than what your ticket costs so it's totally worth it for the cigar enthusiast old or new.