For Dr. Oscar Rodriguez of GTO Cigars, smoking is the cure. As someone from a long tradition of tobacco growers and cigar blenders, you should take his word for it. But don’t just offer him an infused cigar! Rodiguez talked to Cigar Life Guy about respecting the art of cigar blending, planning quality cigar events, and why everyone needs to calm down and “stay in their lane.”
Oscar Rodriguez’s First Premium Cigar
Cigar Life Guy: Tell me about your first premium cigar experience.
Oscar Rodriguez: It was on the family tobacco farm in the Dominican Republic. I was twelve years old, and it was our harvest dinner. I remember it was some Corojo because it was spicy. But it was a cigar my grandfather put together real quick. So, it was mild, but it wasn’t for me, my first time.
Consequently, I had been studying them, so I knew the process. I watched how they would draw and let the smoke move around their mouths. It was very similar to what they did when they drank wine. It was beautiful. I practiced in my mind. I knew one day this was going to happen.
Cigar-Making Tradition
Cigar Life Guy: You come from a long tradition of cigar-making. Tell us how you merge this tradition with creating new blends.
Oscar Rodriguez: I grew up being a blender. So, that was my superpower. My grandfather taught me that you have to work in different areas. So, we all learned how to select tobacco and do every process. We learned how to cure, ferment, and age. Then we learned how to roll. Once we were rolling, he picked out our best aptitude. Mine was always my tasting ability. I always had a different tasting ability. So, I became his blender, and I learned from him. He’d been blending in Cuba since 1930. It was beautiful to learn about art from him.
As I grew older, I loved to heal the land and animals, so I became a doctor. I intended to stay on the farm, which was big enough. We had horses and mules. And I wanted to do veterinary work, but I also wanted to treat humans. They have different bodies and skeletal masses, but it’s not that different.
As I grew wiser in medicine, my father and grandfather were still doing what they wanted to do. I would submit blends, and I had to correct them, fix them, and change them. But when they both passed away, I took over and started incorporating journeys. It’s like prescribing painkillers. (Laughs).
Smoking this cigar is like taking anesthesia. It’s so smooth. But if you smoke this cigar, it’s a cure. I created Hypnotic, which hypnotizes people. Being in the medical field, I want to describe your path and journey when creating a cigar.
Oscar Rodriguez Cigar Portfolio
Cigar Life Guy: Now, tell us a little about your cigar portfolio.
Oscar Rodriguez: It’s pretty extensive. In fact, many of our blends are very old. They’re traditional, very well-composed, and aged. So, it’s a long aging process for us.
We use our own proprietary tobacco, which is a novelty today. Every company out there is mixing because they believe that they have to source different shit to get different tastes. But they don’t have the resources.
Many people like the same thing. Usually, once a guy finds that brand, guys will stick to that forever. So, I don’t like changing it up. We have a mild, the Hypnotic, that’s a level one. An infused cigar was never a level. In fact, an infused cigar is never a cigar. (Laughs).
So, let’s establish that premise from the get-go. And the people who smoke them? I don’t know what you’re doing, but you’re not smoking. Actually, that has a different name. (Laughs). And I have yet to come up with one! But the Hypnotic is Level 1 — a mild smoke with a nice organic sweet tip. Then we have the Connecticut line, the Gold. After that, we have the Pain Killer Box Pressed Corojo, which is mild but spicy. So, you can grow into the other Pain Killers, all medium or medium plus. They’re different in the body.
People tend to confuse body with strength. The body is the weight of smoke and complexity. So, being full-body means having something completely changes three or four times. It’s not strength.
And we don’t do full strength.
Honduras and Nicaragua are notable for their strength. So, I can develop strength through aging, but it’s always a composed punch. And it’s never overbearing. To me, if you smoke, then you don’t want it to overwhelm you. So, you don’t want to start sweating or for it to make your heart beat. If it does, then you’re amping yourself up and that’s not smoking a cigar. In fact, you’re doing it all wrong.
Smoking cigars is one art where you cannot create your own rules. In fact, it has been done one way since 500 B.C. So, we’ll respect this art and tradition. Those that want to change it need to disappear.
If you turn smoking into a fad, then it means nothing. I tell everybody to respect the art because that’s how my legacy has continued for over 150 years. I’m the fourth generation, and the fifth generation is already stepping up. In fact, my daughters are raring to get going. Yet, even they respect the art. If you mess with it, it becomes nothing. It’s too beautiful and too easy. Why damage this?
The Cigar Community
Cigar Life Guy: You travel quite a bit and visit retail stores and cigar lounges worldwide. So, what makes the cigar community so unique?
Oscar Rodriguez: I love sharing. We stand on common ground. It’s beautiful to find these people. Some of the most incredible people are those who smoke.
But the ones who don’t smoke seem lost. They don’t flow. It’s like the guy who dances and can’t find his rhythm. When you smoke, you have “flow.” I always tell people, “How can I trust you if you don’t smoke a cigar?” (Laughs).
So, what’s the most beautiful thing about cigar smoking? If somebody asked me for ten dollars, I’d look at them and tell them to get a job. But I would give a guy a twenty-dollar cigar. You’re giving a euphoric pleasure.
It’s a beautiful community. We love each other. If someone has a flat on the side of the road and a cigar in his hand, then I’m pulling over.
GTO Cigars and Cigar Events
Cigar Life Guy: Your company likes to sponsor cigar events. Tell us about your most memorable event and what goes into making a great cigar event.
Oscar Rodriguez: Great planning is the most important thing. That sets everything apart. Too many people shoot from the hip and just throw it out there.
You can’t “wing” a great event. You have to know you’re providing a great event. But with all the accouterments, great libations, and hors-d’oeuvres, if you’re going to serve them, then serve the correct hors-d’oeuvres for cigar smoking. Consequently, if you’re going to eat fried chicken, you’re going to get grease all over your hands and fuck up your cigar! (Laughs).
Lower the music. I never work with a band. And if a band plays, then I shut down because we can’t talk to each other if I have to talk over the music.
Events are about chilling, proper planning, open air, being outside, or making sure that the space has a good filtration system. So, you don’t want to be in a smoke cloud. And if your eyes are burning, you won’t want to be there. The novelty of Dr. O is that I transform a rainy day into a sunny day. And I got the candy.
Oscar Rodriguez on Industry Challenges
Cigar Life Guy: What is the cigar industry’s biggest challenge today?
Oscar Rodriguez: The biggest challenge? There are a lot of people who have no credibility and are trying to stay in the forefront. Some people have no reason to be talking about this stuff. And there are way too many “influencers.” (Laughs). There are also too many people in the middle. Everybody is trying to make a dollar. But I don’t care about a dollar. I care about giving people an experience.
Do we need money? Yes, we need to pay the workers. But I’m not looking to become rich. Most people who do this try to fill their pockets at any expense. They’re producing a shit product that they’re overselling, or they have a great product that they got lucky with. So, there are too many people in the middle. We need to get back to quiet. Fewer people. Fewer people talking bullshit.
Everybody should stay in their lane. If you’re a consumer, then be a consumer. I’m an apex predator, but I’m not looking for fame. I still try to ride low. I don’t want to be seen. People could learn from that.
If you’re smoking a cigar, take the band off. I don’t care what you’re smoking. It doesn’t matter if you spent a hundred bucks. You’re burning tobacco leaves. (Laughs). If you want to throw away a hundred dollars, that’s fine. Let’s all check ourselves.
Ten or fifteen years ago, cigar smoking was something people only did in somebody’s backyard. Most people that are in the game now would have never had access. Lounges weren’t open to everybody.
Everybody needs to calm down and stop showing off. The first thing you see when someone has a cigar is they take a picture of themselves — a selfie. Selfie, Selfie, Selfie. I’m like, “What are you doing?” You see me taking pictures? I own the company. So, I could take my clothes off and dive into ten feet of tobacco, but I don’t do that. I take pictures for promotion.
Looking Ahead: Oscar Rodriguez and GTO Cigars
Cigar Life Guy: What’s next for GTO Cigars?
Oscar Rodriguez: We’re quietly steadily multiplying. We’re growing and coming to a town near you. We’re looking for global domination.
I want to increase awareness. My theme is to expand awareness of this wonderful passion by smoking high-quality tobacco and teaching people what’s good and what’s bad.
A lot of people have started smoking spam because a friend told them, “You gotta smoke this.” Do you know the owner? Then why are you beating your chest?
In Spanish, we say consencienizar, which means bringing consciousness. Teaching people this is good, this is bad. Learn it.
Smoke enough good cigars to learn what’s good.
Don’t trust everything you hear. You can doubt what I say but then doubt everybody. It will be hard for you when you get to the Dominican Republic and say, “Where’s Oscar’s farm?” Everybody will point South and say, “That’s the Rodriguez’s farm.” It’s 400 acres. You can’t miss it.
Check people on their bullshit. Anybody that shows up on my farm they’re going to work. We’re going to weed and feed (laughs). I’ll give them a cigar. That’s how it is.
We need more education and people to trust the right people. Look who’s talking. If we were talking about medicine, would speaking to a medical student or a guy working at a hospital be proper? Or would it be more prudent to speak to a physician? In the military, who talks? The highest rank. Everybody else shuts up and follows. There’s a reason for that.
When you have a producer, a manufacturer, not a brand owner. A brand owner can be Nelson’s plumbing. Nelson has fifteen plumbing trucks, and his hobby is smoking. He brings his shit in and calls it “Plunger,” and everybody says, “Smoke Plunger, Wow!” And now everybody is smoking Plunger, and I say, “But doesn’t it taste like shit?” I feel bad for these guys. No clue. I wish people would take the time to listen.
Follow Oscar on Instagram and learn more about GTO Cigars here.
Photo credit: Cigar Life Guy