Hooten Young Loads Up With a Ruger Collab

Hooten Young has partnered with Sturm, Ruger & Co on a licensed two-blend release aimed squarely at the shooting-and-smoking crowd. Rim Fire wears a Connecticut Shade wrapper and lands medium; Center Fire uses Mexican San Andres and pushes medium-full. Both are 6 x 54 toros rolled at Hooten Young's own factory in Esteli, sold in 20-count boxes holding ten of each, limited to 250 boxes at $20 a cigar. The crossover does not stop at tobacco: a companion bourbon called Ruger First-Fire, a seven-year Kentucky straight at 96 proof, arrives in 1,776 numbered bottles at $45.99. Pre-orders open October 14 at 1pm Eastern. Licensed brand crossovers are a crowded lane now; the dual-blend box format is the genuinely interesting hook here.