Local Business Spotlight: Palma Cigar Company

Readers of this marvelous online publication know that I am a big fan of locally-owned businesses. Businesses started by an entrepreneur that believed they had something unique to offer the marketplace--And apparently do, since their businesses are viable.

One of the key benefits of living in the "vibrant" Cole Neighborhood (They were calling it sketchy but they couldn't sell any homes there) is that it so close to downtown Denver. It's literally a quick bike ride away, and of course, there are all kinds of cool restaurants, bars, and businesses down there.

One really neat independently-owned business is Palma Cigar Company, on 22nd and Larimer in LoDo. I came across it last year when I saw his cigar-store indian on the side of the street and noticed his signage promising "hand-rolled cigars".

Turns out the proprietor of Palma Cigar Company, Clay Carlton, is an expert barber and provides some of the best haircuts you'll find in downtown Denver. And it turns out that he just doesn't sell hand-rolled cigars, he actually makes 'em himself! Now whether you like cigars or not, I think you'd agree that it's pretty darned cool that this guy went to the trouble of training under a Cuban master roller to learn his trade. That's like a karate student training under Bruce Lee. Pretty cool stuff. Clay actually goes down to the Dominican Republic every few weeks to source his high-quality tobaccos for import. So just like the big name cigars, he controls his product from selecting the tobaccos, to blending them, and hand-rolling them.

Palma Cigar has a huge walk-in humidor that like most humidors, smells like heaven. (Why is it that cigars smell so good before you light 'em, but smell so bad after you do?). Palma Cigar has five or six different blends, each very smooth and tasty. Palma Cigars also carries some other big-name brands to complement Clay's own stogies. The shop also has a decent selection of humidors (Lamborghini humidors!), cigar cutters, cigar lighters, and other accoutrements. He'll even do custom cigars for events, weddings, bachelor parties, you name it.

But that's not all. In addition to handmade cigars and expert haircuts, Palma Cigar now has a wine and cigar bar on location. So those of you cigar smokers that have lamented the coming of the smoking ban, you have one place where you can enjoy your cigar with a high-quality Colorado-made wine--Palma Cigar Company.

The final reason why I wanted to write about Clay and Palma Cigar is that he's also the proprietor of Cigars To The Troops, a non-profit that sends high quality cigars to our deserving troops overseas. Oh, and he's just an interesting guy to talk to, as well.

So if you like cigars, you've got to give Palma Cigar's line a try. If you need a haircut in Denver, look Clay up. And if you don't like cigars, or don't have any hair, I encourage you to make the day of one of our awesome military men and women by making a donation to Cigars To The Troops.

Palma Cigar is open Tuesday through Sunday right now. Check it out, and tell Clay how you learned about him.