Nat Sherman has experienced a strong revival in the past several years since hiring Michael Herklots away from Davidoff. The Timeless line generated tremendous buzz when Herklots introduced it, and the Joel Sherman 75th Anniversary LE released last year was viewed by many as one of the top cigars of 2014. In the years before Herklots, the company's cigar offerings had devolved into the discount-catalogue category and he's worked to change that image and have its new releases seen and judged as top-flight premium cigars.

Cigar Aficionado is without question the most important and influential cigar publication (just ask a shop owner or manufacturer). It also has unparalleled access in the cigar industry. In this respect, its only rival is probably Cigar Journal (formerly European Cigar Cult Journal). CA's power in the industry enables it to break a lot of industry news on its Web site and to write in-depth about cigar issues, personalities and products in the magazine. Yes, it is filled with upscale "lifestyle" coverage and that's undoubtedly helped it expand at least somewhat beyond the small premium cigar demographic.