Brand guide
Room101 cigars
Room101 is a cigar brand Matt Booth started in Los Angeles, owned by Scandinavian Tobacco Group since 2022, with cigars rolled in Honduras and Nicaragua.
Room101 started as jewelry
Matt Booth, a former Marine, founded Room101 in Los Angeles in 2003 as a line of alternative luxury silver jewelry.
Cigars came six years later. The name points two ways: to Room 101, the torture chamber in George Orwell's 1984, and to Highway 101 through LA. Cigar Coop describes Booth's early market as jewelry, accessories and clothing for the Hollywood crowd.
Room101 went through three partners
Room101 cigars launched in 2009 through a deal with Camacho Cigars, which handled production and distribution.
When Davidoff bought Camacho, Booth's cigars moved under Davidoff too. That ran until the end of 2016. In January 2017 Cigar Coop reported that Booth had not renewed his Davidoff contract and was leaving the cigar business "for now" to focus on jewelry, with Davidoff selling off the remaining stock.
The break was short. Booth returned in 2017 with new lines, The T and Hit & Run among them, per Cigar Aficionado. Then, shortly before the August 2022 PCA trade show, he sold Room101 to Scandinavian Tobacco Group. The brand joined STG's Forged Cigar Company, and Booth joined STG as creative director.
Where are Room101 cigars made?
Room101 cigars come from partner factories in Honduras and Nicaragua, and Booth said in 2022 it would keep using factories outside STG.
The record shows a spread:
- Camacho, Honduras: the original 2009 production partner.
- HATSA, Danlí, Honduras: General Cigar's factory made The Big Payback Maduro in 2019, per Cigar Aficionado.
- AJ Fernandez, Estelí: the 13th Anniversary cigar in 2022.
- Joya de Nicaragua, Estelí: Farce Nicaragua in 2022.
- Sir Louis Cigars, Wilbraham, Massachusetts: Red Rocket in 2024.
See AJ Fernandez and Joya de Nicaragua for those factories.
Room101 blends change with each line
Room101 publishes a separate blend for each release, and the wrapper can come from Connecticut, Ecuador or Nicaragua depending on the line.
The Big Payback Maduro uses a Connecticut broadleaf wrapper over a Connecticut shade binder, with filler from Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, per Cigar Aficionado. The 2022 Farce Nicaragua, made at Joya de Nicaragua, is all Nicaraguan. The anniversary cigars, made each year since the 10th in 2019, change blend every time. Want the leaf names decoded? Try the cigar tobacco regions guide.
Room101 lines with published specs
Room101's most fully documented lines are the 2019 Big Payback Maduro and the 2022 Nicaraguan releases.
| Line | Wrapper (stated) | Factory | Notable sizes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Big Payback Maduro (2019) | Connecticut broadleaf | HATSA, Danlí, Honduras | Robusto (5 1/4 x 50), Toro (6 x 54), Gordo (6 x 60) |
| Farce Nicaragua (2022) | Nicaraguan | Joya de Nicaragua, Estelí | Robusto (5 1/2 x 50), Toro (6 x 52), Gordo (6 x 60) |
| 13th Anniversary (2022) | Not published | AJ Fernandez, Estelí | Toro (6 x 52), 1,500 boxes |
| Red Rocket (2024) | Not published in our sources | Sir Louis Cigars, Massachusetts | Not published in our sources |
No maker strength ratings appear in our sources. Other Room101 names include Chief Cool Arrow, Namakubi, Doomsayer and Johnny Tobacconaut Maduro.
Room101 key dates
Room101's dates run from a 2003 jewelry launch to anniversary cigars in the 2020s.
- 2003: Booth founds Room101 in Los Angeles.
- 2009: first Room101 cigars, with Camacho.
- Late 2016: Davidoff contract ends.
- 2017: Booth returns with new lines.
- 2019: 10th anniversary release; The Big Payback Maduro ships.
- 2022: STG buys the brand.
- 2025: Namakubi Chingon relaunched.
- 2026: 17th Anniversary cigar and Johnny Tobacconaut Maduro.
Before you buy a Room101
Room101 reuses line names for new blends, so the year and factory matter as much as the name on the band.
The Big Payback name dates to 2014 and has since covered a Maduro and a 70s Maduro, each its own recipe. Anniversary cigars change blend annually. Box counts vary from 20s to 40s. Ring gauges climb high on some lines, up to 60 on the Gordos. Check sizes with the ring gauge converter before you buy a box.
Room101 and Matt Booth questions
Who owns Room101 cigars?
Scandinavian Tobacco Group. Matt Booth sold the brand to STG shortly before the 2022 PCA trade show, and it became part of STG's Forged Cigar Company.
Why is it called Room101?
The name refers to the torture room in the Ministry of Love in George Orwell's novel 1984, and also nods to Highway 101 in Los Angeles.
Who makes Room101 cigars now?
Several factories. Recent releases have come from AJ Fernandez and Joya de Nicaragua in Estelí, and The Big Payback Maduro from General Cigar's HATSA factory in Danlí, Honduras.
Did Room101 stop making cigars?
Briefly. Booth did not renew his Davidoff contract at the end of 2016 and stepped away, then returned with new lines later in 2017.
Where the Room101 facts come from
- Room101 brand highlight, Cigar Aficionado
- Room101 The Big Payback Maduro Now Shipping, Cigar Aficionado
- Matt Booth and Room 101 End Relationship with Davidoff, Cigar Coop
- PCA 2022 Report: Room101 Cigars, Cigar Coop