The 2006 God of Fire Charity Dinner
for cigar family charity foundation
honoring carlos fuente, sr. 

250 passionate cigar lovers from all over world attended the second annual God of Fire Dinner for Cigar Family Charitable Foundation at Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles on October 7th. Over $200,000.00 was raised for the children in Dominican Republic.

Reinhold Widmayer, Editor of The European Cigar Cult Journal, flew in from Klosterneuburg, Austria, and Andre Zabitsky, CEO of David Cigar Corporation, from Montreal, Canada.

Kevin Griner attended the dinner from Shawnee Mission, Kansas and Philip Bennett, from Santa Teresa, New Mexico.

Paul Tucker (proprietor of Oxmoor Smoke Shop in Louisville, Kentucky), and Jeff Haugen and Joel Roger (proprietors of Tobacco Grove in Maple Grove, Minnesota) came with twenty of their customers. Both Oxmoor and Tobacco Grove are the authorized God of Fire dealers.

The guests were also joined by the Hollywood luminaries such as:

Dennis Franz
Andy Garcia
Johnny Lopez, executive producer of The Lost City directed by Andy Garcia
Joe Mantegna
Frank Mancuso, Jr., producer of The Lost City
Frank Mancuso, Sr., former president of Paramount Pictures
Ron Perlman
Paul Reiser
Arturo Sandoval 

It was an unforgettable night of fine food, exquisite wines, and special and rare cigars produced by the Fuente family. The charity auction was held during the dinner and thanks to the generosity of the dinner attendees, more than $200,000.00 was raised for Cigar Family Charitable Foundation, which was started by the Fuente and Newman families in 2001 in order to help the children in Dominican Republic. At the 2005 God of Fire Dinner held in New York City, over $100,000.00 was raised for Cigar Family Charitable Foundation. Earlier in the day, the first annual God of Fire Golf Tournament was held at The Lost Canyon Golf Club. 

Keith K. Park, CEO and Founder of Prometheus and God of Fire, co-hosted the dinner with renowned Hollywood movie star, Joe Mantegna. Carlos Fuente, Sr. and Carlito Fuente attended the dinner as the guests of honor. 

As the dinner started, Andy Garcia spoke about his friendship with the Fuente family and making of The Lost City (www.thelostcitythemovie.com) in Dominican Republic. The executive producer, Johnny Lopez, and producer, Frank Mancuso, Jr., of The Lost City were also present at the dinner. Andy Garcia told the dinner attendees how Carlito Fuente planted tobacco just for his movie in July and thanked him for his friendship. 

The 2006 God of Fire Dinner was even more special because the legendary cigar maker, Carlos Fuente, Sr., was honored for his lifetime achievement. 2006 is the 30th anniversary of the Don Carlos cigars created by Carlos Fuente, Sr., the patriarch of the Fuente family. In a tribute to his father, Carlito Fuente created an unbelievable cigar, Don Carlos Edicion de Aniversario (www.fuenteagedselection.com). When Carlos Fuente, Sr. was honored, Carlito Fuente came up to the stage and said, "My father is my hero. It is my dream to follow his footsteps but will be impossible to fill his shoes." 

Chef Bruno Lopez of Hotel Bel-Air (www.hotelbelair.com) prepared the unforgettable meals for the evening and ChrisDearden, chief wine maker of Benessere Estate Vineyard (www.benesserevineyards.com), was also in attendance tomake sure that his exquisite wines were served properly.

During the cocktail hour, God of Fire by Carlito, Double Robusto 2005 and 2005 Benessere Pinot Grigio were servedalong with hors d' oeuvres. During the four course dinner, God of Fire by Don Carlos, Robusto 2005 was served withSmoke Duck and Confit Salad and 2003 Benessere Phenomenon Super-Napan.

When the main course, filet mignon, was served, the special cigar of the night, the 2006 release of Don Carlos Edicionde Aniversario, was presented to the guests with and 2003 Chanticleer Cabernet Sauvignon. The dinner attendeesfinished the night with God of Fire by Carlito, Churchill 2004 and Grand Pommier XS Calvados (www.cigarinthebottle.com).

Around 11:30 p.m., the dinner ended. However, the guests lingered on. The night could have continued but with regret, everyone had to say good bye until we all see each other again at the 2007 God of Fire Dinner.

After the dinner, Joe Mantegna told Keith K. Park, his co-host of the 2006 God of Fire Dinner, "It was a truly magical evening celebrating the life of my dear friend Carlos Fuente, Sr. and helping Cigar Family Charitable Foundation raise money for a very worth while charity. I could not have imagined a more perfect night."

Dennis Franz, Ron Perlman and Paul Reiser told the guests at their table, "We had a great time, smoked some finest cigars in the company of some terrific guys."

Keith K. Park, Founder and CEO of Prometheus and God of Fire, thanked Chris Dearden from Benessere Estate Vineyard (www.benesserevineyards.com) for his generous donation of exquisite wines, and the following authorized God of Firedealers for attending the dinner with their customers and making it such a successful event:

Chuck Abarta and Harold Hansen
Hi-Time Wine Cellar's Smoke Shack
Costa Mesa, California
www.hitimewine.net

Albert M. Espinoza
Taylor's Tobacco House
Long Beach, California
www.taylorscigars.com

Jeff Haugen and Joel Rogers
Tobacco Grove
Maple Grove, Minnesota
www.tobaccogrove.com

Anto Kamarian
Cigars by Chivas, Pasadena, California
Anto's Cigar Lounge, Long Beach, California
www.cigarsbychivas.com

Angela Mostashain and Sean Shabani
Club Aficionado
Lake Forest, California
www.aficionadocigar.com

Moses Soza, Sr. and Jr.
Cigar Mas Fino
Fresno, California
www.cigarmasfino.com

Paul Tucker
Oxmoor Smoke Shoppe
Louisville, Kentucky
www.oxmoorsmokeshoppe.com

God of Fire, Inc. and Prometheus International, Inc. also would like to thank:

Matt Bogosian and Forbidden Johnny with Cigar in the Bottle for their donation of Grand Pommier XS Calvados (www.cigarinthebottle.com), which was served at the end of dinner.

Sean Knutsen and Tim Swail with Humidipak, Inc. (www.humidipak.com) for donating their "humidity control" products to keep the cigars in a great condition during the dinner and golf tournament.