This weeks edition is about the cigar club Distinguished Ruffian. In this interview, I’m speak with Mitch Rockwell, the “El Prez” as he is referred to, for the Distinguished Ruffian.
Q: What is a Distinguished Ruffian?
The name was made to try to define our personalities. Distinguished because members should always want to set themselves apart from others in our actions and strive to be the best at whatever it is that we do. Ruffian because, when need be, we can be that tough person. Basically, the James Dalton motto of “Be nice, until it’s time not to be nice.” A quote from the movie Roadhouse.
Q: Where did the idea of starting a club come from?
Photos courtesy of each person’s IG page
There used to be a group of five of us (Julius Fletcher, Rogan Kowalski, Mike Faison, Fran Sellitto and myself) that got together every weekend to smoke, drink and talk about different stuff.
Since we were all fairly opinionated and I knew how to build basic websites we figured why not create a review site and tell everyone instead of just each other. So, I started working on the site while we tossed around ideas for the logo. While working on the site I found I could add a plug in for an IG page and connected the two hoping that it would lead to greater exposure and on a whim added the page for becoming a member not thinking much about it or even thinking anyone really would.
Then the first submission came through, a person in Canada named @Buffalohunter67 and I thought “Oh, well now what do we do?” We had made the first set of patches but at the time did not like the logo, so we thought, OK let’s get these out and we’ll re-do the design after those were gone. So, we sent out a thank you card with the patch in it. As more submissions came through the more the patch was being posted on IG which lead more people back to the club and more submissions and it kind of grew exponentially from there. Thankfully we never chose to re-do the logo because everyone seems to like it.
Q: What are some of the beliefs of the club?
Most importantly would be unity. The idea was to bring people together regardless if you’re a man or a woman, what your religious beliefs might be, the color of your skin or your sexual orientation. We feel that all people should be treated with respect. The goal was to create more than just a club we wanted to make it a global community that had a family feel so members knew they had people behind them when they needed it. We also believe in giving back and trying to work with charitable organizations such as CFW (Cigar for Warriors) at all events we hold. And of course, trying to make the best out of each day.
Q: How does one become a Distinguished Ruffian?
It’s a fairly simple process, under the “Want To Be An Official Distinguished Ruffian” tab on DistinguishedRuffian.com there are full instructions but in a simple explanation, first you want to follow the main Instagram feed @DistinguishedRuffian, (subscribing to Distinguished Ruffian TV on YouTube doesn’t hurt either) then there is a Member Profile Form to download and fill out. You then send that form and a submission photo to DRMembership@outlook.com. After a short screening process of about 6-8 weeks you would become approved.
Q: What are some of the benefits of being a Distinguished Ruffian member
Family, that would be one of the biggest benefits to being a member. Wherever I travel to I can either make a post about where I’m going or check the member map to see who’s nearby and people always want to come out and have a cigar or a drink. Anywhere you go you have family there. Also, events are held throughout the year in different states, our list of shops that offer member discounts continues to grow. There is also the possibility of creating a VIP membership level that would include things like free cigars, VIP member only merchandise and discounts in the member shop, but those details are being ironed out. The traditional membership would still be free, the goal wasn’t to get rich off of the members, just to keep the club functioning.
Photo courtesy of @distinguishedruffian_mitch
Q: How many members would you say there are in the DR?
Currently about 7,000 worldwide are patch holding members.
Q: With a club that’s so big, how do members keep in contact with each other?
As the club grew it was clear that a new way of communication had to be made for our members, and after quite a lot of experimentation with a previous member, Aaron, we found that Google Hangouts was the best app to use so we created a main chatroom for all of the members and quickly filled the room with hundreds of members all talking at once and it was hectic but fun. Then…it crashed, apparently, we overloaded the serves at Google and the whole room went down. With the club growing so quickly it was becoming increasing difficult to try to keep up with every single members’ questions throughout the day and respond to emails so the idea of creating chapters came up.
Image courtesy of Distinguishedruffian.com
The Chapters are a great way for members to have both the global feel with the main DR IG feed but also have a more local feel with their chapter IG page. The chapters consist of 4 officers who all have different titles but not truly different ranks. They work together as a team and each one has specific responsibilities to the chapter. Along with creating a smaller more personal feel to the group it provides quicker and easier access to answers for most members’ questions.
Q: As the President of the DR how do you reach your members?
Image from @distinguishedruffian_mitch
I stay as active as I can on my personal account @Distinguishedruffian_mitch and interact with them that way along with popping into the different chapter chats to try to keep up with everyone. But my favorite way to reach the members is by making it to as many DR meet ups as possible to meet everyone in person. It’s really a great time for me to get that opportunity to make a personal connection with everyone.
Q: Now we know cigars are the basis of the club, but what are some other interest that members share?
The other main interests would probably be alcohol and firearms. That’s not to say that all members are drinkers, we have quite a few members who do not drink and participate in our shot calls with things like tea or soda. Obviously, I wouldn’t suggest that somebody have a bunch to drink and then go play with their guns while smoking a cigar that’s just what some of the main interests of the members are.
Q: Ok, what are some your favorite cigars?
See this is a tough one because it depends on my mood. But if this is one of those “You’re stuck on an island and can only have 5 cigars what would it be” this would be the list.
1. DE Norteno
2. LFD L300
3. Debonaire Daybreak
4. Espinsoa Alpha Dog
5. DE Nasty Fritas
Q: In your opinion, what’s the best pairing with a cigar?
Friends and family. To me my mood makes or breaks a cigar, being surrounded by good friends or some of the DR family is what really makes the smoking experience special.
Image from @distinguishedruffian_juice
Q: What’s your go to drink while enjoying a cigar?
It used to be single malt scotch but recently I’ve switched to bourbons. I find the peppery taste helps the tobacco notes stand out. While some will argue that water is the best pallet cleanser when smoking I will stand by my bourbon.
Q: Where do you see the future of the DR going?
I hope to see it continue to grow and make an even larger global brotherhood/sisterhood of like-minded people and be able to host even larger meet ups across the world. The goal is to improve and promote the knowledge of tobacco, alcohol, and personal arms in a safe and educated manner through the organization and cooperation of ourselves and other agencies such as, companies for these products, store owners, managers, sales representatives, member meet-ups as well as written articles added to DistinguishedRuffian.com.
Q: Any closing remarks or tips you like share with the readers?
Join the club and have fun. We started on the idea of just making friends who liked the same thing and that has never changed. Of course, with growth dynamics have to change and more structure has to be formed but the heart of the concept has never changed. The core belief and idea of just bringing people together with a sense of community is the foundation of what this family is about and that will never change.
Distinguished Ruffian #clubisfamily
Founding Members:
@distinguishedruffian_juice
@distinguishedruffian_fran
@distinguishedruffian_mike
@distinguishedruffian_rogan
@distinguishedruffian_mitch
Distinguished Smoker 