History of Cohiba Cigars

If you’ve been keeping up with our tales of cigar history, you know that Cuba is the cradle of just about everything in what we love to smoke today. If Cuban cigars themselves are no longer the undisputed leader in the world, their legacy – and the Castro revolution -- inspired the development of the free world in making great puros.

In Cuba itself, what was left of the cigar industry also changed radically after Fidel came to power in 1959. Minor brands tended to disappear, while the iconic labels continued to prosper and be supported by an increasingly uncertain crop of tobacco grown on the island. Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta, H. Upmann, and Partagás all kept pace while some new brands were born.

If there is one moment that defines post-revolutionary Cuban cigar history, it is when Fidel himself smoked a cigar given to him by his bodyguard in 1965. The Cohiba cigar was born soon after.

Cohiba, the word for tobacco in the language of the indigenous Taino people of Cuba, as we all know today, has become the most sought-after brand among Cuban cigars.