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Por Larranaga (cigar brand)
Encyclopedia
Por Larrañaga is the name of two cigar
brands: one produced in Cuba
for Habanos SA
, the Cuban state-owned tobacco company, and the other produced in the Dominican Republic
and Honduras
for Altadis
.
Up until the 1970s, Por Larrañaga remained a respectable and popular premium cigar brand. In the 1980s production fell dramatically and due to trademark litigation in the 1990s, export of the brand was reduced to only a few countries. For some time the brand was reduced to almost entirely machine-made or hand-finished and was mainly sold in Canada and the Middle East. Now the brand has made a bit of a comeback, with two of its four vitolas being totally hand-made.
In 2006, Habanos produced a few thousand boxes of Por Larrañaga Lonsdales (a discontinued vitola much mourned by aficionados of the brand) for release in Germany
. The cigars were packaged in 25-count dress boxes and marked with a special second band that read "Exclusivo Alemania" (Germany Exclusive).
Cigar Aficionado's December 2006 issue reviewed its first Por Larrañaga outside of its "Connoisseur's Corner". The petit corona selected scored an impressive 91.
The brand was resurrected in the United States in early 2007 as Por Larrañaga Cuban Grade, by Florida-based importer Cuban Imports. No Cuban tobacco is used in these cigars; they use Dominican and Honduran filler, a Mexican binder, and either an Ecuadoran-grown Connecticut-seed wrapper or a Mexican maduro wrapper. It is also worth noting that Altadis USA has had some variations of the brand, none containing Cuban Tobacco, of course.
Hand-Made Vitolas
Edición Regional Releases
Only 1400 limited edition numbered boxes were made with 1000 tens and 400 boxes of twenty-five.
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
brands: one produced in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
for Habanos SA
Habanos SA
Habanos S.A. is the arm of the Cuban state tobacco company, Cubatabaco, that controls the promotion, distribution, and export of Cuban cigars and other tobacco products worldwide. The word habanos means literally from Havana, and is the word used in the Spanish-speaking world for Havana cigars...
, the Cuban state-owned tobacco company, and the other produced in the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
and Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
for Altadis
Altadis
Altadis is a multinational purveyor and manufacturer of cigarettes, tobacco and cigars. Altadis was formed via a 1999 merger between Tabacalera, the former Spanish tobacco monopoly and SEITA, the former French tobacco monopoly...
.
History
Por Larrañaga was registered in 1834 by Ignacio Larrañaga. By the end of the 19th century, Por Larrañaga had become a well-known premium cigar brand producing both expensive and inexpensive cigars. In 1925, Por Larrañaga became the first factory to make machine-made cigars which soon resulted in a boycott by factory workers. At the time of the revolution, Por Larrañaga was the sixth largest producing Cuban brand.Up until the 1970s, Por Larrañaga remained a respectable and popular premium cigar brand. In the 1980s production fell dramatically and due to trademark litigation in the 1990s, export of the brand was reduced to only a few countries. For some time the brand was reduced to almost entirely machine-made or hand-finished and was mainly sold in Canada and the Middle East. Now the brand has made a bit of a comeback, with two of its four vitolas being totally hand-made.
In 2006, Habanos produced a few thousand boxes of Por Larrañaga Lonsdales (a discontinued vitola much mourned by aficionados of the brand) for release in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The cigars were packaged in 25-count dress boxes and marked with a special second band that read "Exclusivo Alemania" (Germany Exclusive).
Cigar Aficionado's December 2006 issue reviewed its first Por Larrañaga outside of its "Connoisseur's Corner". The petit corona selected scored an impressive 91.
The brand was resurrected in the United States in early 2007 as Por Larrañaga Cuban Grade, by Florida-based importer Cuban Imports. No Cuban tobacco is used in these cigars; they use Dominican and Honduran filler, a Mexican binder, and either an Ecuadoran-grown Connecticut-seed wrapper or a Mexican maduro wrapper. It is also worth noting that Altadis USA has had some variations of the brand, none containing Cuban Tobacco, of course.
Vitolas in the Por Larrañaga Line
The following list of vitolas de salida (commercial vitolas) within the Por Larrañaga marque lists their size and ring gauge in Imperial (and Metric), their vitolas de galera (factory vitolas), and their common name in American cigar slang.Hand-Made Vitolas
- Montecarlo - 6" × 33 (159 × 13.10 mm), Delicioso, a slim panetela
- Panetela - 5" × 36 (127 × 14.29 mm), Veguerito, a short panetela
- Petit Corona - 5" × 42 (130 × 16.67 mm), Mareva, a petit corona
Edición Regional Releases
- Lonsdale (Germany 2006) - 6" × 42 (165 × 16.67 mm), Cervantes, a lonsdale
- Robusto de Larrañaga (Asia Pacific 2007) - 4" × 50 (124 × 19.84 mm), Robusto, a robusto or rothschild
- Magnifico (United Kingdom 2007, 2008) - 6" × 50 (171 × 19.84 mm), Partagás No. 16, a double robusto
- Belicoso Extra (Asia Pacific 2008) - 5" × 52 (140 × 20.64 mm), Campana, a belicoso
- Los Andes (Peru 2009) - 5" × 50 (127 × 19.84 mm) Petit Pirámide, a petit pyramid
- Valioso (Switzerland 2009) - 6" × 52 (156 × 20.64 mm) Pirámide, a pyramid or torpedo
UK Regional Specialities Release of Por Larranaga Magnificos
Launched by Hunters & Frankau on the 1st November the Por Larranaga Magnificos is a Habanos Regional Speciality exclusively for sale in the UK (English Market Selection). Coming in at 6" by 50 ring gauge it was rolled to reproduce the size and flavour of the 1970s Por Larranaga Magnum.Only 1400 limited edition numbered boxes were made with 1000 tens and 400 boxes of twenty-five.