The universe of Habanos
Habanos is a leader in globally acclaimed cigars and part of its global missive is to elevate the profile of Cuban cigars around the world; here are recent highlights from its 21st Habanos World Challenge
HABANOS celebrates the best of its heritage throughout the year with a variety of events that bring the world of cigars closer to its fans, aficionados and the men and women who are preeminent in the industry.
Plantation and factory tours take place regularly, such as at its beautiful El Laguito factory in Havana. Havana, turning 500 years old this year, is home to the most important cigar factories in the world.
Here, Habanos opens its doors to the fortunate few to reveal the intricate agriculture techniques and legacy of knowledge that turns a leaf into the final product. Those attending the five-day 21st Habanos Festival were amongst the lucky ones invited to visit the cigar factories at El Laguito, where Cohibas are rolled, and to take a peek inside La Corona.
During the tour, they observed the process of making the world’s premium cigars.
Meanwhile, during the 21st edition of the festival, the second edition of Habanos World Challenge took place. It featured five teams and kicked off with 35 multiple-choice questions about Habanos and the history of Cuban cigars, followed by a blind tasting of two cigars where each team had to guess the length, ring gauge, flavour, brand and vitola (cigar) name.
Contestants had to cut and light a cigar using a perfect technique, which was judged on several factors such as the final lighting (the lighting process shouldn’t leave any black stains on the wrapper). The final part of the competition involved a presentation in which the teams envisaged their ideal smoking moment, pairing cigars with spirits and food and sharing the history of the cigar with the judges and audience. The event came to a close with a final battle between the Criollitas de La Habana team made up of Mayli Mostaza and Daylin López de Cuba, and La Excepción, consisting of Italian participants Aurelio Tufano y Giulio Amaturo, with the Italians eventually coming in first.
Meanwhile, gala events unfurled throughout the five-day celebration, with an opening night cocktail celebrating the 500th anniversary of San Cristobal de Habana On Wednesday it was the launch of the Hoyo de Moneterrey Double Corona Grand Reserva at El Laguito Protocol Hall. The party went on until midnight with live entertainment and music.
A gala dinner on Friday celebrated 50 years of Trinidad, with a special humidor by Deart Italy, presided over by Massimo de Munari. During the gala, nominations and winners were celebrated in various industry categories including for Habanos Best Retailer, Manufacturer, Habanos World Challenge and Man of the Year. Virtuozity’s publisher Patrick Brais was nominated in the latter category, a great honour that recognises his unerring passion and devotion to the industry he champions.
The gala concluded with the Tradition Charity Auction of Humidors Shortly before midnight, this, one of the most anticipated moments finally happened: the auction of handcrafted humidors, an event that has sold over a hundred cigar cabinets worth $15-plus million since 1999, entirely funneled into Cuba’s healthcare system. A magnificent lot of seven humidors from such Habano brands as San Cristobal de La Habana, H. Upmann, Hoyo de Monterrey, Romeo y Julieta, Montecristo, Trinidad and Cohiba went under the gavel for a grand total of more than 1.5 million euros. The Trinidad and Cohiba humidors were the stars of the auction and were sold for EUR300,000 each. The UAE team won the bids of the Cohiba and Montecristo Humidors with a total EUR520,000.
The 21st edition of the Habano Festival wrapped up with a glittering, star-studded concert starred by Puerto Rican salsa singer Gilberto Santa Rosa, who shared the limelight with Armando Manzanero, Charles Fox, Haila, Adrián Berazaín and Waldo Mendoza.
