- COHIBA A Brand’s Long Road
THANKS TO NONSTOP INNOVATION, COHIBA HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE LEADING BRAND THAT MARCHES AHEAD OF ALL TRENDSETTERS IN THE REALM OF HABANOS
THE FIRST COHIBA
Following the first Lanceros rolled in 1966, named Laguito No. 1 after the factory where they were produced, two other Laguito No. 1 and Laguito No. 2 formats joined the brand in 1967. The trio then got the respective names they have been known for so far: Lanceros, Coronas Especiales and Panetelas.
Lanceros are the most classic Cohiba of all because they carry the original format Fidel Castro puffed on and that eventually gave birth to the brand. According to experts and smokers, this cigar is quite an experience and many believe they are the right habanos to be aged for several years because they acquire far more complexity as years go by.
The history of the different editions from Habanos S.A.’s flagship brand –the Cohiba habanos- teed off long before they were named by Cuban heroine Celia Sanchez Manduley, who dusted off the old term used by Cuban aboriginals to call their rustic roll of tobacco leaves they used to smoke.
Stemming right from the smokes cigar rollers prepare for themselves, Lanceros were the first habanos Cuban President Fidel Castro used to give as a personal gift to dignitaries and foreign visitors.
At that time, they didn’t have a name or distinctive brand to call their own, and the band showed the name of the personality the precious gift was destined to.
Mass production began revving up in 1966 –finally named as Cohiba- and yet they didn’t have a design of their own, which was eventually revealed in 1969. It was some kind of black-and-white stained-glass window inside half a semicircle, sporting the word “Cohiba” under it on a black backdrop. All that much was clustered inside a band that was half white and half black.
Shortly after that, the band was transformed, with the brand name in the middle of a band that was half gilt and showed some sort of chessboard on top. In that same design, the head of a Taino aboriginal was used for the first time, an icon that has lived out to date amid a number of modifications.
One of the main features of the Cohiba brand is the use of the best tobacco harvested in the fine plantations of Vuelta Abajo (Pinar del Rio), especially the one hailing from El Corojo, which produces a soft-texture and light-colored wrapper leaf. For the filler, Cohiba takes the very best sun-grown leaves out of Pinar del Río, from San Luis y San Juan in Vuelta Abajo.
Another characteristic of the Cohiba brand is the so-called “third fermentation”, a special process consisting of slight fermenting coupled with an aging procedure. At the same time, and in the case of the Maduro Line, the wrapper endures a particular fermentation process of up to five years, while the Behike habanos rely on a blend of special leaves called medio tiempo, barely seen in sun-grown tobacco plants.
Thanks to nonstop innovation, Cohiba has always been the leading brand that marches ahead of all trendsetters in the realm of habanos. It was the first to introduce a Reserve back in 2002, and a Grand Reserve in 2009 –both were rolled with tobacco leaves that had been aged for at least three and five years, respectively.
COHIBA CLASSIC LINE
Aunque los Cohiba fueron presentados Although Cohiba habanos were commercially introduced in Spain in 1982, it wasn’t until 1989 when the Cohiba Classic Line hit the global market. Featuring a mild-to-strong taste, it consists of half a dozen vitolas, the three original ones –Lanceros, Coronas Especiales and Panetelas- plus Espléndidos, Robustos and Exquisitos.
During the 14th Habano Festival in 2012, the Cohiba Piramide Extra had its big break as the brand’s first torpedo, thus rounding out the Classic Line.
Coronas Especiales
Factory Vitola: Laguito No. 2
Ring Gauge: 38 Length: 152 mm
Espléndidos
Factory Vitola: Julieta No. 2
Ring Gauge: 47 Length: 178 mm
Exquisitos
Factory Vitola: Seoane
Ring Gauge: 33 Length: 126 mm
Lanceros
Factory Vitola: Laguito No. 1
Ring Gauge: 38 Length: 192 mm
Panetelas
Factory Vitola: Laguito No. 3
Ring Gauge: 26 Length: 115 mm
Pirámide Extra
Factory Vitola: Pirámide Extra
Ring Gauge: 54 Length: 160 mm
Robustos
Factory Vitola: Robustos
Ring Gauge: 50 Length: 124 mm
LÍNEA 1492
Launched in Havana in 1992 to mark the fifth centennial of the discovery of Cuba by Christopher Columbus, the mild-tasting Línea 1492 became available in the world market from 1994 on. This series consisted originally of five formats, each and every one of them in reference to the five centuries since the discovery.
A sixth vitola joined the Línea 1492 in 2002, the Cohiba Siglo VI, one of the formats that has panned out to be a basic benchmark for the Cohiba brand all around the world.
Siglo I
Factory Vitola: Perlas
Ring Gauge: 40 Length: 102 mm
Siglo II
Factory Vitola: Marevas,
Ring Gauge: 42 Length: 129 mm
Siglo III
Factory Vitola: Coronas Grandes
Ring Gauge: 42 Length: 155 mm
Siglo IV
Factory Vitola: Coronas Gordas
Ring Gauge: 46 Length: 143 mm
Siglo V
Factory Vitola: Dalias
Ring Gauge: 43 Length: 170 mm
Siglo VI
Factory Vitola: Cañonazo
Ring Gauge: 52 Length: 150 mm
LÍNEA MADURO 5
Línea Maduro 5, with mild-to-strong taste, was unveiled as Habanos S.A.’s star product in 2007.
It has a distinctive feature: the addition for the first time ever of a cured wrapper that undergoes a painstaking fermentation process for the course of five years, a condition that gives these cigars a dark-hued shade and, therefore, a unique look when stacked up against other habanos within the Cohiba brand.
Maduro 5 Genios
Factory Vitola: Genios
Ring Gauge: 52 Length: 140 mm
Maduro 5 Mágicos
Factory Vitola: Mágicos
Ring Gauge: 52 Length: 115 mm
Maduro 5 Secretos
Factory Vitola: Secretos
Ring Gauge: 40 Length: 110 mm
LÍNEA COHIBA BEHIKE
In 2009, a peculiar product came into being with the launch of the Cohiba’s fourth line: Cohiba Behike, known around the world as BHK and named after the behikes, sorcerers from the ancient Taino tribes who used tobacco smoke to generate an ecstasy trance that let them talk to their gods.
The strong-tasting Cohiba Behike is the brand’s most exclusive line. It provided its three vitolas for the first time with the medio tiempo, a pretty scarce leaf, hailing from the two upper leaves of the sun-grown tobacco plant, that chips in exceptional character and taste to this particular line.
Featuring three vitolas –BHK 52, BHK 54 and BHK 56- Cohiba Behike is one of the most unique habanos of all time. Since its launch, it has garnered tremendous acclaim among experts and collectors, thanks to its aromatic and taste profiles –something extremely coveted everywhere.
Behike BHK 52
Factory Vitola: Laguito No. 4
Ring Gauge: 52 Length: 119 mm
Behike BHK 54
Factory Vitola: Laguito No. 5
Ring Gauge: 54 Length: 144 mm
Behike BHK 56
Factory Vitola: Laguito No. 6
Ring Gauge: 56 Length: 166 mm
COHIBA: HISTORIC CURIOSITIES
In addition to the four lines that make up the Cohiba brand since its beginning -Clásica, Siglos, Maduro 5 and Behike- there’s a series of Special Productions, Commemoratives and Limited Editions, many of which have been sought after by collectors either because of their historic significance or due to their rarity.
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