Por Larranaga

Por Larranaga

POR LARRANAGA

Perhaps the longevity of a brand is the biggest signal to its supremacy. The Por Larrañaga brand dates back to 1834. The name translates to “By Larrañaga”, who Larrañaga was exactly is still questioned and debated.  
According to Orlando Arteaga Abreu, cigar historian from Costa Rica’s Cigar Memory, there are two possible names for the founder of
Por Larrañaga. The founder’s first name was either Ignacio or Ambrosio.
Regardless of what the man was actually called his cigar company flourished in Cuba. Winston Churchill had a steady supply of Por Larrañaga. When Churchill was a guest at Antonio Girauder’s beach house, Girauder would send him 500 Por Larrañaga cigars every three months. 
Por Larrañaga was a vastly popular brand and the factory was the first to produce machine-made cigars. By the time of the Cuban revolution, Por Larrañaga was the sixth most popular cigar brand in Cuba. Its status helped it escape extinction once the tobacco industry was nationalized.
The Cuban production continues to this day and often has special limited releases. The tobacco is exclusively sourced from the famed Vuelta Abajo region. The cigar lines range from mild to medium strength.
Menédez, Garcia, y Cia bought the rights to Por Larrañaga. When Menédez died, Garcia formed Consolidated Cigar Co. The Por Larrañaga brand became part of Consolidated Cigar Co., alongside Montecristo and H. Upmann.
The French tobacco monopoly, SEITA, bought Consolidated Cigar just before the cigar boom. In 1999, SEITA merged with Tabacalera SA to create Altadis SA. The USA branch of Altadis is in charge of the Por Larrañaga brand and the other popular brands that are associated with it.
Production of Por Larrañaga cigars was halted despite having a popular following since the 70’s. The brand was kept mostly untouched except for producing an exclusive cigar for members of the Tobacconists Association of America. Finally, Altadis relaunched the brand in 2016.
The relaunched brand features vintage-specific cigars, which use tobacco from 2012-2013 harvests. The medium strength blend consists of Dominican tobacco in an Ecuadoran-grown Connecticut-seed wrapper. The cigars are handmade at the Tabacalera de Garcia SAS, a member of the Pro Cigar Association of Dominican Cigar Manufacturers.
This rendering of a Cuban classic is just as pleasurable as its predecessor. Allow yourself to be drawn in by the occult history of this premium cigar. Pick up some Por Larrañaga cigars from Mike’s Cigars and experience their excellence for yourself.
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