Padrón

Padrón stands as one of the most prestigious and award-winning premium cigar brands in the world, renowned for its exceptional full-bodied Nicaraguan cigars crafted in distinctive box-pressed formats. The brand has achieved unparalleled recognition, earning the coveted '#1 Cigar of the Year' honors from Cigar Aficionado an unprecedented four times, more than any other cigar manufacturer. Recognized world-wide for delivering only the finest, handmade, complex cigars, Padrón represents the pinnacle of Nicaraguan tobacco craftsmanship. Their cigars possess an incredibly unique flavor that is so full bodied it will appeal to the most seasoned of smokers, and yet they are so smooth and creamy that even those who prefer mild smokes still go crazy for them - a claim few other cigars can make.

Background

The Padrón legacy began in the mid-1800s when Dámaso Padrón, José Orlando's grandfather, immigrated from the Canary Islands to Cuba and worked in the tobacco fields of Pinar del Rio. With their savings, the family bought a small farm and eventually expanded to multiple farms in the Pinar del Rio region, including a factory in the town of Piloto - from which the official company name Piloto Cigars originates. After the Castro regime nationalized the family farm in 1961, José Orlando left Cuba and eventually settled in Miami in 1962, founding Piloto Cigars in 1964. In 1970, Padrón moved the company to Estelí, Nicaragua, where it established its reputation for producing world-class cigars despite navigating through decades of political upheaval and civil war.

History

José Orlando founded the small family business in Miami in 1964 after immigrating from Cuba, initially producing cigars with Connecticut Broadleaf tobacco. Four years later, José discovered Nicaraguan tobacco in the Jalapa valley and fell in love with its quality, incorporating it into production by 1967. The company faced significant challenges when their Estelí factory was burned down during Nicaragua's civil war in 1978, but José rebuilt operations within a month using tobacco stored in other warehouses. During the 1985 U.S. embargo of Nicaragua, Padrón moved production to Honduras until the embargo was lifted in 1990, demonstrating the family's unwavering commitment to quality over convenience.

Reputation

Padrón was the first #1 cigar of the year for Cigar Aficionado in 2004 and has won that title again in 2007, 2009, and 2021 - no other cigar company has achieved three of these awards except Padrón. The brand has received numerous awards and high ratings from respected cigar critics, connoisseurs and aficionados, with the Thousand series alone receiving over sixty-one ratings ranging from 88 to 94 on a hundred-point scale. Long seen as the king of Nicaraguan cigars, Padrón has risen very quickly through the ranks of the premium cigar industry over its relatively short history compared to established Cuban brands. The company maintains its commitment to quality by limiting production to only 5 million cigars per year to ensure standards that meet family expectations.