La Gloria Cubana
The history of an old brand, embodying Cuban glory.
La Gloria Cubana is an ancient cigar brand, created by the Sociedad Cabañas y Castro in 1885, long before the Cuban Revolution. In fact, before the Revolution, the brand changed owners once, when it was acquired in 1905 by José F. Rocha & Co. S in C. Almost half a century later, the brand changed hands once again, becoming the property of the Cifuentes family, which also acquired the Bolívar brand. The production of both brands was transferred to the Partagás factory.
At the dawn of the Cuban Revolution, La Gloria Cubana, together with Bolívar, were among the many brands produced by the Partagás factory, which were very popular. This was mainly due to the high quality and consistency of the production offered by the rollers of this factory.
Unfortunately, this did not prevent the brand from temporarily disappearing during the period of the regime's overthrow. It was not until 1965 that La Gloria Cubana was reborn from its ashes, thanks to the impetus of the Partagás factory, which wanted to offer a fruitier and less earthy alternative to Partagás cigars.
The two brands are still closely linked today. They share the same rolling expertise, some of the leaves of the blend and keep the same aromatic structure. Less earthy and robust, add floral, sweet and fruity flavours and you get the typical flavours of a La Gloria Cubana cigar.
Despite this interlude during the Cuban Revolution, La Gloria Cubana has more than a century of history and has always attracted a loyal following of cigar aficionados, who have traditionally been among the most demanding. Its name, which can be translated as "The Cuban Glory", clearly refers to its rich past.
Throughout its history, the brand has distinguished itself by its elegance, notably through its illustrious "Medaille d'Or" line, presented in boxes of 25 varnished "8-9-8" cigars. This style of presentation was popularised by Partagás with its eponymous cigar, the 8-9-8, named after this staggered arrangement in three rows.
In addition to its presentation, the Medaille d'Or line is characterised by an incredible complexity despite the small size of the cigars that make it up, ranging cepo from 28 to 43.
Very little known to the general public because of its limited vitolario, La Gloria Cubana is nevertheless considered a real gem by informed aficionados. Indeed, the brand now offers only two cigars in its catalogue. The very rare Inmensos (exclusively for La Casa del Habano) and the Medaille d'Or No.4, the last survivor of the Médaille d'Or series. Last survivor, because originally the line was composed of 4 cigars, the Medaille d'Or No.1, No.2, No.3 and No.4, all introduced before the revolution.
This popularity is reinforced by the recurrent presence of the brand during special productions of Habanos.
Indeed, thanks to its manufacturing excellence, La Gloria Cubana is very often selected for regional editions. Among them, we can mention the first one introduced, the 2008 Gloriosos, a Dobles (50 x 155 mm) produced exclusively for the UK. Switzerland has also benefited from this excellence on two occasions. The first was in 2010 with the Triunfos, a Mágnum 50 (50 x 160 mm) produced in 2,400 boxes of 25 cigars, and the second in 2018 with the Orgullosos, a 109 (50 x 184 mm) produced in 6,000 boxes of 10 cigars. The latter also gave birth to the 500 Aniversario de La Havana Humidor. The latter, produced exclusively for Switzerland, was released to commemorate the half-millennium of existence of the Cuban capital, founded in 1519. Each of the 100 humidors is handmade and contains 5 boxes of 10 La Gloria Cubana Orgullosos.
To date, including the Alemarado, the brand's latest regional edition, 14 regional editions have been produced by La Gloria Cubana.
Other special productions include the La Gloria Cubana La Casa de Habano 25 Aniversario Humidor. To celebrate the 25-year history of its prestigious La Casa del Habano franchise network, in 2015 Habanos presented a La Gloria Cubana humidor in the shape and colour codes of a colonial-style house.
Inside each of the 3,500 pieces produced are two special modules of La Gloria Cubana: a Pirámides and a Robustos Extra. A total of 30 cigars (15 of each), specially rolled and dressed with a double band, are presented in these small colonial houses. The choice of the La Gloria Cubana brand for a production as symbolic as this one testifies to the importance of the brand in the eyes of Habanos and is a true recognition of its excellence.
In 2023, on the occasion of the Festival del Habano, the brand welcomes a new vitola: La Gloria Cubana Turquinos.
Despite its popularity, the production of La Gloria Cubana cigars remains low. This is probably not due to a lack of customers, but a way to maintain quality. The counterpart of this excellence is that it is extremely difficult to obtain La Gloria Cubana cigars.
To learn more about La Gloria Cubana cigars and the history of the brand, we would be delighted to welcome you to our Art and Culture area, where you will find exclusive items - old Cubatabaco catalogues dating from 1962 presenting the range of the time but also the original vistas.
(Pieces from our private collection)
For more information, contact us on +41 22 552 2799