Hoyo de Monterrey cigars

Don José Gener y Batet was a Catalan Spaniard who emigrated to Cuba at the age of thirteen in 1831. He worked on his uncle's plantation in Vuelta Abajo. Around 1850, he moved to Havana to set up a factory and his own brand of cigars: La Escepcion.

It was a direct success in the 1860s, José Gener used the capital acquired to purchase the "Hoyo de Monterrey" farm located in the heart of the famous Vuelta Abajo in San Juan y Martinez. In Spanish, "Hoyo" means hole and "Hoyo de Monterrey" means Monterrey hole. A particularly apt term for this Vega, which stretches out below the banks of the river that waters San Juan y Martinez. This terroir was renowned for producing the best Cuban tobacco at the time.

José Gener's Hoyo de Monterrey cigar brand was registered in 1865, at his factory address at 7, Principe Alfonso Street, Havana. The cigars, made with sweet and aromatic blends, quickly won international success and were very popular in England.

Don José Gener y Batet returned to Spain in 1895, where he died in 1900. His daughter, Lutgarda Gener, took over the prosperous family business. At the time, the Hoyo de Monterrey factory was the largest in Cuba, employing no fewer than 350 workers.

After José Gener's death, demand for cigars declined. The family concentrated more on cane plantations than tobacco fields. In 1931, the Hoyo de Monterrey brand, along with La Escepcion, was sold to the Fernandez Palicio y Ca company. This company had been founded by Ramon Fernandez and Fernando Palicio, she already owned two brands, and not the least: Punch and Belinda.

When Ramon Fernandez died in 1948, Fernando Palicio took over the business and created Fernandez, Palicio et Cia S.A., where he was sole owner. At the time of the revolution, it was still located at calle Maximo Gomez 51, with its many brands including Hoyo de Monterrey, Punch, La Escepcion, Belinda and many others; it accounted for 13% of Cuban cigar exports in 1958.

After the revolution, production of Hoyo de Monterrey cigars was uninterrupted, as was that of Punch and La Escepcion. They remain as popular as ever among aficionados.