San Cristobal de la Habana

San Cristobal de la Habana is a Cuban premium cigar brand produced in Cuba for Habanos S.A., the state-owned Cuban tobacco company responsible for the international commercialization of Cuban handmade cigars. The brand was officially introduced in Havana on November 20, 1999, and takes its name from San Cristóbal de La Habana, the historical name associated with Havana. Its name gives the marque a direct connection to the city’s colonial identity and to Havana’s long-standing importance in Cuban tobacco culture. The modern brand should not be confused with an earlier pre-Revolutionary cigar label bearing the same name. The earlier marque disappeared after the Cuban Revolution, while the present San Cristobal de la Habana was created as a new brand and is not described as a continuation or revival of that former business. This distinction is important because the brand’s historical positioning derives from Havana’s heritage rather than from an uninterrupted commercial lineage. At launch, the portfolio consisted of four handmade vitolas: El Morro, El Principe, La Fuerza, and La Punta. These formats cover a range of traditional Cuban cigar shapes and dimensions, including a double corona, petit corona, robusto extra, and pyramid. The names are linked to Havana landmarks or cultural references, reinforcing the brand’s city-centered identity. El Morro, for example, shares its name with the historic fortress guarding Havana’s harbor, while the broader naming system presents the range as a series of Havana references rather than as a generic tobacco line. For the brand’s fifth anniversary in 2004, Habanos introduced three additional cigars in a commemorative V Anniversary Humidor: Officios, Mercaderes, and Muralla. These cigars were later released for general public sale, although they retained a special distribution association. They carried an additional La Casa del Habano band and were initially available through La Casa del Habano specialist retailers, the international network dedicated to the sale and promotion of Habanos products. Their inclusion expanded the range with formats including a corona, grand corona, and double pyramid. San Cristobal de la Habana operates in the premium handmade cigar segment. Its offering is organized around vitolas de salida, the commercial formats used for sale, and the corresponding vitolas de galera, the factory format names used within the Cuban cigar system. The line includes both conventional cylindrical formats and figurados such as La Punta and Muralla. The range therefore provides variety in size, ring gauge, and shape while maintaining a consistent Cuban handmade-cigar identity. The brand’s distribution and market presence are tied to Habanos S.A.’s international network rather than to a separately disclosed corporate organization. Public reference material identifies Habanos S.A. as the producer’s parent commercial house, but does not provide a distinct San Cristobal de la Habana headquarters, executive team, financial reporting, or stock-market listing. The brand remains positioned as a Havana-themed Cuban cigar marque within the broader Habanos portfolio.

The modern San Cristobal de la Habana brand was officially launched in Havana on November 20, 1999. Its name refers to the historical name of Havana, connecting the brand to the city’s Spanish-colonial origins and its role as a major center of Cuban cigar production and trade. The naming choice established a clear geographic and cultural identity for the marque from its introduction. The brand has a namesake predecessor from the period before the Cuban Revolution. That earlier San Cristobal de la Habana cigar brand was produced until the Revolution, but the modern brand is regarded as unrelated to it rather than as a direct continuation. The post-1999 marque was therefore a newly created entry in the Cuban state tobacco sector’s premium cigar portfolio, using historical Havana symbolism without claiming an uninterrupted commercial history. The initial collection comprised four handmade cigars: El Morro, El Principe, La Fuerza, and La Punta. Together, these formats established the range’s core structure. El Morro was offered as a long double corona; El Principe as a smaller petit corona; La Fuerza as a robusto extra; and La Punta as a pyramid. The variety allowed the brand to cover different smoking formats while retaining the traditional Cuban vitola system. The portfolio was expanded for the brand’s fifth anniversary in 2004. Three additional cigars—Officios, Mercaderes, and Muralla—were produced for the V Anniversary Humidor. They were subsequently released for public sale. These cigars were distinguished by an additional La Casa del Habano band, reflecting their initial connection with the specialist La Casa del Habano retail network. Their distribution history gave the anniversary additions a more exclusive presentation within the broader San Cristobal de la Habana range. The expanded line added several larger or more unusual formats. Officios is a corona-sized cigar, Mercaderes is a grand corona, and Muralla is a double pyramid. The latter, like La Punta, is a figurado, giving the brand a visible emphasis on shaped cigars as well as standard cylindrical forms. The names of the cigars continue the Havana-centered approach, drawing on places, architectural references, or historical associations connected with the city. San Cristobal de la Habana is produced for Habanos S.A., the Cuban state-owned tobacco company and the principal international commercial organization for Cuban cigars. The brand’s commercial identity is consequently integrated into Habanos’ wider portfolio and distribution system. Publicly available reference material does not identify a separate brand founder, independent corporate headquarters, listed security, dedicated executive team, or brand-specific financial results. The available record presents San Cristobal de la Habana primarily as a premium Cuban handmade-cigar marque whose differentiation comes from its Havana name, historical imagery, and structured range of vitolas. Its documented development consists of the 1999 launch and the 2004 anniversary expansion, with no further dated product or corporate milestones established in the supplied reference material.

• 2004

  Fifth-anniversary range expanded

  [1]San Cristobal de la Habana (cigar)en.wikipedia.org

  Three additional cigars—Officios, Mercaderes, and Muralla—were created for the V Anniversary Humidor and later released for public sale. The cigars carried an additional La Casa del Habano band.

• 1999

  Modern brand launched in Havana

  [1]San Cristobal de la Habana (cigar)en.wikipedia.org

  San Cristobal de la Habana was officially introduced in Havana on November 20, 1999, as a new Cuban cigar brand for Habanos S.A. The initial range consisted of El Morro, El Principe, La Fuerza, and La Punta.

A Havana heritage-oriented premium Cuban cigar brand, positioned within Habanos S.A.'s international portfolio and distinguished by a range of handmade vitolas named around Havana's historical identity.

• Handmade double corona cigar · 1999

  El Morro

  El Morro is one of the four cigars in the brand’s original 1999 launch collection. It uses the Paco factory vitola and is presented in a long double-corona format measuring 7 1/4 inches by 49 ring gauge, or approximately 184 by 19.45 millimeters. Its name evokes Havana’s historic harbor fortress, reinforcing the brand’s city-based identity.

• Handmade petit corona cigar · 1999

  El Principe

  El Principe formed part of the original San Cristobal de la Habana portfolio introduced in 1999. Its factory vitola is Minuto, corresponding to a petit corona measuring 4 3/8 inches by 42 ring gauge, or approximately 111 by 16.67 millimeters. It provides the range with a comparatively compact traditional Cuban format alongside the brand’s larger and shaped offerings.

• Handmade robusto extra cigar · 1999

  La Fuerza

  La Fuerza was one of the four launch cigars of 1999. It uses the Gordito factory vitola and has a robusto-extra format measuring 5 1/2 inches by 50 ring gauge, or approximately 140 by 19.84 millimeters. The cigar gives the original range a shorter, fuller-bodied format in contrast with the long El Morro and smaller El Principe.

• Handmade pyramid cigar · 1999

  La Punta

  La Punta was included in the original 1999 launch line and uses the Campana factory vitola. It is a pyramid-shaped cigar measuring 5 1/2 inches by 52 ring gauge, or approximately 140 by 20.64 millimeters. Its figurado construction adds a shaped format to the launch assortment and supports the brand’s distinctive Havana-oriented presentation.

• Handmade corona cigar · 2004

  Officios

  Officios was one of three cigars created for the brand’s V Anniversary Humidor in 2004. It uses the Dalias Cortas factory vitola and has a corona format measuring 5 1/4 inches by 43 ring gauge, or approximately 133 by 17.07 millimeters. It was later made available to the public and is associated with the additional La Casa del Habano band used for the anniversary additions.

• Handmade grand corona cigar · 2004

  Mercaderes

  Mercaderes was introduced as part of the V Anniversary Humidor created for the brand’s fifth anniversary. Its Hermoso No. 1 factory vitola corresponds to a grand corona measuring 6 1/2 inches by 48 ring gauge, or approximately 165 by 19.05 millimeters. Like the other anniversary additions, it later entered public sale and carried the additional La Casa del Habano band.

• Handmade double pyramid cigar · 2004

  Muralla

  Muralla was created for the V Anniversary Humidor and later released for public sale. It uses the Rodolfos factory vitola and is a large double-pyramid cigar measuring 7 1/8 inches by 54 ring gauge, or approximately 181 by 21.43 millimeters. Its shaped construction makes it one of the more distinctive formats in the San Cristobal de la Habana portfolio.

• 2004

  Expansion through the V Anniversary HumidorProduct launch

  Background

  The brand marked its fifth anniversary with three additional cigars: Officios, Mercaderes, and Muralla. The products were initially associated with a commemorative humidor and specialist La Casa del Habano retailers.

  Action taken

  Habanos added the three anniversary vitolas to the San Cristobal de la Habana offering and later released them for public sale, retaining an additional La Casa del Habano band.

  Aftermath

  The decision expanded the brand beyond its four original launch cigars and added corona, grand-corona, and double-pyramid formats to the range.

  Source

1. 1San Cristobal de la Habana (cigar)en.wikipedia.org
2. 2Habanos S.A. official websitehabanos.com