I wish Dumas had seen Montecristo

This story began not so long ago. Things like that happen sometimes: The history becomes classics without getting old. Classics are Montecristo, the world's sales leader among hand-made brands for many years. Montecristo No. 4 is the classics of classics. It is the best sold cigar in the history of mankind.

What version of this story should I tell you first: a textbook one (I wonder if there are any textbooks on this subject) or the real one? Let me begin with the textbook version. The following story is very popular. A young, very capable and assertive Alonso Menendez, together with practical Pepe Garcia, purchased the H.Upmann factory in 1937. Its heyday was already over, and the factory was in neglect and oblivion. Though... glorious names are never forgotten! You should just dust them off and remove the mildew. The young people seemingly counted on that. They purchased this company and, in order to inject fresh blood into it and to make a breakthrough on the market, they registered a new brand with a romantic name of Montecristo. A family legend has it that the very name of Montecristo was born in the happy minutes when the Menendezes set off to the resort of Monte Altube and enjoyed the most famous wine, Lacrime di Cristo (Christ's Tears) there. Monte plus Cristo made Montecristo.

However, the Habanos S.A's archives was, founded a record that on July 25, 1935 the registration application for the Montecristo brand was submitted by Segundo Lopez who owned the Cuban-based Particulares factory back then. It is from him that Alonso Menendez bought the factory several days later and, in addition to it, the new name, Montecristo.

And this brand was not meant for the H.Upmann factory at all. This is evidenced by a page-size advertisement placed in The Habanos magazine. This advertisement in the issue dated August 1935 offers three leading Havana cigar brands: Particulares, Byron and Montecristo. The H.Upmann factory would be bought two years later.

Interestingly, the newly born Montecristo was offered together with two other honored brands and featured the same logo, which is well-known in the world until now.

Recipe of Success

The logo that represented a triangle made of six crossed swords with a heraldic lily in the middle was designed by John Hunter Morris, who became Montecristo's exclusive distributor in the UK.

It produced a bombshell effect on the world of Cuban design. Purely Cuban logos were styled in sumptuous and ornate baroque: gilt, lush floral design, voluptuous women and ancestral coats of arms.

Consumers quickly memorized Montecristo's concise and clean-cut design. Certainly, it was easier for Hunter to 'fathom this out'. He lived in the United Kingdom, and the European art had already passed many stages of avant-gardism by then: It had recovered from cubism, suprematism, and entered the art decor environment. Hunter brought just a speck of the fresh European winds to the patriarchal Cuban land.

The success was tremendous. Its second component was the ridiculously simple format names—No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4. and No. 5. An advertisement memorable to us reads: "Easy to remember, hard to forget".
The only question remains: What is the story of the name of Montecristo itself? If the version that Alonso Menendez invented this brand name specifically for his new acquisition, H.Upmann, is untenable, perhaps, the history of the name was quite different.

Let's get back to the time when Segundo Lopez brought the registration application for this brand. It's unlikely that he had any far-reaching plans for this brand, or nurtured and cherished that name. Yet he sold the factory to the Menendezes the same month. Moreover, Lopez was known as a speculator. He was not interested in the production but buying and reselling enterprises was his thing. The conclusion prompts itself that the name just fell into his lap. It would be appropriate to recall that special workers used to read fascinating novels to torsedors at many Cuban factories to liven up the monotony of their work. Count Monte Cristo by Dumas just couldn't miss this list. Further developments remained unknown: whether the workers asked the new brand to be named after their favorite character, or Lopez himself sensed a successful brand in this name.

One way or another, one shouldn't belittle Alonso Menendez' and Pepe Garcia's contribution to the success of this endeavor, even though they didn't invent the name or developed the logo. But what would become of the name or the logo, if their content did not meet the consumers' expectations? It would be just an empty shell. You cannot run on a pretty name alone for a long time. The Montecristo cigars justified their romantic name and their unusual logo instantly. How did they manage to accomplish this?

Alonso Menendez and Pepe Garcia (a former manager of the Partagas factory), who were pros in their field and adept at cigar production, invented the ideal cigar recipe—Cuban tobacco as is. It was neither strong nor soft. not too fragrant, but just typical. It was not softened by additional fermentations; its initial flavors were not enhanced. They just took the premium tobacco and aged it in special cedar cases. This gave birth to a model Cuban cigar with the masculine, no-nonsense taste.

When we describe a Cohiba cigar, we say it is softer than Montecristo. We speak about a Partagas cigar and say that it is stronger than Montecristo. Menendez and Garcia created a reference point. Both novices and experienced smokers are fond of Montecristo; the brand quickly made a conquest of aficionados in different countries, with different cigar traditions. Surprisingly, you never get tired of it, even if you chain-smoke it day in and day out.

Enter H.Upmann

They say that it the money got from Montecristo sales were invested by Alonso Menendez into the purchase of the famous H.Upmann factory from J.Frankau S.A. It happened in early 1937. Montecristo's production facilities were relocated there, and the new brand has actually begun competing with its elder half-sister, the H.Upmann cigar. Truth be told, Montecristo has already won wild popularity, and it was easy as pie for it to get in front of its sister.
J.Franklin Co. Ltd. reserved the right to distribute H.Upmann cigars in the UK, whereas John Hunter Morris and Elkan Co. Ltd. retained the right to sell the Montecristo cigars.

WWII that broke out in 1939 ruined the trade relations. The UK's relations with the outer world were severed. Relations with J.Hunter, the exclusive distributor (the one who came up with the Montecristo logo), were discontinued.

Here's when Alfred Dunhil l came to rescue. He decided to launch Montecristo on the U.S. market, and got it right. The cigar was a hit.

In the 1950's, it gained the lead on the global market and accounted for 14% of all Cuban cigar sales across the world.

But the Cuban revolution is forthcoming.

Factories—to Workers!

It was 1959. Revolutionary soldiers took Alonso Menendez away right from his study, without even letting him pack up. Together with other industrialists, he was embarked and sent to Spain.

The inexhaustible toiler, Menendez to the Canaries and started producing cigars again. Fortunately, the local tobacco was not so bad, though, of course, it did not come near to the Cuban one. But nobody was going to part ways with Cuba for a long time. Menendez, as many others, had no doubts that the Castro rule would last no more than a couple of years, and that the U.S.A. would suppress it quickly. So he gave another name to his Spanish brainchild—Montecruz. Making Montecristo wasn't possible without Cuban tobacco. Moreover, if he was going to return to former production, why tarnish the reputable name of Montecristo?

This was the naive Alonso Menendez; way of thinking. Yet he reserved the right to the Montecristo brand. However, this right was the only thing left from the large production facilities he had built with his own hands.
But he did not despond. There was a way out from that situation. The U.S.-imposed embargo on trade with Cuba made the U.S. market accessible to European cigar manufacturers. Earlier, they had to compete with Cuban cigars, and this competition was lost even before it began.

In the 1960's, Menendez relocated his production facilities to Jamaica and then to the Dominican Republic: Manual labor was still cheap in the Caribbean countries as compared with significant wage increases in Spain.
This is how we ended up in today's situation: There is a Cuban Montecristo cigar and a Dominican Montecristo cigar. They can be distinguished by a small inscription on the back of the box: Hecho en Republica Dominicana (Made in the Dominican Republic) and by the absence of the word 'Habana' on the logo. And of course, the principal difference is that the Cuban Montecristo is sold everywhere except the U.S., and Dominican Montecristo isn't sold anywhere except the U.S. They have smartly divided the markets, and the brand owners did not claim any compensation from the Castro government. Conversely, the Dominican brand owners made a good use of the true Mrs. Montecristo brand shrouded in fame and glory. Yet, each American buying the sacred cigar hopes deep inside that he inhales the flavor of that very legendary Montecristo. Certain experts say that after the embargo is lifted, the production of the Dominican Montecristo will be discontinued.

Nationalized Montecristo

The orphaned Montecristo dragged on in the socialist Cuba. It had not undergone any significant changes up until 1969. This year is known in the cigar history as the year when the Cohiba brand was discovered by the general public. Answering the three new formats in the Cohiba series (Cohiba Lanceros, Coronas Especiales and Panetelas), the Montecristo series was supplemented with Especial, Especial No. 2 and Joyitas that same year.

The Panetelas format cigars became particularly popular after The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, one of the first movies starring Clint Eastwood, was released. The Eastwood's character chewed on a similar cigar at all times, and its popularity skyrocketed together with the popularity of the cult cowboy. So Joyitas was in for success.
A solemn and elegant Montecristo A was also doomed for success. By its mere look, it gave a new status to a smoker. It was launched in 1971, together with Montecristo B. However Montecristo B was a failure: It did not live up to the manufacturers' expectations. Perhaps, it succumbed to success of its 'sister', since Montecristo A made it to the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's most expensive cigar.

The next addition to the series was not very successful, either. In 1980, Montecristo 6 and Montecristo 7 were presented. But they came too late: the panetelas were already history. The era of robusto was already in its early stages.

Robusto cigars first appeared in the limited Reserva de Milenio series dedicated to the advent of the new Millennium in 1999. For the first and last time Montecristo cigars were packed into a porcelain jar.
Montecristos account for more than 23% of the Cuban cigars sold across the world. Montecristo No. 4 accounts for 10% of all Havana cigars. 

The next year, Montecristo cigars of the robusto format were produced in a limited series again. Their popularity was so obvious that a new cigar, Edmundo, called in memory of the main character of Alexander Duma's novel of the same name, secured a solid footing in the Montecristo permanent series. Montecristo Edmundo—twice dedicated to Dumas—belongs to the robusto family. It's a bit larger than the standard robusto. Petit Edmundo was released in 2006.

Aficionados are likely to be surprised by and enjoy the Montecristo's new vitolas. But even if it does not happen, the love for and respect of this brand will always be there. Alonso Menendez and Pepe Garcia have once invented a surprisingly simple and fantastically precise formula for a cigar that can't disappoint. Simple is genius.

Montecristo Cigars

No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5
have remained unchanged since 1935

Montecristo No. 1
It was extremely popular in the past, when the Lonsdale format reigned.
It was invariably given at the wedding parties. Given the modern pace of life, it becomes increasingly difficult to give it the time it deserves. Montecristo A is losing popularity for the same reason.

Montecristo No. 2
It is the best Pyramid format cigar, the indispensable feature of bullfighting. In acknowledgement, these cigars are thrown to the best bullfighters on the arena.

Montecristo No. 3
It is a typical Crown cigar. It has been invariably popular throughout its entire history.

Montecristo No. 4
It is the best sold cigar in the world. Why? A Mareva format cigar is an all-purpose cigar. It can be enjoyed before and after lunch, with coffee, tea, or dessert. It will not take much time, and one can always find 40 minutes to spend on it.

Montecristo No. 5
The Perla format is growing in popularity day by day. Spare time is harder to find, the number of the no-smoking areas is growing. It is small and compact, so it is easier to find time and place for it now.

Edición Limitada

1999 — Reserva de Milenio, Robusto
2000 — Robusto
2001 — Double Corona
2002 — Mareva, Salomones
2005 — D (Dalias)
2006 — Robusto
2007 — Reserve, No. 4