The world-famous Montecristo No. 2 cigar is anything but new, as its one of the original sizes in the Montecristo brand portfolio. Named for the novel, Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, the brand was created in Cuba by Alonso Menendez in 1935, and quickly became the most popular of all the sizes rolled at the prestigious Menendez, Garcia y Cia factory in Havana.

The top-quality tobaccos used to create this gorgeous 6.125 x 52 “Torpedo”, hails from the finest tobacco fields in Pinar del Rio, a region far north of Havana that’s, highly regarded for its rich fertile soil and the perfect climate for growing cigar tobacco. This 100% Cuban puro is expertly rolled, medium to full-bodied in strength, and brimming with flavors of pepper, creamed coffee, almonds, some earthy components, and sweet cedar.

After Menendez’s factory and the Cuban cigar industry were nationalized by Fidel Castro, Alonzo and his family fled Cuba. The first stop was the Canary Islands, belonging to Spain, but since the Cuban Montecristo cigars were sold there, Menendez and his son, Benjamin, had to create a new name. They chose Montecruz, a brand that quickly became a top seller in the United States.

In the 1970s, the company moved to the Dominican Republic and found a way to call the cigar ‘Montecristo’ again by acquiring the rights to the name from General Cigar. This came with a stipulation that the brand could only be sold in the United States, so it wouldn’t compete with the original Cuban marque. The factory is still operating in La Romana and is considered one of the best Cuban heritage brands to ever grace the premium cigar market. And, just like it was in Cuba, the Dominican Montecristo No.2 cigar quickly became the most popular size, this time with American smokers.

The original Dominican Montecristo No.2 is a 6 x50 Torpedo that features a silky golden-brown Connecticut wrapper surrounding a carefully aged blend of the finest Dominican long filler tobaccos. Unlike its bolder Cuban counterpart, the Dominican No.2 is mellow to medium body in strength, yet the flavor profile of coffee, cream, leather, nuts, and spice is quite similar to the Cuban Montecristo No.2 cigar.

Today, to appeal to fans of fuller-bodied Cuban-style cigars, the Montecristo brand has several line extensions that feature this most popular No.2 Torpedo shape, however, some of the sizes, are slight variations from the original format. We’ve broken down this wonderful smoke in our Montecristo Platinum Series Cigar Review.

You’ll find bolder versions of the No.2 in the Monte by Montecristo Series, Red cigars, the Montecristo Nicaragua, Montecristo Pilotico Pepe Mendez, and the Montecristo 80th Anniversary No. 2, available in just this one vitola that pays tribute to this renowned size.

The Montecristo 80th Anniversary No. 2 cigar is a vintage gem that comes well-appointed with a stunning Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, Dominican Olor 2010 binder, and a long-filler blend of perfectly aged Dominican Piloto, Nicaraguan Criollo ’98, and Nicaraguan Corojo ’99 tobaccos. Once you experience the fragrant, full-bodied flavors of peppery spice, espresso, almonds, nuts, and caramel, you’ll marvel at the similarity in character, body, and taste, between this gem, and the world-famous Cuban Montecristo No.2 cigar!