Although one of the more understated brands in the vast lineup under the Altadis U.S.A. portfolio, Saint Luis Rey Cigars is the king of countless humidors nationwide.

Like many other Cuban heritage brands, the history of Saint Luis Rey is rich. However, there are also many parts that are shrouded in mystery.

Let’s take a quick look at how Saint Luis Rey cigars became the sleeper hit they are today!

While many Cuban heritage brands, like the famous Partagas, Romeo y Julieta, and H. Upmann, got their start in the mid-to late-1800s, Saint Luis Rey Cigars are a relatively new brand. They first hit the cigar scene shortly after World War II in the late 1940s.

Cuba holds firm to the fact that the first to register the Saint Luis Rey brand name was Zamora y Guerra Co. However, it was possibly founded by a pair of Englishmen — Nathan Silverstone and Michael de Keyser — who together ran N.R. Silverstone and distributed the brand in the United Kingdom. In any case, the Saint Luis Rey brand quickly became a popular choice amongst British cigar connoisseurs.

The origins of the Saint Luis Rey name are also obscured by mystery. At the time of the brand’s founding, there was a popular novel titled The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder that may have been the inspiration for the name. Another competing (and more likely) theory is Saint Luis Rey cigars are named after the Cuban town of San Luis.

San Luis is located in the famous tobacco-growing region of Pinar del Rio, one of the most beloved growing regions in the world. Cigar makers today are still seeking to emulate the exceptional and unique flavors of the tobaccos that come from Pinar del Rio.

After Fidel Castro successfully supplanted the corrupt dictator Batista in 1959, Castro moved to quickly consolidate his power. It began with the takeover and nationalization of American-owned businesses, but Castro had begun targeting the private ownership of Cuban citizens too by 1960. On September 15^th, 1960, the Castro regime nationalized the Saint Luis Rey brand, along with countless other companies.

Many Cuban cigar makers and tobacco farmers fled Cuba after their livelihoods were stolen from them, starting anew around the Caribbean and Central America. Around the same time and in response to Castro’s nationalization of private property, the US imposed an embargo on Cuban goods. This, however, opened the door for Cuban cigar makers to retain the brands they loved.

A landmark case in 1972 between the Menendez family (former owners of Montecristo) versus Faber, Coe, and Gregg Inc. (a Cuban cigar importer) allowed exiled Cuban cigar makers to sell their now-nationalized brands in the US. By 1980, Saint Luis Rey Cigars began showing up on the US market despite the Cuban-made version having been consistently sold around the world.

Like nearly all Cuban heritage cigar brands, there are two versions of the Saint Luis Rey brand in the world today — Cuban and non-Cuban. The non-Cuban version is what you are likely most familiar with. Today there is a trio of Saint Luis Rey brands made at the Flor de Copan cigar factory in Honduras under the purview of Altadis USA, which also oversees the production of H. Upmann and Romeo y Julieta.

The Saint Luis Rey Reserva Especial is the original non-Cuban blend and is made with a mix of Honduran, Nicaraguan, and Peruvian long fillers packed into a Nicaraguan binder. It comes with two top-quality wrappers — either a silky Nicaraguan or a Mexican San Andres Maduro. Both have bold full-bodied flavors of wood, earth, coffee, and spice, and are available in several sizes at an affordable price.

Saint Luis Rey was also one of the first brands on the big-ring cigar train with the introduction of the Saint Luis Rey Serie G in the early 2000s. Each vitola in the line has a ring gauge of 54 up to 60 and is also available in EMS and Maduro blends. If you like full, rich flavors accompanied by huge clouds of smoke with each mouthful, these tried-and-true classics will be right at home in your humidor.

The most recent addition to the Saint Luis Rey cigars lineup is the Saint Luis Rey Carenas. These cigars are named after the Port of Havana’s first name, Puerto de Carenas, which was a major hub for exporting Cuban tobacco and cigars. A more nuanced blend, the Saint Luis Rey Carenas is made with an aged Honduran core and Nicaraguan wrapper for a medium-bodied medley of earth, spice, coffee, and cream.

While much of the history of the Saint Luis Rey brand is clouded by mystery, what we know for sure is the brand does not get nearly the amount of love and attention it deserves. Although many brands fell to the depths of history following Castro’s Revolution and the US Embargo, Saint Luis Rey’s dedication to capturing the pre-embargo Cuban flavor allowed it to stand the test of time.

Be sure to check out the entire Saint Luis Rey portfolio right here at JR Cigar to get a taste of Cuban history!