Cohiba is a Cuban cigar brand created in 1966 for Fidel Castro's personal use, originally produced by Eduardo Rivera at the El Laguito factory in Havana, Cuba. For its first 16 years, Cohiba cigars were exclusively made for Cuban government officials and foreign diplomats. The brand was introduced to the commercial market in 1982, initially with three sizes: Lanceros, Coronas Especiales, and Panetelas. The name 'Cohiba' derives from the Taino word for tobacco.
Cohiba cigars are produced at the El Laguito factory in the Miramar district of Havana, which was originally a mansion built in the 1910s. The brand uses tobacco exclusively from the Vuelta Abajo region in Pinar del Rio province, considered the finest tobacco-growing region in the world. Cohiba is unique among Cuban brands for its triple fermentation process, where select leaves undergo an additional fermentation step that other Cuban cigars do not receive. Key lines include the Linea Clasica, Linea 1492, Maduro 5, and the ultra-premium Behike series.
The Behike line, introduced in 2010, uses the rare medio tiempo leaf, which grows at the very top of tobacco plants and is found on only about 10% of plants in a given harvest. Cohiba Behike cigars are among the most expensive regular-production Cuban cigars, with the BHK 56 retailing for approximately $40-$60 per cigar at official prices, though market prices can be significantly higher. Limited editions and aged releases command even steeper premiums.
Cohiba is owned and distributed internationally by Habanos S.A., a joint venture between the Cuban state tobacco company Cubatabaco and the Altadis division of Imperial Brands. The brand is not legally available for sale in the United States due to the trade embargo on Cuban goods. Cohiba remains the flagship brand of the Cuban cigar industry and is widely considered among the most prestigious cigar brands in existence.