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Following the nationalization of the industry by Castro many
of the dispossessed cigar factory owners such as the Palicio, Cifuentes
and Menendez families fled abroad, determined to start production up again,
often using the same brand names they had owned in Cuba.
As a result, cigars called Romeo y Julieta, H. Upmann, and Partagas are
made in the Dominican Republic; La Gloria Cubana in Miami; Punch and Hoyo
de Monterrey in Honduras and Sancho Panza in Mexico.
In the case of Montecruz cigars, the name was slightly changed from the
original Montechristo, and they are now manufactured in the Dominican Republic.
These brands using Cuban names usually bear no relation in terms of flavor
their Havana counter parts, however well made they may be. Entirely new
brands too, such as Don Miguel, Don Diego and Montesino were also set up.
After two decades of investment by both local and American companies, the
Dominican Republic has seen rapid growth in its cigar industry during the
1990 s. |
