Punch (cigar brand)

Punch is the name of two brands of cigars, one produced on the island of Cuba for Habanos SA, the Cuban state-owned tobacco company, and the other produced in Honduras for General Cigar.

History

The Punch brand was first registered in 1840 by German named Stockmann and named for the European puppet show character, Mr. Punch (not the magazine, which was created a year later). The brand quickly became a success, especially in Great Britain. The first change of ownership came in 1874, when the brand was bought by a Luis Corujo, and again in 1884, when the brand was purchased by Manuel López Fernández and its bands and boxes still bear his name to this day. Retiring in 1924 and passing away shortly after, López gave ownership of the brand to Esperanza Valle Comas, who only held it for a few years before the Stock Market Crash of 1929.

Like most other businesses around the world, the Cuban cigar industry faced financial hardships. In 1930, the firm of Fernández, Palicio y Cía bought up the brand, where it became one of the company's headlining cigar marques, along with Belinda, La Escepción, and Hoyo de Monterrey, and maintained its popularity with British cigar smokers.

After the embargo was set against Cuba by the United States, Fernando Palicio fled Cuba for Florida, where he subsequently sold his cigar lines to the Frank Llaneza and Dan Blumenthal of Villazon & Co., which has continued to make Punch, Hoyo de Monterrey, and Belinda cigars from Honduran tobacco for the American market.

Cuba subsequently nationalized the tobacco industry and Punch continued production and is still a popular, multi-locally-marketed Cuban cigar line. Among connoisseurs, the eponymous Punch, Double Corona, Churchill, and Super Selection No. 2 are especially prized and sought after.

Punch also produces two machine-made cigarillos: the Cigarritos and Cigarritos Reserva.

Punch has not been chosen before for any "Edición Limitada" productions as of yet, but in 2006 it did see a special "Edición Regional" release: a Robusto released only in Switzerland.

"Vitolas" in the Cuban Punch Line

The following list of "vitolas" (sizes) within the Punch line lists their measurements in English and metric, their "vitolas de galera" (factory name), and their conventional name in American cigar slang.

"Hand-Made Vitolas"
* Double Corona - 7 5/8" x 49 (194 x 19.45 mm) Prominente, a double corona
* Churchill - 7" x 47 (178 x 18.65 mm) Julieta, a churchill
* Punch - 5 5/8" x 46 (143 x 18.26 mm) Corona Gorda, a toro
* Royal Selection No. 11 - 5 5/8" x 46 (143 x 18.26 mm) Corona Gorda, a toro
* Royal Selection No. 12 - 5 1/8" x 42 (129 x 16.67 mm) Mareva, a petit corona
* Super Selection No. 1 - 6 1/8" x 42 (155 x 16.67 mm) Corona Grande, a long corona
* Corona - 5 5/8" x 42 (142 x 16.67 mm) Corona, a corona
* Petit Corona del Punch - 5 1/8" x 42 (129 x 16.67 mm) Mareva, a petit corona
* Petit Punch - 4" x 40 (102 x 15.87 mm) Perla, a tres petit corona
* Margarita - 4 3/4" x 26 (121 x 10.32 mm) Carolina, a cigarillo"Machine-Made and Hand-Finished Vitolas"
* Royal Coronation - 5 3/4" x 44 (145 x 17.46 mm) Conserva, a corona
* Coronation - 5 1/8" x 42 (129 x 16.67 mm) Petit Corona, a petit corona
* Petit Coronation - 4 5/8" x 40 (117 x 15.87 mm) Coronita, a tres petit corona
* Cigarillo - 4 1/8" x 29 (106 x 11.51 mm) Chico, a cigarillo"Edición Regional Release"
* Robusto - 4 7/8" x 50 (124 x 19.84 mm) Robusto, a robusto or rothschild

References

* Nee, Min Ron - "An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Post-Revolution Havana Cigars" (2003, Reprinted: 2005), ISBN 3-9809308-2-3

See also

* Cigar brands

External links

* [http://www.habanos.com Official website of Habanos S.A.]
* [http://www.cubancigars.net.au Punch cigar reviews and cigars]
* [http://www.cigars-review.org/cigars/Punch.htm Punch Cigars Reviews]