After 57 Years, Trinidad Cigars Has Its First Reserva

For decades, prized Trinidad cigars were not ones you could buy. Created in 1969, it was reserved for presentation to foreign dignitaries visiting Cuba, entering commercial sale only in 1998. But even if its entrance into the commercial trade happened almost 30 years ago, the brand story of a cigar once kept out of shops has never quite left it. Now, for the first time, Trinidad has a Reserva: a release built around selected tobacco, extra years of aging, and a strictly counted supply.

At a ceremony last September 19 in Montreux, Switzerland, Habanos, S.A. chose the Vigía for the occasion, a short, broad cigar measuring 110 mm long with a 54 ring gauge. It is the widest format in Trinidad’s current range, giving the brand’s first Reserva a familiar shape rather than a newly invented one.

Reserva has a specific meaning here: the leaves come from the 2022 harvest and undergo at least three years of additional aging before the cigars are rolled. Under Habanos’ Reserva standard, that aging applies to the filler, binder, and wrapper. It is a patient proposition in an industry where a date printed on a box can carry almost as much interest as the object inside. What matters, of course, is what those years have done to the tobacco.

Habanos describes the medium-strength Vigía Reserva as opening with cedar and toasted hazelnut, then developing dark cocoa, sweet spice, and roasted coffee. Its final third brings notes of leather and white pepper. These are the company’s tasting notesTasting NotesA description of the aromas, flavors, and finish of a wine, spirit, or other fine product, recorded by experts or enthusiasts. Tasting notes help buyers choose bottles and appreciate subtleGo to Tasting Notes Glossary rather than an independent assessment, but they suggest a cigar intended to gain depth over its estimated 50-minute smoking time without abandoning Trinidad’s measured profile.

There will be 5,000 individually numbered boxes of 20 cigars and another 5,000 gift cases containing three. Recommended prices are $3,800 (approximately Php236,918.60) and $660 (approximately Php41,149.02) respectively, subject to local variation. Each cigar bears a Reserva band fitted with NFC technology, which buyers can use to access product information and check authenticity. For a collector spending this much on a box, provenanceProvenanceThe documented history of an object's ownership, origin, and authenticity, particularly important for classic cars, watches, art, and wine. Strong provenance can dramatically raise an item's value, and collectors andGo to Provenance Glossary is part of the purchase.

The launch took place at the Fairmont Montreux Palace before some 300 guests, with the new cigar paired with The Dalmore King Alexander III whisky. Montreux is a long way from the Cuban state receptions for which Trinidad was once reserved, but that distance gives this release its interest: what began as a diplomatic gift is now offered for sale around the world, though only a limited number of buyers will find a box.