NAMED AFTER WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S TRAGIC LOVERS, THE ORIGINS OF ROMEO Y JULIETA AS A HABANO DATE BACK TO 1875.
The brand rose to international fame during the early years of the 20th Century under the direction of Don ‘Pepin’ Rodríguez, a talented promoter, who was amongst the first to recognise the power of the cigar band. During his hey day no less than 20,000 different bands were used in production. Winston Churchill became a devotee of the brand. Following his visit to Havana in 1946, his name has not only been commemorated on a band but it has also served to describe the marque’s most famous size – Romeo y Julieta Churchills.
The 21st century has seen the arrival of two additional sizes using the name. The first called Short Churchills, a robusto size that had been missing from the range, was added in 2006. And the second, launched at the12th Festival del Habano in 2010, was Wide Churchills, which boast a 55 ring gauge to mark the trend amongst enthusiasts for stouter girth vitolas.
Romeo y Julieta’s balanced and aromatic blend of selected filler and binder leaves from the Vuelta Abajo region make it the classic medium bodied Habano. Today Romeo y Julieta is as well known around the world as ever and offers the widest range of Tripa Larga, Totalmente a Mano – long filler, totally hand made, – sizes available in any Habano brand.