Here are the Sixteen classic Havana Marques.........

The Cohiba Cigar - a medium bodied and full flavor cigar. A new brand which was introduced only in 1968, Cohiba quickly became the flagship brand of the Cuban cigar industry. Developed initially as a medium bodied protocol cigar for presentation only by officials of the Cuban government, Cohiba was marketed widely beginning in 1982. The initial sizes were the Lancero, the Corona Especiale and the Panetela, with the Esplendido, Robusto and Exquisito added in 1989. In 1992, in salute to the 500th anniversary of Columbus' discovery of the Caribbean, the Siglo series was introduced. The Cohiba series was initially made in the El Laguito factory in Havana, but production is now also in the Fernando Perez German factory.

The Montecristo Cigar - a rich, medium body with a peppery finish. The most famous of the many famous Havana brands started only in 1935 as a new brand from Menendez, Garcia y Cia., then the owners of the H. Upmann brand. The name is reported to have been inspired by Alexandre Dumas' 1844 novel Le Comte de Monte Cristo. With a strong marketing effort from Alfred Dunhill of London, this brand became the most popular of all Havana exports. There are no machine-made shapes in this range and the strength is medium; in fact, it has become the standard by which all other Havanas are now judged.

The Trinidad Cigar - a medium to full body cigar. Since 1980, the Trinidad Fundadores has been produced exclusively for Fidel Castro. The only boxes that left Cuba were gifts to foreign diplomats. On February of 1998, the brand was officially launched as an export in Trinidad, Cuba. The cigars were first made available in Canada and Mexico in April 1998, and later became available to the world market. This line features one size, the Fundadore, which means Founder. It is similar in size to the Cohiba Lancero, measuring at a ring guage of 40 and a length of 7 and 3/4 inches or 195 mm. Named after one of Cuba's most beautiful cities, the Trinidad is produced only in the El Laguito factory, and packaged in an 'unusual' quantity of 24 cigars as well as in cabinets of 50.

The Vegas Robaina Cigar- Vegas Robaina is the second of two new lines introduced by Habanos S.A. in the 90's. This line was officially launched in Spain, in the spring of 1997, and will be made available to the world market in the fall. The brand features five, hand rolled sizes, classified as: Don Alejandro (Double Corona) Famosos (Robusto), Classicos (Lonsdale), Unicos (Piramide), and Familiares (Corona). Vegas Robaina is named after D. Alejandro Robaina, who is famed for growing the finest wrapper in the Vuelta Abajo, (Pinar del Rio), region of Cuba for more than fifty years. The cigars are made from the best tobacco in Cuba, and feature wrapper grown on Sr. Robaina's farms. They are described as a medium-strong blend, characterized by an excellent aroma, wonderful presentation, and a fine burn.

The Romeo Y Julieta Cigar - a medium to full body with rich complex flavors. Developed in 1875 by Inocencio Alvarez and Mannin Garcia, this brand immediately showed its quality by winning gold medals in four universal expositions between 1885 and 1900. But it really took off after its acquisition in 1903 by Jose Rodriguez Fernandez, known as "Pepin." Named for the lovers in William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name (written circa 1596), the brand also is traditionally credited with the introduction of the "Churchill" shape in honour of the British statesman Winston Churchill (note the name of the factory shape for this size: the "Julieta 2."). Fernandez promoted his brand with endless energy and at one time, his Rodriguez, Arguelles y Cia. factory produced upward of 2,000 different cigar bands, personalized for their very best customers. Fernandez died at age 88 in 1954, but his efforts survive him as his full-flavoured Romeo y Julieta brand is one of the most widely known and appreciated in the world today.

The Cuaba Cigar- This new brand appeared in 1996 and reflects the growing mid-1990s interest in shaped cigars. Four brand new factory shapes - all perfectos - were developed for this brand at the timee of its launch in late 1996. The blend offers a mild to medium, full flavour in a small range of sizes with medium-girth ring gauges, and represents traditional shapes and flavour of the pre-nationalization era of Cuban cigars. A new shape, the Distinguidos was first shown in February 1998, is marketed for the year 2000.

The Bolivar Cigar- Introduced in 1901, the powerful flavour of the Bolivar range is almost as widely know as it's namesake, Simon Bolivar (1783-1830), the celebrated Venezuelan warrior who liberated all or part of what is today Venezuela, Columbia, Peru and Bolivia. The cigar brand was developed by the Jose Rocha Company and manufactured at the El Crepusculo factory, but was later acquired by Menendez, Garcia y Cia.

The Punch Cigar - medium to mild body with a slight tangy flavor. Created in 1840 by Manuel Lopez, this line takes its name from the popular character of Punch so widely seen in English puppetry in the 19th century. Today's lithographed boxes still show the comically-dressed Punch enjoying a cigar while his faithful pet stands by, questioning why he is wearing a rainbow-coloured collar. The cigars are quite popular, with the Punch Punch model the object of affection by many devoted followers. This full flavoured brand was made by Corujo y Cia. after 1859 and prior to nationalization, was owned by F. Palicio y Cia.

The Hoyo De Monterrey Cigar- Established by Jose Gener in 1865, the name roughly means "valley of Monterrey," a particularly fertile site in the Vuelta Abajo, which had been farmed by Gener since at least 1860. The brand offers a lighter flavour and a wide range of sizes, the largest of which are much celebrated. The Le Hoyo series was introduced about 1970 and presents a stronger flavour, full bodied cigar.

The H. Upman Cigar- As famous a brand as there is in the world of cigars, the H. Upmann brand dates back to 1844, when Herman Upmann, a German banker, began using specially imprinted boxes of cigars as promotional items for his banking firm. The combination proved successful, so the H. Upmann brand was born and continues to this day. The success of this brand was buoyed by the award of seven gold medals in seven international exhibitions between 1862 and 1893; these awards still adorn the lithographed interior of the box today. The brand was sold to the British firm of J. Frankau in 1922 and finally in 1935 to Menendez, Garcia & Cia. prior to nationalization, continues today in the H. Upmann factory, now known as Jose Marti. The famous request of President John F. Kennedy to his press secretary, Pierre Salinger, to obtain cigars on the evening prior to the declaration of the American trade embargo in 1961, was for Petit Upmanns. Available in a stunning range of handmade and machine-made sizes, the brand offers a mild to medium strength.

The Partagas Cigar- This brand is named for it's founder, Don Jaime Partagas, who began manufacturing cigars in 1827, but put his own name on his line of cigars in 1845. After his death, the brand passed to Ramon Cifuentes in 1889 and was owned by Cifuentes y Cia. prior to nationalization, earning a mention by name in English novelist Evelyn Waugh's 1945 work, Brideshead Revisited. Partagas cigars also won gold medals in at least three international expositions between 1867 and 1884. There is no doubt about the strong, intense flavour of this line and it is still produced in the Partagas factory, renamed Fernando Perez after nationalization. The range is immense and it would be hard for a smoker not to find a Partagas which fits his or her interest in size or shape. Buyer beware: the 8-9-8 selections vary greatly in size and strength; identification is made by whether the box is varnished or not.

The El Rey Del Mundo Cigar- This brand whose name means "The King of the World" was developed in 1848 and under the direction of Antonio Allones, it was celebrated as one of the great Havana brands. Well known for it's dark and oily wrappers, it was one of the most expensive Havanas available in the middle of the 20th century. The El Rey del Mundo factory still produces this brand and numerous others under the name Lazaro Pena today in a wide variety of models that are considered to be light in strength.

The Rafael Gonzalez Cigar- Here is a success story from the roaring 20's. Dating from approximately 1928, this brand was initially developed as La Flor de Marquez, with trademark registration in 1936 by the Sociedad El Rey del Mundo. Trademark records show that the current name dates from 1945. Considered medium in body, this brand is also reputed to have introduced the Lonsdale size, named in honour of Hugh Cecil Lowther, the Fifth Earl of Lonsdale.

The Ramon Allones Cigar - a full bodied cigar with a strong aroma. There actually was a Ramon Allones, who developed this brand way back in 1837. Originally from Spain, Allones (owner of the La Eminencia factory) was reportedly the first to employ bright, lithographed labels on his boxes, to help set his brand apart. Prior to nationalization, this lighter-bodied brand was owned by Cifuentes, Pego y Cia., also the owners of Partagas.

The Sancho Panza Cigar- Named for the rustic squire to Don Quixote in Miguel de Cervantes' famous 1605 novel of the same name, this very old brand was originated by Emilio Ahmsted in 1852. It is much admired for the larger sizes in its range, including the enormous Sanchos and the shaped-head Belicosos. Sancho Panza cigars are medium-bodied and are all handmade.

The San Cristobal Cigar - This brand bears the original name of Cuba's capital city, Havana, when it was founded in 1519, San Cristobal (St Christopher) in honour of Christopher Columbus and La Habana after the local Indian word for the area. Its range of four vitolas are each named after one of the fortresses that defended the city in the days when Havana was the hub of Spain's South American empire.