Jump to full article: New York Times, 2006-09-27
Author: MARC LACEY
Intro: While cigar rollers work in his factory in Estelí, José Orlando Padrón checks the aroma of a sample of tobacco. He is credited with helping to put Nicaragua on the map when it comes to tobacco, though his business has suffered from hurricanes and politics. . . .
Mr. Padrón’s company has grown steadily over the years, as has its reputation. Industry experts regularly give his full-bodied cigars some of their highest ratings. In Cigar Aficionado magazine’s latest ranking of the 25 best cigars in the world, the Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series Exclusivo was No. 3, behind a Dominican and a Cuban.
“It teems with flavor from the first puff, and the carefully cured tobaccos remain tasty and elegant until the very last,” the magazine said.
Mr. Padrón is credited with helping to put Nicaragua on the map when it comes to tobacco. With the United States trade embargo on Cuba restricting access to its cigars, the hunt for other quality locales has been fierce. . . .
Mr. Padrón scoffs at the health notices he is now required to put on the boxes warning that cigars carry the same cancer risks as cigarettes.
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