Dominican Republic

Known in the trade as “the D.R.”, this island neighbor of Cuba’s has become one of the world’s most exquisite tobacco growing regions over the last quarter century. Thanks in large part to the intellectual capital that arrived after the Cuban Revolution, an indigenous tobacco culture, and many years of painstaking investment and labor, the D.R. is easily one of the premier cigar tobacco growing regions in the world today. Historically, the D.R. produced relatively mild Filler tobaccos, but the last decade has seen this country develop fuller and heavier bodied tobaccos as well as Wrapper leaf.

The two main families of tobacco grown in the D.R. are Olor Dominicano and Piloto Cubano. Olor Dominicano is the family of tobacco that is indigenous to the Dominican Republic and it produces a thinner and less substantive leaf than Piloto. Olor tobaccos are prized for their complex aromas and excellent burning and blending qualities. Piloto plants grown in the D.R. tend to be fuller bodied and more resilient than their Olor counterparts.

The main growing region in the Dominican Republic centers around the city of Santiago, in the northern part of the country. Nestled in the Cibao River Valley between two mountain ranges, the soil, people, and conditions in this area can produce an amazing array of quality tobacco.