Tobacco Growing Regions of the Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is the leading producer of premium handmade cigars in the world, exporting over 150 million cigars a year. The main tobacco growing region of the country is a 150 square mile area bounded on the north by the Cordillera Septentrional mountains, on the south by the Cordillera Central mountains, the Yaque river in the west, and the city of Santiago in the east, known as the Cibao Valley. The northern part of Cibao features deep, rich soils, with ample drainage and plentiful sunlight. The breezes coming off the northern mountains provide heat relief for the delicate tobacco plants, and contributes to the diverse and unique micro-climates within the region. These factors make the northern Cibao much more conducive to tobacco growing than the south, and the tobacco regions of the northern Cibao are among the most famous in the world:
- Villa Gonzalez: Also known as La Canela, this region northwest of Santiago is thought of as the Pinar del Rio (the Cuban region, not the cigar), of the Dominican Republic. VG features a tropical climate with rich, dark soil, and accounts for 15% of the Cibao Valley's tobacco crop. This area is the main growing region for Olor Dominicano tobacco.
- Jacagua: Southeast of Villa Gonzalez, Jacagua features milder temperatures, and the most fertile soils in the Cibao. A majority of farms in this region are 2-3 acre family plots, that are privately managed. Due to the different processes the families use, tobaccos from Jacagua are unique not just from the other growing regions, but from plot to plot within the region as well.
- Navarette: The hub of the northwest Cibao, Navarette, also known as Buisono, features an arid climate with sandy soil perfect for growing Piloto Cubano tobacco. Crisscrossed with irrigation canals, Navarette is home to large commercial farms of up to 1,000 acres a piece, employing farm hands from across the Cibao region.
- Mao: This westernmost region of Cibao is relatively small, at just 1,200 acres. Mao features rich, red, Cuban-esque soil that produces Piloto Cubano of unique flavors and aromas from the rest of the Cibao Valley.
- Southern Cibao: The majority of the tobacco grown in this region is shade-grown Connecticut seed wrapper, often used for candela shade wrappers. The famous Fuente Opus wrapper is grown here at the El Caribe farm. The nature of the Dominican soil and climate make growing wrapper tobacco notoriously difficult, though it is becoming more common throughout the industry, and thus it is still rare to find many Dominican puros available on the market. A partial list of Dominican puros appears at the end of this post.
Tobaccos of the Dominican Republic The micro-climates mentioned above create an extraordinary environment for a wide variety of tobaccos. While Corojo, Criollo, Habano, and Connecticut shade are cultivated in small amounts in the Dominican Republic, there are two particular tobaccos that the DR is known for: Piloto Cubano and Olor Dominicano.
Piloto Cubano arrived in the Dominican Republic in 1962, after the nationalization of the Cuban tobacco industry. Primarily a filler tobacco, Piloto Cubano is planted in October to maximize sun exposure, while avoiding the dry season. It is a peppery, spicy tobacco, with a fuller body and richer flavor than many equate with Dominican tobacco. Several hybrid tobacco varietals are offshoots of the Piloto Cubano seed due in large part to the favorable strength and flavor of the tobacco it yields. At a factory training this past October I had the opportunity to try a Piloto puro tester to help understand the flavor characteristics of the tobacco, and I was incredibly surprised. The Piloto offered a medium plus body, and an extremely spicy flavor. It was somewhat intense as a puro, but it gave a great appreciation for what Piloto brings to the blending of a cigar.
Olor Dominicano is native to the Dominican Republic, with a name meaning, literally, aroma. The physical characteristics of this tobacco, a thin, small leaf with an excellent burn, lends itself ideally for binders, though it also is used in filler as well. The tobacco features a salty, neutral taste that is extremely mild, but offers an intense floral aroma. Due to its flavor characteristics, Olor tobacco tends to dry out the mouth when smoked, and this, paired with its thin leaf, makes it unsuitable for use as a wrapper. The Olor puro I sampled at the aforementioned factory training was one of the least pleasant cigar experiences of my life. It was extremely arid and devoid of nearly any pleasant flavor, however the aroma was wonderful. All things considered, if you are ever offered the experience, I recommend taking a pass.
Top Factories of the Dominican Republic While there are (obviously) many more factories in the Dominican Republic than listed here, these are the highlights of the lot, with the location of the facilities and a fun fact about each included:
- Davidoff; Villa Gonzalez; Three separate manufacturing facilities on one campus, Cigars Davidoff (CiDav), producing the famed White Label products, O.K. Cigars, producing Avo and Zino, and Occidental, producing contracted brands such and Hammer & Sickle.
- General Cigar Dominicana S.A.S.; Santiago; A 70,000 square foot facility, employing over 4,000 rollers.
- Pinar del Rio; Tamboril; Produces approximately 5 million cigars a year, with a nearly 50/50 split between PDR and contract products.
- Tabacalera A. Fuente; Santiago; Produces more that 30 million cigars a year, including Ashton and J.C. Newman products.
- Tabacalera de Garcia; La Romana; 270K square feet, processes 50K-60K pounds of tobacco a week, and produces over 60 million cigars a year.
- Tabacalera La Flor S.A.; Villa Gonzalez; Vertically integrated facility, producing over 4 million cigars a year.
Dominican Puros For your sampling pleasure, here is a (very) partial list of Dominican puros. Please feel free to suggest edits; if I've missed something you enjoy, let me know, and I'll make sure to add it to the list:
- Opus X by A. Fuente
- RoMeO Aging Room by Altadis
- LG Series by La Flor Dominicana
- Puro d'Oro by Davidoff
- La Aurora
- Cusano
Edit: Wanted to add the Chogui Dos77 to the Dominican Puro list. H/t to
FUHNAHTIK for pointing out my oversight.
submitted by La Romana, Dominican Republic January average sea temperature. Marine / ocean climate data updated daily, surface sea temperatures and recorded in degrees centigrade and farenheit. The best time of year to visit La Romana in Dominican Republic. Here are some average weather facts we collected from our historical climate data: On average, the temperatures are always high. Most rainfall (rainy season) is seen in October. The warmest month is August with an average maximum temperature of 30°C (86°F). All Year January February March April May June July August September October November December. All Year Climate & Weather Averages in La Romana. High Temp: 91 °F. Low Temp: 69 °F. Mean Temp: 81 °F. La Romana is a city close to Caribbean Sea. tropical savanna climate with wet summer would be the climate here. September is the month with the highest water temperature at 84.6°F / 29.2°C. The month with the lowest is March with an average water temperature of 79.5°F / 26.4°C. The avg. air temperature is around 80.2°F / 26.8°C, July is the month with the highest temperature. January is the coolest with 74.3°F / 23.5°C average air temperature. February is the month with the min La Romana 14 Day Extended Forecast. Currently: 68 °F. Passing clouds. (Weather station: La Romana International Airport, Dominican Republic). See more current weather. Temperature. Average temperatures in La Romana vary very little. Considering humidity, temperatures feel hot all year with a fair chance of precipitation about half of the year. The area is less temperate than some — in the 13th percentile for pleasant weather — compared to tourist destinations worldwide. Weeks with ideal weather are listed above. If you’re looking for the very warmest Daytime temperatures usually reach 32°C in La Romana in June with very high heat and humidity, falling to 23°C at night. How sunny is it in La Romana in June? There are normally 8 hours of bright sunshine each day in La Romana in June - that's 63% of daylight hours . The La Romana lies on 31m above sea level La Romana has a tropical climate. In winter, there is much less rainfall than in summer. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification is Aw. The temperature here averages 26.2 °C | 79.1 °F. Daytime temperatures usually reach 30°C in La Romana in December with high heat and humidity, falling to 20°C at night. How sunny is it in La Romana in December? There are normally 7 hours of bright sunshine each day in La Romana in December - that's 64% of daylight hours. How warm is the sea around La Romana in December? Today's La Romana, Dominican Republic water temperature. Marine / ocean climate data updated daily, surface sea temperatures and recorded in degrees centigrade and farenheit.
