Montecristo (Dominican)

Montecristo (Dominican) is the U.S.-market Montecristo. It is a different cigar from the Cuban Montecristo and has no Cuban tobacco. It is sold by Altadis U.S.A., part of Tabacalera USA.

After the 1959 revolution the Menéndez and García families, who had created Montecristo in Havana, left Cuba and made cigars in the Canary Islands. In 1972 a U.S. court confirmed the Menéndez family’s rights to the brand names in the United States. Consolidated Cigar, the company that later became Altadis U.S.A., bought into their business, and production moved to the Tabacalera de García factory in La Romana, Dominican Republic. For decades nearly all U.S.-market Montecristos were made there.

That changed in late 2025. U.S. sanctions on one of the factory’s owners stopped Altadis from buying from it, and Altadis moved much of its production to AJ Fernandez and Plasencia in Estelí, Nicaragua. In May 2026 a temporary U.S. license let Tabacalera de García ship to Altadis again, so Montecristo is now made in both countries.

Lines include Montecristo Classic, White, and Platinum, and the all-Nicaraguan Espada, which Plasencia has made since 2014. Strength ranges from mild to full, depending on the line.