General Cigar
- Founded in
- 1906 (lieu divergent selon les sources)
- Factories
- General Cigar Dominicana, Santiago (République dominicaine) pour Macanudo ; CAO Flathead à STG Estelí (Nicaragua) ; Punch Upper Cut faite au Honduras (2014)
- Countries
- Rép. Dominicaine
General Cigar Company dates from 1906, but sources disagree on the place. According to FundingUniverse, the Cullman family that year brought its cigar businesses together in the United Cigar Manufacturers Company, listed in New York; according to Wikipedia, the company was born in Evansville (Indiana), as successor to Cullman Brothers. No page read mentions Tampa or Ybor City, which the earlier text gave as its cradle.
In 1961, a group led by Edgar M. Cullman bought General Cigar, then known mainly for mass-market cigars such as White Owl (Wikipedia; 1994 interview with Edgar Cullman). Macanudo came next: the Temple Hall factory in Jamaica, which owned the name, was bought in 1968 according to FundingUniverse, in 1969 according to the 1994 interview; General launched its own Macanudo in 1971. Partagás has been made in the Dominican Republic since the late 1970s, says Edgar Cullman. Jamaica stopped in 2000: Macanudo has since been rolled in the Dominican Republic.
CAO was not bought by General: it was ST Cigar Group, the cigar arm of the Scandinavian Tobacco Group, that took control of it on 1 January 2007, according to the group's press release; the brand joined General Cigar's portfolio with the 2010 merger. The CAO Flathead Speed Shop Habano, released in 2026, is rolled at STG Estelí, in Nicaragua, according to Cigar Coop.
General Cigar's cigars are not all rolled in the same place. Macanudo is rolled in the Dominican Republic; General Cigar Dominicana, STG's Dominican factory, also rolls part of the non-Cuban Cohiba (Cigar Coop, February 2026); the CAO Flathead, in Estelí; the Punch Upper Cut was made in Honduras in 2014, the latest dated trace read. No cigar of the house is rolled in Jamaica today.
On ownership, the date diverges: Swedish Match took 64% of General Cigar in January 2000 according to FundingUniverse, whereas Wikipedia places its acquisition of the company in 2005. In 2010, Swedish Match merged its premium cigars with the Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG), listed on the stock exchange since 2016; Swedish Match left STG's capital in 2017 (Cigar Coop). In January 2026, STG entrusted to the sales team of Forged Cigar Company the Cohiba (non-Cuban), Punch and Havana Honeys brands, until then sold by that of General Cigar, and returned Partagás and Room101 to the latter; manufacturing does not change, says Cigar Coop.
Not to be confused: Cohiba, Punch, Partagás and Hoyo de Monterrey, in General Cigar's portfolio according to Wikipedia, are non-Cuban brands, distinct from the Habanos S.A. brands that carry the same names.
Buffalo Trace is the name of a Kentucky distillery, which partnered in June 2021 with Cigars International for a cigar series sold wholesale by Meier & Dutch, the retailer's distribution arm. Rolled at General Cigar Dominicana, in Santiago, it combines an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper with an arapiraca binder from Brazil. A limited edition, Special F, followed in September 2022, with a binder aged in barrels from the distillery; in October 2026, retailers still offer the series.
Range Depth
Macanudo Café
Macanudo line rolled by hand in the Dominican Republic (Jamaican production ended in 2000). Connecticut Shade claro wrapper, light and mild; Mexican binder according to one retailer, Dominican according to another. Sizes noted at retailers: Hyde Park (5 1/2 x 49), Duke of York (5 1/4 x 54), Duke of Devon (5 1/2 x 42).
Café · Baron de Rothschild · Hyde Park · Hampton Court · Prince Philip
CAO Flathead
CAO series whose Speed Shop Habano, released in 2026, has an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, a Mexican San Andrés binder and a Nicaraguan and Dominican filler; it is rolled at STG Estelí, in Nicaragua. Three sizes: V654 Crankshaft (6 1/2 x 54), V660 Carb (6 x 60), V770 Big Block (7 x 70). The Flathead Steel Horse dates from 2015, according to Cigar Coop.
V660 Carb · V554 Piston · V770 Engine · V507 Spark
Toraño
The Toraño family's portfolio, bought in September 2014 — the brands only; the Toraño Family Cigar company ceased, and Charlie Toraño stayed on as a consultant. Carlos Toraño died in February 2022.
Odyssey
Brand of low-priced bundles presented by General Cigar at IPCPR 2016, of Nicaraguan origin, with a Habano (Nicaraguan habano wrapper) and a Connecticut (Honduran Connecticut Shade wrapper); six variants in 2025, including Full (September 2021), hand-rolled at STG Estelí. Since 1 August 2025, STG has entrusted it to the sales team of Forged Cigar Company, with no change to the product.
✨ Notable limited editions
- Macanudo Estate Reserve (2014, tabac de Jamaïque)
Source : en.wikipedia.org « General Cigar Company » (fondée en 1906 à Evansville selon l'infobox ; Cullman 1961 ; Swedish Match 2005 ; STG 2010 ; Forged 2021 ; Cohiba, Punch, Partagas non cubains) ; fundinguniverse.com « General Cigar Holdings, Inc. History » (1906 : United Cigar Manufacturers Company ; Temple Hall et Macanudo 1968 ; Swedish Match 64 % en janvier 2000) ; cigaraficionado.com « General Cigar Acquires All Toraño Brands » et halfwheel.com « General Cigar Co. Acquiring Toraño Brands » (septembre 2014 : General rachète tout le portefeuille de Toraño Family Cigar, pas la société, qui cesse ; Charlie Toraño consultant) ; cigar-coop.com « Carlos Toraño Passes Away » (février 2022) ; thedailypour.com « One of America's Favorite Whiskey Distilleries Now Has Its Own Cigar Line » (22 juin 2021 : série Buffalo Trace lancée avec Cigars International, produite par General Cigar Dominicana à Santiago) ; manofmany.com « Buffalo Trace Now Has Its Own Cigar Line » (21 juin 2021 : cape Sumatra d'Équateur, sous-cape arapiraca du Brésil, tripe dominicaine et nicaraguayenne, roulée à General Cigar Dominicana) ; cigar-coop.com « Cigar News: Meier & Dutch to Release Buffalo Trace Special F » (26 septembre 2022 : Special F, sous-cape vieillie six mois en fûts de Buffalo Trace, roulée à General Cigar Dominicana, vendue par Meier & Dutch, branche de distribution de Cigars International) ; cigarsdirect.com « Buffalo Trace » (octobre 2026 : lignes Special S, Special L, Special F et Limited Edition 2025 au catalogue, faites par General Cigar à Santiago) ; cigar-coop.com « Cigar News: General Cigar Unveils Odyssey at 2016 IPCPR » (10 septembre 2016 : Odyssey présentée par General Cigar Company, bundles, Habano et Connecticut, pays d'origine Nicaragua) ; blindmanspuff.com « General Cigar Adds Odyssey Full to Odyssey Line – Cigar News » (10 septembre 2021 : Odyssey Full roulée à la main à STG Estelí) ; cigar-coop.com « STG Moves Odyssey Brand from General Cigar to Forged Cigar Portfolio » (14 juillet 2025 : Odyssey, marque de bundles lancée en 2016, passe chez Forged au 1er août 2025 ; six déclinaisons : Connecticut, Habano, Maduro, Sweet Tip, Coffee, Full) ; cigar-coop.com « STG Moving Cohiba and Punch Brands to Forged while shifting Room101 and Partagas to General | Cigar News » (14 janvier 2026 : Cohiba, Punch et Havana Honeys passent de General à Forged, Partagas et Room101 de Forged à General ; raison donnée aux détaillants : organisation des ventes plus équilibrée) ; cigar-coop.com « General Cigar Dominicana | Procigar 2026 » (24 février 2026 : la scission est une affaire de vente et de distribution, General Cigar Dominicana et les deux autres usines produisent pour General et pour Forged, production inchangée pour Cohiba) ; cigar-coop.com « Forged Cigar Company Announces Mr. Punch by Punch Cigar | Cigar News » (30 juin 2026 : Punch non cubaine possédée par STG, parent de Forged ; Mr. Punch faite à l'usine STG d'Estelí) ; cigaraficionado.com « Mr. Punch Gets Its Own Punch Line » (1er juillet 2026 : les Punch non cubaines sont distribuées par Forged Cigar Co., filiale de STG) ; stogiereview.com « Punch Upper Cut Robusto » (9 décembre 2009) et kohnhed.com « Punch Uppercut | Cigar Review » (19 août 2014 : Upper Cut, cape Sumatra d'Équateur, tripe nicaraguayenne, faite au Honduras ; dernière trace datée lue) ; en.wikipedia.org « Scandinavian Tobacco Group » (accord du 26 avril 2010 réunissant les activités cigares de Swedish Match, General Cigar comprise, et de Scandinavian Tobacco Group AB ; introduction en Bourse le 10 février 2016) ; en.wikipedia.org « General Cigar Company » (Swedish Match en 2005, STG en 2010, cession des parts de Swedish Match en 2016 selon cette page) ; cigar-coop.com « Cigar News: Swedish Match Sells Its Remaining Shares in Scandinavian Tobacco Group » (10 novembre 2017 : Swedish Match, 64 % de General Cigar en 2000, sort du capital de STG en 2017) ; cigaraficionado.com « Cigar Profiles : an interview with Edgar M. Cullman Sr. » (automne 1994 : 1961, Temple Hall 1969, Partagás dominicaine fin des années 1970) ; en.wikipedia.org « Macanudo (cigar) » (République dominicaine, octobre 2000 ; Café : cape Connecticut shade) ; st-group.com « ST Cigar Group has acquired CAO International » (1er janvier 2007, titre vu en résultat de recherche) ; cigar-coop.com « General Cigar to release CAO Flathead Speed Shop Habano » (janvier 2026 : STG Estelí, Nicaragua, cape Habano d'Équateur) ; coronacigar.com « Macanudo Cafe Hyde Park », « Duke of York », « Duke of Devon » (tailles, résultats de recherche)