Panama
◉ EMERGING PRODUCTION · Central America
General Data
- Capital
- Panama
- Population
- 4,6 M (2025)
- Area
- 75 417 km²
- Currency
- Balboa (PAB) / US dollar (USD)
- Language
- Spanish
- Timezone
- UTC−5
- GDP
- 90,5 Md$ (2025)
- Independence
- 1903
Production
Artisanal, very small
Annual Revenue
0,02 M$ (2024)
US imports of cigars and cigarillos (HS 2402.10)
Harvest
Dec – Feb
Climate
Humid tropical, high altitude
Soil
Volcanic soil of Chiriquí
Regions
- Chiriquí
- Boquete
Varieties
- Habano Panamá
- Corojo Panamá
Manufacturers
- Joyas de Panamá — La Pintada, Coclé, 1986, Miriam Padilla ; rouverte sous Braulio Zurita
- Tabacos Panamá S.A. — La Pintada, 1984 (fermée)
- Coclé Tobacco Factory — Peñonomé, 1981 (fermée)
Sommelier Note
An industry born in 1981 from Cuban seed brought to Coclé by Gilberto Oliva and Nestor Plasencia. Largely collapsed since: a 2025 report found the workshops idle.
Production Zones
- Boquete — High-altitude microclimate
- Chiriquí — On the slopes of Volcán Barú
Local industry
EMERGING TERROIR
Panama has no Habanos representation. Its premium cigar industry began in March 1981, when Gilberto Oliva and Nestor Plasencia brought Cuban seed to Coclé province: the Coclé Tobacco Factory opened at Peñonomé that year, Tabacos Panamá S.A. at La Pintada in 1984, and Miriam Padilla founded Joyas de Panamá in February 1986. Tobacco is grown in Chiriquí. That industry has largely collapsed — mismanagement, accusations of tax-credit fraud, unpaid wages — and a 2025 report that went looking for Panamanian cigars found the workshops idle. This atlas therefore carries no profile of a Panamanian house: it has no source solid enough to write one.
- Founded
- Semence cubaine portée à Coclé en 1981
- Ownership
- Small independent operations
- Headquarters
- Coclé et Chiriquí, Panama
- Festival & Events
- No national cigar festival
Manufactures
Joyas de Panamá
Joyas de Panamá
Tabacos Panamá S.A.
Coclé Tobacco Factory
Official brands
- Joyas de Panamá
Iconic Brands 2
Cigar caves & lounges in Panama 1
- La Casa del Habano — Panamá (Casco Antiguo) Ciudad de Panamá - Calle Primera, Casco Antiguo, Paseo de las Bóvedas
La Casa del Habano in Panama, in the Casco Antiguo (Calle Primera, Paseo de las Bóvedas). Habanos S.A. announces its opening on 28 November 2019, by Tropical Cigars, sub-distributor of Caribbean Cigars Corporation.