Monday, July 20 2009
By Tom Ufer (
Tampa Cigar Examiner)
When President Charlie Toraño speaks of the meaning behind their latest cigar line, his measured tone of voice does not betray the depth of his feelings for its personal significance. But, today’s cigar smoker likely has little awareness of the reality of what happened on New Year’s Day, 1959, when Fidel Castro's guerillas deposed Fulgencio Batista, the island's ruling despot. Within months, Castro revealed his treachery against Cubans. All of the Toraño family's holdings of seventeen choice tobacco farms were seized at gunpoint, and the Toraños, like many other legendary cigar and tobacco families, fled the island, penniless.
The Toraños have kept alive the memory of those epochal events, commemorating the tragedy by producing a series of Exodus 1959 premium cigars. The 2001 release of the Exodus 1959, which became known as the Exodus Gold, due to its band's gold trim, was followed by the Exodus 1959 Silver Edition in 2002. Both cigars, over the ensuing years, have earned stunning ratings throughout the cigar world. Now, Toraño speaks with a different voice, when he describes the family's latest flagship cigar, the Exodus 1959 - 50 Years, and what it represents.
Carlos Toraño family celebrates with new 'Exodus 1959 - 50 Years' continues at examiner.com...
