Founded in 1845, Finca el Pinar, also known as Finca Robaina, grows some of the world’s finest tobacco. 20 kilometres drive south-west of Pinar del Río, the farm and its cigars became famous under Alejandro Robaina who passed away in 2010. Alejandro’s grandson, Hiroshi Robaina now runs the property.
Although Rocío and I weren’t cigar fans, we didn’t want to miss seeing an iconic aspect of Cuba. From Pinar del Río we took a Lada 2107 taxi to Finca Robaina (20 CUC/US$20 round-trip including waiting time). Fortunately our January 2017 visit coincided with the tobacco growing season when the fields were lush and green.
Finca el Pinar tobacco farm workers on a break; note the black seedling trays on the left
Unlike most tobacco farms, Finca Robaina remained independent post-revolution. Alejandro was persuasive enough to convince Fidel Castro it shouldn’t be taken over by the state. However, 90% of production still goes to government-run cigar factories in Havana. State company Habanos SA’s Vegas Robaina brand is named after the family.
Rooster in shaded tobacco field