Punch brand cigars are produced for the state tobacco company, Habanos SA in Cuba and separately for a cigar company in Honduras, which produces tobacco products for customers in the United States since most Cuban cigars can not be sold in that country. The Cuban cigars use only the finest leaves grown the lush Vuelta Abajo tobacco regions of the country. The cigars are classified as medium strength.
The History Behind the Brand
The Punch marque of cigars was initially registered by a German man in 1840, named Stockmann. Stockmann named the cigars after a popular European puppet, Mr. Punch. Many people believe the cigar was named for the Punch magazine, but that wasn’t created until a year after the cigars were introduced.
The brand became successful very quickly, most notably in the Untied Kingdom. In 1874, the rights to the brand changed to Luis Corujo, who sold it ten years later, in 1884 to Manuel Lopez Fernandez. The bands on the cigars and the boxes used to package the cigars still bear the Manuel Lopez name.
Lopez retired in 1924 and died shortly after wards. He gave Esperanza Comas the legal rights to use the Punch name, but that only lasted a few years until the huge 1929 crash of the stock market.
Just like many other businesses all over the globe, the cigar industry in Cuba ran into financial problems. The company of Fernandez, Palicio y Cia bought the ailing brand in 1930. Under this new ownership, the Punch rose to the top once again and joined the group elite headlining cigar brands of the company, along with other famous marques like Hoyo de Monterrey, La Escepcion and Belinda. It continued to be extremely popular with cigar aficionados from around the world.
After the United States set the embargo against Cuba, Fernando Palicio left the country and moved to Florida. Not seeing much of a future for the Cuban cigar industry, he agreed to sell his cigar brands to Villazo & Co., owned at the time by Frank Llaneza and his partner Dan Blumenthal. This company has continued to produce Punch, Belinda and Hoyo de Monterrey brand cigars for the U.S. market using Honduran tobacco.
The Cuban Revolution resulted in the nationalized of the entire tobacco industry, and all cigar production was under the control of Habanos SA, the tobacco company owned by the government. Punch and other popular brands continued to be produced and marketed under this new leadership.
Along with the hand made Punch cigars, the company also produces cigarillos made by machine the Cigarritos Reserva and the Cigarritos.
Punch has not yet been chosen to feature as a Limited Edition production, but the brand has proven to be extremely popular for Regional Edition cigars specially produced for local markets.
The Punch Line of Vitolas
This is a list of the commercially produced Punch brand vitolas, including the size of the cigar in standard and metric measurements, as well as the ring gauge and common name of the cigar.
Punch Cigars Made by Hand:
- Churchill – measures 7 inches × 47 ring gauge (178 × 18.6 mm), officially named the Julieta No. 2, commonly called a churchill by smokers
- Corona – measures 5 5⁄8 inches × 42 ring gauge (143 × 16.6 mm), officially named the Corona, also called a corona by smokers
- Coronation – measures 5 1⁄8 inches × 42 ring gauge (130 × 16.6 mm), officially named a Petit Corona, also called a petit corona by smokers
- Double Corona – measures 7 5⁄8 inches × 49 ring gauge (194 × 19.45 mm), officially named a Prominente, called a double corona by smokers
- Margarita – measures 4 3⁄4 inches × 26 ring gauge (121 × 10.3 mm), officially named the Carolina, known as a small panetela to smokers
- Petit Corona del Punch – measures 5 1⁄8 inches × 42 ring gauge (130 × 16.66 mm), officially named the Mareva by the factory, known as a petit corona to smokers
- Petit Coronation – measures 4 5⁄8 inches × 40 ring gauge (117 × 15.89 mm), officially named the Coronita, commonly called a petit corona by smokers
- Petit Punch – measures 4 inches long × 40 ring gauge (102 × 15.89 mm), officially named the Perla, and known to smokers as a tres petit corona locally
- Punch – measures 5 5⁄8 inches long × 46 ring gauge (143 × 18.27 mm), officially named the Corona Gorda, known as a grand corona to smokers
- Royal Coronation – measures 5 3⁄4 inches long × 44 ring gauge (146 × 17.45 mm), officially named the Conserva, known as a long corona to smokers
- Royal Selection No. 11 – measures 5 5⁄8 inches long × 46 ring gauge (143 × 18.27 mm), officially named the Corona Gorda, known as a grand corona to cigar lovers
- Royal Selection No. 12 – measures 5 1⁄8 inches long × 42 ring gauge (130 × 16.66 mm), officially named the Mareva, known as a petit corona to smokers
- Super Selection No. 1 – measures 6 1⁄8 inches long × 42 ring gauge (156 × 16.67 mm), officially named the Corona Grande, commonly called a long corona by smokers.
Regional Edition Releases:
- 2005 and 2006 in Italy – the Superfino – measures 4 3⁄8 inches long × 42 ring gauge (110 × 16.66 mm), officially named the Minuto, called a tres petit corona by smokers
- 2005 and 2007 in Switzerland – the Robusto – measures 4 7⁄8 inches long × 50 ring gauge (124 × 19.85 mm), officially named the Robusto, also called a robusto by cigar lovers
- 2006 and 2007 in Asia Pacific – the Super Robusto – measures 6 1⁄8 inches long x 50 ring gauge (155 × 19.85 mm) officially named the Doble, known as the toro to smokers
- 2008 in United Arab Emirates – the Robusto – measures 4 7⁄8 inches long × 50 ring gauge (124 × 19.85 mm), officially named the Robusto, also called a robusto by smokers
- 2008 in the United Kingdom – the Serie d’Or No. 1 – measures 6 1⁄8 inches long × 52 ring gauge (156 × 20.65 mm) officially named the Pirámide, known as a pyramid or torpedo to cigar aficionados
- 2009 in Benelux – the Punch Royal – measures 5 1⁄2 inches long × 50 ring gauge (141 × 19.85 mm) officially named the Goridto, known to smokers as a robusto extra
- 2009 in France – the Small Club – measures 4 inches long × 50 ring gauge (102 × 19.85 mm), officially named the Petit Robusto, and also called a petit robusto by smokers
- 2009 in India – the Platino – measures 7 5⁄8 inches long × 49 ring gauge (194 × 19.44 mm), officially named the Prominente, known as the double corona to smokers
- 2009 in Italy – the Diadema – measures 9 1⁄8 inches long × 55 ring gauge (233 × 21.84 mm), officially named the Diadema, and also called a diadema by cigar smokers
- 2009 in the Nordic Countries – the Northern Lights – measures 4 3⁄8 inches long × 52 ring gauge (110 × 20.65 mm), officially named the Petit Edmundo, and affectionately called the petit robusto by smokers
- 2009 in Switzerland – the Poderoso – measures 6 1⁄2 inches long × 54 ring gauge (164 × 21.44 mm), officially named the Sublime, known to smokers as a toro.
Discontinued Punch Brand Cigars:
- Ambassador No. 1 – measures 5.6 inches long (142 mm) x 42 ring gauge. The official name is not known, but it was commonly called a cornoa by avid cigar smokers. The line was discontinued during the 1970s.
- Belvederes – measures 4.9 inches long (125 mm) x 39 ring gauge. The official name of the cigar line was the Belvederes. Commonly it was known as a short panetela. The line was discontinued around 2002.
- Black Prince – measures 5.6 inches long (143 mm) x 46 ring gauge. It was officially called the Grand Gordas. Smokers commonly called the cigar a grand corona. The line was discontinued in the year 2002.
- Churchills – measures 7 inches long (178 mm) x 47 ring gauge. It was officially named the Julieta No. 2. Commonly the cigar was known as the churchill. The line was discontinued in 2010.
- Cigarillos – measures 4.2 inches long (106 mm) x 29 ring gauge, making it very short and slim. It was officially named the Chicos. Commnonly the cigar was known as a cigarillo. The line was discontinued in 2005.
- Club Selection No. 1 – measures 5.6 inches long (143 mm) x 46 ring gauge. The official name of the cigar is unknown. Commonly it was referred to as a grand corona. The line was discontinued during the 1970s.
- Coronas – measures 5.6 inches long (142 mm) x 42 ring gauge. Officially it was named Coronas, and it was also called this by cigar aficionados. The line was discontinued sometime around 2002.
These are just some of the discontinued lines in the Punch cigars. There were many more, some of which were replaced by another similar cigar, and some where just not produced anymore because of low sales.
