Camacho Cigars History, Ranges & Brand Overview: Live Loud

Camacho’s Characteristics

Bold, convention defying and rebellious, Camacho gives off an image that caters to virile bikers and tattooed rogues. However, its refined and flavoursome smokes aren’t exclusive to them!

Harley Davidsons, workbenches and outdoor tools are all elements that embody Camacho’s brand identity. Although the biker theme is nothing new, it’s both a philosophy and aesthetic that suits the brand perfectly.

As for their logo, it can either be the brand name presented as a stencil or with a metallic finish. However, they may also opt to use their scorpion emblem to go with the desert and sunset vibes.

Furthermore, in terms of flavour and quality, Camacho ensure that their cigars remain consistent along a particular theme. With “live loud” being the brand’s motto, it’s unsurprising that these are always perfectly constructed and powerful cigars with robust and full-bodied flavours.

From mouthwatering barrel-aged cigars to intense triple maduros, each cigar is a genre-defining statement to flavoursome and unforgettable experiences.

Camacho Brand History

After being exiled from Cuba in 1961, Simon Camacho founded his own cigar factory in Miami, Florida. Very quickly, he garnered a reputation for making exceptional blends from imported tobacco.

As the house evolved, he developed his tobacco production in Nicaragua. During his lifetime, Simon Camacho’s discerning clients would even included Winston Churchill, which is an impressive endorsement to say the least.

Camacho Under The Eiroa Family

Julio Eiroa (credit: JRE Tobacco)

Five years after Camacho passed away in 1990, the company was acquired by the Eiroa family of Caribe Imported Cigars. Soon thereafter, the facilities were moved from Nicaragua to Honduras.

Like Simon Camacho, the Eiroa family were Cuban exiles. Founded by Julio Eiroa, his father Genereso had been growing tobacco in Cuba since the early 20th Century.

However, the revolution forced them to leave and they settled in Tampa, Florida. In 1961, before founding Caribe, Julio had even joined the Bay of Pigs invasion attempt to liberate his homeland.

A few years later, Julio travelled to Honduras while working for another firm, Oliva. During his time there, he became involved in a government-sponsored program for cultivating tobacco plantations.

Eventually, he became an independent farmer as he purchased more land every year. Throughout the 1970s, he helped the Honduran tobacco industry grow and developed partnerships with US Tobacco and Bering Cigars.

When he purchased Camacho in 1995, his Honduran plantations became the foundation of the evolving brand. Furthermore, the Camacho family trade continued under Eiroa as Simon’s son, Christian, became president of Caribe Imported Cigars.

Business continued to evolved throughout the cigar boom of the 1990s and their annual production surpassed 3 million cigars per year.

Camacho Joins The Davidoff Family

In 2008, Davidoff acquired Camacho as well as its Rancho Jamastran factory in Danlí. Nevertheless, the Eiroas family preserved their ownership of their tobacco plantations.

Under Davidoff’s guidance, Camacho partnered with Bayer CropScience to develop its agricultural and manufacturing practices. It then went on to become the only tobacco company in the world to follow such rigorous environmental standards.

Over the following years, Camacho’s identity continued to evolve and incorporated a bold and rugged image. Incorporating the motto “live loud” into its ethos, Camacho would soon play on its full-bodied and flavoursome cigars.

Meanwhile, Camacho began to cultivate its own Corojo seeds after 40 years of growth and development. Having been preserved following the Revolution, the unique and precious seeds represented an authenticity not yet experienced with so-called New World cigars.

With a new factory in construction, Camacho aspires to produce 24 million cigars annually within the next five years.

Camacho’s Accomplishments

With its rich and varied history, Camacho has endured for nearly 70 years as a leading manufacturer of quality cigars. Aside from including Winston Churchill among its clients in its early days, Camacho continues to achieve remarkable feats.

In this section, we’ll be exploring some of Camacho’s notable successes:

• Original Corojo Seed
• International Standards
• Powerband Bunching

Scroll down to read them all or just click above to jump straight to the one that interests you the most!

Original Corojo Seed

As Camacho call it, the “infamous” Corojo seed is a legendary of pre-revolution Cuba and its celebrated cigars. Developed in the early 1940s, the Corojo was the fruit of Diego Rodriguez’s efforts in isolating a particular strain.

By crossing a Mesoamerican Criollo strain with an Indonesian Sumatra, Rodriguez has created a full-bodied and flavoursome tobacco. The corojo seed became celebrated around the world and heralded as one of the most emblematic Cuban tobaccos.

As a leaf, the corojo had unique properties with a complex flavour profile and elasticity, which made it a particularly popular wrapper. However, the economical landscape in post-revolution Cuba threatened its future.

With the nationalisation of the tobacco industry, the agricultural standards risked overlooking fragile crops. Among them was the corojo, which required special care and attention to avoid it being affected by blight and disease.

The Corojo Goes Into Exile

As the Cuban industry sought to hybridise the Corojo seed into a more resilient strain, Diego Rodriguez’s son, Daniel, took matters into his own hands. Therefore, he fled Cuba with his family whilst taking with him as many samples of the Corojo as possible.

Rodriguez and the Corojo resettled in the Honduran Valle de Jamastrán, which had a climate and topology that closely resembled its native Vuelta Adajo home. It would take a further 40 years of meticulous care before it could be cultivated and a single cigar could be rolled.

Through a true labour of love, craftsmen set to work in curing and fermenting the tobacco. It was discovered that the process was far more challenging than in Cuba. However, they prevaled and the Original Corojo returned to be Camacho’s most celebrated blend.

International Standards

As briefly mentioned above, Camacho partnered with Bayer CropScience after being acquired by Davidoff. During this time, it complied to rigorously strict standards towards the management of natural resources, industrial safety and biosecurity.

Furthermore, Camacho used bio-friendly pesticides and took their environmental responsibility seriously. Unlike many other firms, Camacho realised the impact that intensive agriculture could have on the local environmental.

Therefore, Camacho became the only tobacco company in the world to be in compliance with the requirements of both the Good Manufacturing Practices and Good Agricultural Practices.

Similarly, Camacho is renowned for the care it takes in its employees and their families. From working conditions to salaries, they offer some of the best environments available in the industry. With the construction of the new factory, this will only improve.

Powerband Bunching

Relying on only a select number of master craftsmen, Camacho have developed the art of cigar rolling into an exact science. Although the technique is highly secretive and can only be achieved by a few individuals, the cigars are manufactured using a proprietary bunching method.

Although it’s confidential, the result can be seen in any Camacho cigar foot. Here, the filler tobacco isn’t just arranged in a snail’s shell pattern but it’s also folded like a concertina. The final result is a well-constructed cigar with no soft spots and an optimised airflow for a perfect draw.

The Camacho Powerband was released as a testament to this innovative technique by carrying the namesake. However, the unique process is present in all of their cigars.

Current Cigar Ranges

Camacho has broken down its current offerings into the four following ranges:

• Everyday Bold Smokes
• Master Built Series
• Brotherhood Series
• Custom Built

As the name suggests, the Everyday Bold Smokes are more affordable handmade cigars that are in line with Camacho’s quality whilst containing the famed Carojo seed.

Meanwhile, the Master Built Series is a collection of cigars that showcase the craftsmanship and innovative blends that the house has achieved. With regards to the Brotherhood Series, these are cigars that were launched to honour those that had an impact on Camacho’s community.

Finally, the Custom Built range are originally blends for notable personalities that were released to the public.

Now, let’s take a look at a few notable examples of Camacho’s blends from these different ranges:

• Original Corojo
• Diploma
• American Barrel Aged
• Nicaraguan Barrel Aged
• Triple Maduro

Camacho Original Corojo

• Range: Everyday Bold Smokes
• Available Vitolas: Machito, Robusto, Corono, Toro, Figurado, Gigante, Churchill
• Filler: Honduran Corojo
• Binder: Honduran Corojo
• Wrapper: Honduran Corojo
• Profile: Full

Whilst the Criollo, Connecticut and Ecuador each featured some Corojo leaf, the Original Corojo is a celebration of the emblematic seed. This cigar is a pedigree specimen with a pure blend of 100% genuine corojo from the Honduran Valle de Jamastrán.

Firstly, the wrapper leaf is build with high-grade, fifth priming wrapper to provide an intense and bold experience. Under its red band, the cigar is oily and perhaps less sightly that what she or he may be used to.

After all, the Corojo is usually a leaf reserved for fillers and binders, which is why this blend is unique. In terms of aromas, the smoker can expect thick treacle as well as paprika and ball peppers before an earthy and spicy final third.

Camacho Diploma

• Range: Master Built Series
• Available Vitolas: Robusto
• Filler: Honduran Corojo
• Binder: Honduran Corojo
• Wrapper: Honduran Corojo
• Profile: Medium-Full

As an extension of the Original Corojo, the Diploma is an exclusive and very limited interpretation of the enigmatic seed. First released in 2013 to much fanfare, it was available in several sizes with a more complex blend.

However, its run was stopped to be replaced by the new Diploma. This featured a purer experience that only consists of authentic 100% Honduran Corojo. Only 1,800 boxes of 20 cigars are released per year, which means that only 36,000 are produced annually.

Furthermore, each cigar is individually boxed in a beautiful lacquered coffin, which themselves are stored in a triangular box. As you would expect, the Diploma is a superior cigar to the Original Corojo but still shares the same Camacho hallmarks.

With overt earthy tones and flavours of espresso and cocoa, it’s a memorable and mouthwatering blend. Latent notes of leather appear through the second third with grapefruit aromas in the retrohale.

If you like the sound of this, read the full Camacho Diploma review to learn more.

Camacho American Barrel Aged

• Range: Master Built Series
• Available Vitolas: Robusto, Toro, Gordo
• Filler: American Broadleaf, Pennsylvania Maduro, Barrel-Aged Carajo
• Binder: American Broadleaf
• Wrapper: American Broadleaf
• Profile: Medium-Full

Released in 2015, the American Barrel Aged was Camacho’s first venture with their Master Built Series. This exciting and complex cigar followed a unique maturation process where six year-old Corojo leaves are matured in charred bourbon barrels.

A painstaking process, the Corojo leaves are locked into the barrels, which are rotated one leaf at a time. Additionally, this technique would take five months to complete and required meticulous attentiveness.

Once properly infused, the Corojo leaves are then added to a blend of American broadleaf and Pennsylvania Maduro tobacco. The result is a marriage of oaky, sweet and bourbon aromas.

Being a huge success, it then spawned the Nicaraguan Barrel Aged blend, which you can read about below.

Camacho Nicaraguan Barrel Aged

• Range: Master Built Series
• Available Vitolas: Robusto, Toro, Gordo
• Filler: Nicaraguan Corojo 99, Piloto Cubana, Dominican San Vicente
• Binder: Mexican Negrito San Andres
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano 2000
• Profile: Medium-Full

Following the critical acclaim achieved by the American Barrel Aged, Camacho sought to up the ante. Consequently, they released the Nicaraguan Barrel Aged. Here, instead of ageing the Corojo leaves in bourbon barrels, Camacho chose to showcase the flavours of rum.

Once again, Camacho tore down conventions to provide their clients with a rich and unique experience. Interestingly, the well-seasoned barrels used in this process began life as bourbon casks too.

However, the resulting flavour profile is completely different from the American Barrel Aged. Instead, the flavour consists of oak, safran and leather with overt notes of spices, rum and earth.

If you’re curious to discover the full experience when smoking a Nicaraguan Barrel Aged Camacho, read the detailed review.

Camacho Triple Maduro

• Range: Master Built Series
• Available Vitolas: Robusto, Corono, 11/18, Gordo, Figurado
• Filler: Honduran, Dominican & Brazilian Maduro Blend
• Binder: Mexican Corojo Maduro
• Wrapper: San Andres Maduro
• Profile: Full

Once again flying in the face of convention, Camacho released the Triple Maduro. In this instance, it was decided the what a Maduro cigar needed was of course, more Maduro.

Rather than only featuring a Maduro blend, the entire cigar consists of the darkened leaf in the filler, wrapper and binder. A true testament to the beloved sun-dried leaf, it features maduro tobacco from all over the Americas including Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Brazil and Mexico.

In fact, this was a risky venture on Camacho’s part as bringing different Maduro leaves can result in a bland and confused flavour profile. However, after 84 attempts, Camacho had found the perfect blend for an unforgettable experience.

What Next?

Enjoyed reading about Camacho? Now that you’ve fully discovered the brand, discover all our other cigar resources via the links below:

• Cigars Homepage
• How To Smoke A Cigar
• How To Light A Cigar