"Extinct" Cuban Seeds From 1941 Now Growing Pinar del Rio Tobacco in Costa Rica

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	NEW PRODUCT RELEASE
	For Release: February 10, 2007

	"Extinct" Cuban Seeds From 1941 Now Growing Pinar del Rio Tobacco in Costa Rica
	In 1941, a revolutionary new strain of tobacco was developed by Cuban Land, the island's eminent tobacco research facility. First introduced in Pinar del Rio Province, Cuba, in 1941, it became the archetype for tobacco from that region for two decades. Some of the province's most important leaf suppliers like Jacinto Argudín, Luis Pedreira, Daniel Rodríguez, and Elio Junco grew it for world-renowned pre-Embargo Cuban cigar makers, . Soon, it became especially valued by experienced smokers worldwide. Though one of the fullest-bodied of Cuban tobaccos, its smooth power lacked the bite and harshness on the palate of Castro's product.

	This leaf from Pinar del Rio Province was also noted for its depth and complexity, as well as superior burning properties. In the 1960s, Castro dismantled Cuban Land and other tobacco research for several years, reassigning the island's former tobacco researchers to the cultivation of sugar for Cold War Russia. The moratorium on Cuban genetic research resulted in neglect for breeding stocks ... these tobaccos from Cuba's Golden Age of Cigars eventually disappeared, including the legendary 1941 seeds from Pinar del Rio Province.

	But now, Tabacos de la Cordillera has successfully grown, harvested, and processed tobacco once again from these "extinct" Cuban seeds from Pinar del Rio. The Costa Rican company is currently rolling the first cigars from this Cuban leaf, which is available nowhere else in the industry. According to company director and tobacco geneticist John Vogel, "This tobacco will produce 20,000 limited-release premium cigars. It is the first of Tabacos de la Cordillera's new flagship line of cigars, all from rare pre-Embargo Cuban seeds." "This tobacco is unique in two ways: First, it grows from seeds from the very same Cuban Land parent breeding stock ... I received these seeds directly from colleagues in the scientific community, who were former Cuban Land researchers. The tobacco is purely Cuban in origin. "Secondly, the cigars rolled from this new tobacco ... called Serie 1941' ... will contain only this tobacco, from different primings (levels) on the plants. The cigars will not be blended with tobaccos from different countries, regions, or even farms. Thus, these cigars are the 'purest of puros.'"

	Cigars from this crop will be available in June/July of this year, in the four most popular sizes: Churchill, Corona, Robusto, and Torpedo. Supplies will be limited. The cigars will appear first on the company's exclusive factory-authorized Web site, www.tabacordilliera.com.


	Emerald-green at 27 days after transplanting, pre-Embargo Cuban Pinar del Rio seeds first grew this tobacco in 1941. It now grows again on Tabacos de la Cordillera's Costa Rican farm