The piles are constantly pulled down and rebuilt
with the tobacco being regularly sampled having
been re-humidified with purified water. They
may rebuild the piles up to 20 times in the many
months it can take until the process is complete
and the tobacco is ready.
It’s critical to the family that they produce highly
personal cigars with their own personality and
they have total control.
Changes in the growing season from year to year
can be substantial. The 2014 season, for example,
was very hot and dry producing very powerful
tobacco which is now being tested and sampled as
it undergoes fermentation. It will could take a full
18 months to create the right profile.
Tony told me that just like a winemaker it is
important to create a profile of cigar which is
consistent and clearly recognisable to those people
who love to smoke the company’s cigars.
The factory is based in an area where there are
many rollers, so there is no need to train rollers
it’s more a question of testing them and making
sure the quality of their cigars is up to the required
standard. Many of the rollers have fathers and
grandfathers who were rollers and it’s a very proud
tradition to follow.
Blending is done by Tony and his father and
checked by a group of supervisors in the factory.
This, he says is the part of the job he enjoys so
much and which he finds most memorable.
The business has room to continue to grow and
expand; they are also experimenting with a couple
of new strains of tobacco to see how it grows in the
area.
The company produces a number of cigars from
its original milder traditional Dominican cigars
through to the more powerful cigars which are to
Litto’s taste including the really powerful Double
Ligero. This demand for power was a key element
to the location of the farm and also the decision to
create a cigar that was unique.
They are also innovative, beyond the integration.
Litto has created the only patented cigar shape, the
unique ‘chisel’ cigar. Tony explains that his father
was smoking a traditional torpedo and flattened
out the end of the cigar in his mouth. He enjoyed
the shape and worked with his rollers to create
this shape which is the only patented cigar shape.
Litto and Ines are both young and have a clear
passion and vitality for their business and it
will be fascinating to watch this company grow
and continue to innovate in one of the most
competitive businesses and markets in the world.
Learn more about La Flor Dominicana at
http://laflordominicana.com
8