Hoyo de Monterrey

A Cuban marque founded in 1865 and later produced in both Cuba and Honduras

Founded: 1865
Founded by: Don José Gener y Batet
Family: The Cuban brand is produced for Habanos S.A.; the Honduran brand is produced by General Cigar Company, a subsidiary of Swedish Match.
Made in: Cuba · Honduras
Factory: HATSA factory, Danlí, Honduras, for the Honduran cigars stated in the sources
Lines here: 2

The house

The story of Hoyo de Monterrey

Don José Gener y Batet emigrated from Spain to Cuba in 1831, aged thirteen, and worked on his uncle’s plantation in Vuelta Abajo. Twenty years later, he opened a cigar factory in Havana and began making La Escepción. After acquiring a Vuelta Abajo tobacco farm, he registered Hoyo de Monterrey in 1865, naming the line for the property.

The name translates literally as “the Hole of Monterrey,” referring to the concave terrain favoured by growers of premium tobacco. The cigars found particular popularity in Britain, and Gener’s factory became one of Cuba’s largest. After Gener died in Spain in 1900, his daughter Lutgarda Gener assumed control; the business remained with the family for another thirty years.

In 1931, the Gener family sold Hoyo de Monterrey and La Escepción to Fernández, Palicio y Cía, which also owned Punch and Belinda. The Le Hoyo series was created in the 1940s for Swiss distributor A. Dürr Co. Fernando Palicio later became sole proprietor, and by 1958 his cigar lines represented 13 percent of Havana cigar exports.

Following Cuba’s nationalisation of cigar manufacturers in 1959, Palicio moved to Florida and sold his cigar lines to the Villazon family. The family made Punch, Hoyo de Monterrey and Belinda in Tampa using Honduran tobacco for the American market. Hoyo de Monterrey subsequently continued as two premium-cigar brands: a Cuban line produced for Habanos S.A. and a Honduran line produced by General Cigar Company.

Milestones

Moments that made the house

1831
Gener arrives in Cuba
José Gener y Batet emigrated from Spain at thirteen and worked on his uncle’s Vuelta Abajo plantation.
1851
Havana factory opens
Twenty years after reaching Cuba, Gener opened his own cigar factory and began producing La Escepción.
1865
Hoyo de Monterrey registered
Gener registered a cigar line named after his tobacco farm in Vuelta Abajo.
1900
Lutgarda Gener takes control
After José Gener died in Spain, his daughter Lutgarda assumed control of the business.
1931
Brands sold
The Gener family sold Hoyo de Monterrey and La Escepción to Fernández, Palicio y Cía.
1958
Major Havana exporter
Fernando Palicio’s cigar lines accounted for 13 percent of all Havana cigar exports.
1959
Production divides
After Cuban cigar manufacturing was nationalised, Palicio left for Florida and later sold his lines to the Villazon family.
2004
Petit Robusto joins the range
Hoyo de Monterrey added the Petit Robusto and introduced a slightly redesigned cigar band.

Craft

How they make them

Production differs between the Cuban and Honduran brands. The Honduran Excalibur line is hand-rolled with long filler and uses tobacco from Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, with Connecticut Shade or Connecticut Broadleaf wrappers; the retailer states that Excalibur uses the top 10 percent of the factory’s Honduran and Nicaraguan tobacco. The Honduran Le Hoyo blend introduced in 2026 combines a Honduran Olancho San Agustín wrapper, Connecticut broadleaf binder, and fillers from Nicaragua, Honduras and the Dominican Republic, and is rolled at the HATSA factory in Danlí.

Details

Things most people don't know

Meaning of the name: Hoyo de Monterrey translates literally as “the Hole of Monterrey,” a reference to concave tobacco-growing terrain.
British following: The brand became particularly popular in the British market during José Gener’s ownership.
Export share: By 1958, Fernando Palicio’s cigar lines accounted for 13 percent of all Havana cigar exports.
Repeated limited edition: Production problems led Habanos to issue the Particular Edición Limitada in both 2000 and 2001.
Victory cigar: Boston Celtics coach and executive Red Auerbach was known for smoking a Hoyo de Monterrey victory cigar before games ended.
Four-country blend: The Honduran Le Hoyo introduced in 2026 combines tobacco from Honduras, the United States, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic.

In the humidor