In 1995, Arturo Fuente Cigar Co. debuted its most ambitious project to date: Fuente Fuente OpusX. By now you probably know the story. While the Dominican Republic had risen to become the second most important handmade cigar producer in the world, only behind Cuba, the country was infamous for the inability to grow wrapper on the island’s soils. While filler tobacco factory and cigar factories were plentiful, fields of wrapper didn’t exist, and not because people hadn’t tried. The latest person entering their hat was Carlos “Carlito” Fuente Jr. The company began planting seeds for the crop in 1992 and by 1995 it was ready to show off the cigar, a Dominican puro, to the world. By now, Dominican puros are no longer the rarity they once were. In fact, most people smoking Fuente Fuente OpusX probably aren’t even aware of the accomplishment. Instead, OpusX is known as a stronger cigar—for most people it is; a rare cigar—it only comes out in limited quantity a couple times per year; and a special cigar—the rarity and price make it arguably the epitome of an American market “top shelf” cigar. Last year, Fuente celebrated 20 years of Fuente Fuente OpusX with a ...
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