Cigar Aficionado, the U.S.-based magazine, gave Habanos S.A. the award to the world’s best cigar in 2013, bestowed on the company’s flagship vitola: the Montecristo No. 2 Piramides, according to Jorge Luis Fernandez Maique, deputy president Marketing for Habanos S.A. , who made the announcement during the opening of the 16th Habano Festival’s International Seminar.

One of the most anticipated moments within the 16th Habano Festival’s International Seminar was no doubt the master lecture entitled “Germans in Habanos: The Origin of the H. Upmann Brand,” dictated by renowned researcher Raul Martell.

Some delegates couldn’t keep their excitement to themselves and made the traditional clanking sound of jackknives during the master class on hand-rolling of a premium cigar, an event held once again as part of the 16th Habano Festival’s International Seminar.

“Today, Habanos in Trinidad are rolled in Vuelta Abajo, the most important city of Pinar del Rio’s tobacco-producing regions, always ruled by the same principles of exclusivity that has marked its career,” said Javier Terres, deputy president Development for Habanos S.A., during the night dedicated to the Trinidad brand.

During the opening of the 16th Habano Festival’s International Seminar, top executives from Habanos S.A. underscored that in the course of 2013 the world's leading company in the sale of premium cigars raked in $447 million worth of revenue, up 8 percent from the previous year.

Excelencias Turísticas del Caribe y las Américas magazine’s special issue – in both English and Spanish languages - is being doles out among delegates attending the 16th Habano Festival, an effort owed to the collaboration between the Excelencias Group and Habanos S.A.