Joya de Nicaragua, S.A., established in 1968, is the oldest brand of cigars made in Nicaragua. The company continues to manufacture its products today from its headquarters in Estelí today a major manufacturing center of handmade cigars with exports made worldwide. Company history Establishment Cigar-making came to Nicaragua in the aftermath of the Cuban Revolution of 1959. In the years immediately following the overthrow of the regime of Fulgencio Batista by Fidel Castro, the export of raw tobacco and finished cigars from Cuba to the United States was initially permitted. This situation changed dramatically in 1962 when President John F. Kennedy imposed a stringent embargo against Cuba. Owners of tobacco companies and leading growers had already fled the island in the aftermath of the revolution, with its nationalization of the cigar industry. New areas for the cultivation of cigar tobacco were explored. One of the most promising of these new regions for tobacco cultivation was the fertile soils of Nicaragua. While tobacco farming in Nicaragua was begun in 1964, the first brand manufactured in the country was Joya de Nicaragua — a company launched in 1968. The Spanish word joya is a false friend with the English word "joy." The actual meaning of the word is "jewel" — thus, the brand name "Joya de Nicaragua" correctly translates as "Jewel of Nicaragua." During the Reagan administration's embargo on Nicaraguan goods, the production of Joya de Nicaragua was moved across the border to Honduras, where production was handled in the facilities of Nestor Plasencia. There was additionally difficulty with the trademark, which had been sold prior to the downfall of the Somoza regime. The company was in disarray and was sold via a public auction. Development In 1994, Joya de Nicaragua was purchased by Dr. Alejandro Ernesto Martínez Cuenca (born 1947 in Managua). During the Sandinista Revolution, Martínez Cuenca, a member of the Sandinista Party, served as Minister of Foreign Trade for the Sandinista government. Having purchased the company in the aftermath of the revolution, Martínez Cuenca set about improving the quality, which along with the company's esteem had fallen during the 1980s. As one observer put it, the deterioration of Joya de Nicaragua had been the unfortunate result of a "failed social experiment in which company operations were managed by factory workers." Old rollers and blenders were rehired and the company released what would become its signature cigar, the Joya de