2020 Cigar Retailer Survey: The Hottest Cigar Brands in the U.S.

In the world of cigars that has been turned upside down by an epidemic, some things remain unchanged. Consumers continue to buy premium cigars, and Arturo Fuente and Padron dominate the top cigar shops. Both brands are produced by family businesses and enjoy a long reputation in making high-quality cigars, and once again topped our list of the hottest and best-selling brands.

The editors of "Cigar Insider" investigated the owners of 87 cigar shops, and they were from 141 retail stores in the United States. "Cigar Insider" is a newsletter published twice a month by "Cigar Aficionado". Retailers will provide the three most popular cigar brands, which are the cigar brands most frequently requested by consumers (popular brands are not always in stock, so this represents consumer demand, not necessarily sales).

Padron's 1964 anniversary series occupies the first place, and 29.9% of retailers consider it is one of the most popular brands. For most of its long history, the most popular cigars have been in short supply. It went on the market in 1994 as a more high-end Padron cigar. Its box-shaped shape triggered a market trend that continues to this day. Nicaraguan cigars are high-class cigars that have long been blind tastings of "Cigar Insider" and "Cigar Aficionado".

Arturo Fuente ranked second (26.4%) and many respondents thought that the very high-end Arturo Fuente Don Carlos Eye of the Shark was in short supply until 2017. After being rated as the "Cigar of the Year" by cigar fans with a score of 97, the demand has been soaring.

The third place is Fuente Fuente OpusX, the company's top cigar. In the period of cigar boom, this brand almost grabbed the rare category market once it was launched. This cigar was basically unavailable when it was released in the mid-1990s, and in many stores, each customer can only buy two. Although they are easy to find in today's market, they are still a popular brand nearly 25 years after their release.

The bold and spicy Liga Privada cigars produced by the Drew Estate in Nicaragua ranked fourth, the same as the 2019 ranking. This cigar has a loyal following and is rolled in a super black Connecticut broadleaf wrapper.

La Flor Dominicana jumped to fifth place (ranked seventh last year), with 13.8% of retailers choosing the brand. Some respondents mentioned the La Flor Dominicana Andalusian Bull, which was named the 2016 Cigar of the Year by "Cigar Aficionado". Rocky Patel, available in various sizes and styles, ranked sixth, with 11.5% of retailers choosing the brand. Davidoff and Oliva Serie V tied for seventh, My Father ranked ninth, and Montecristo brand ranked tenth.

In the list of best-selling cigar brands, Arturo Fuente and Padron tied for No.1, with 44.8% of retailers choosing these two brands. Perdomo ranks third, and this Nicaraguan brand has grown significantly from the sixth place in 2019. American Tobacco's best-selling cigar brand Romeo y Julieta ranked fourth, and Rocky Patel ranked fifth. The top 5 best-selling brands are from cigar manufacturers around the world: Padron and Perdomo are from Nicaragua, Fuente and Romeo y Julieta are produced in the Dominican Republic, and Rocky Patel is produced in Honduras and Nicaragua.

Davidoff ranked sixth, My Father ranked seventh, and Oliva ranked eighth. The Macanudo brand of General Cigar Co., which once dominated our top brand list, fell to ninth place this year.  Ashton dropped from third place last year to tenth this year.