Kafie 1901 Connecticut

The Kafie family emigrated from England to Honduras around 1901, which is also reflected in the brand’s name. In the 1970s, the family moved to the United States with their three young children and built a new life there. The founder and current owner of Kafie Cigars, Dr. Gaby Kafie, initially worked as a physician for about ten years before diving into the cigar industry in his early forties in 2013. There’s that old joke that says making a small fortune in the cigar business is easy—you just need to start with a large fortune, invest it in cigars, and you’ll eventually end up with a small fortune.

Dr. Gaby Kafie: From Physician to Cigar Maker With Honduran Roots

How things went exactly for Dr. Kafie, I honestly don’t know. But I have the utmost respect for his decision to leave a secure medical career and pursue his dream of producing cigars in the land of his ancestors. In the beginning, the Honduran cigars were rolled by the Reyes family. In early 2017, he opened his own factory in Danlí, Honduras, where around 20 employees processed tobacco and rolled cigars. The annual production capacity was approximately 150,000 cigars, rolled by about ten pairs of workers.

From Danlí to Santiago: Kafie Cigars at La Aurora in the Dominican Republic

In November 2021, production was fully relocated to Tabacalera La Aurora in Santiago, Dominican Republic. This decision was made due to severe weather events, issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, and general concerns over safety in Honduras. Since the La Aurora cigars and their manufacturing standards are beyond reproach, handing over production to the oldest cigar factory in the Dominican Republic was certainly not a bad move. The first Dominican-made Kafie 1901 cigars were released in spring 2022. Gaby Kafie has since focused on creating exciting blends and distributing his cigars internationally. Since May 2025, Don Stefano Zigarrenmanufaktur GmbH from Heuchelheim, Hesse, has been the official exclusive importer for Germany.

Kafie 1901 Connecticut: Mild Cigars With Ecuadorian Shade Wrapper

The cigars in the Connecticut line featured here are made with a light shade wrapper from Ecuador. The binder is Dominican, and the filler tobaccos are a refined blend of Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. This combination of tobaccos from three different countries creates the especially harmonious blend of the mild Connecticut. In addition to the cigars featured here, three other lines originally existed under the Kafie Cigars brand. Also produced at Tabacalera G. Kafie y Cia were the San Jeronimo cigars. This brand is the oldest registered cigar brand from Honduras and was acquired by the family in the late 1930s. Alongside the cigars presented here, the Kafie 1901 Maduro and the slightly bolder Kafie 1901 San Andres are also currently available.