Alejandro Robaina

Alejandro Robaina (March 20, 1919 – April 17, 2010) was a Cuban tobacco grower, the namesake of the Vegas Robaina cigar brand.

Biography Robaina was born in Alquízar in La Habana Province of Cuba but he grew up and lived most of his life in the tobacco-growing Vuelta Abajo district of Pinar del Río Province where his family had been growing tobacco since 1845. He became involved with his family's tobacco growing business at the age of ten, having smoked his first cigar just shortly before then. and remained an independent grower even after the 1959 Cuban Revolution when plantations were often absorbed into cooperative organizations. In a 2006 interview with Cigar Aficionado magazine, Robaina stated that he spoke with Castro and that he "told Fidel I did not like cooperatives or state farms and that the best way to grow tobacco was through family production. He wanted me to join a cooperative and I told him no."

The tobacco leaves from Robaina's plantations are often considered among the best in the world

During the 1990s, Robaina was recognized by the Cuban government as the country's best tobacco grower. His travelling subsided as he got older and he received visits at his home and plantation by thousands of cigar enthusiasts and tourists annually.

Robaina was diagnosed with cancer in 2009 and died in his home on his tobacco plantation near San Luis, Pinar del Río. He handed over the majority of the day-to-day operations of the plantation to his grandson Hiroshi several years before his death.