It has long been thought that the only place to grow cigar tobacco in the United States is in Connecticut. For close to around twenty years, there has been a cultivator in Kentucky that has sent this theory up in smoke and yes the pun was intended.
Tobacco has long been grown in Kentucky. This tobacco has been traditionally used for filler tobacco for cigarettes. If you wanted a finer tobacco for the cigar wrapper, the general consensus was that it could only be grown in Connecticut. One cultivator named Mark Barrow changed all of that.
In the 1990’s, Mark journeyed to Connecticut to find a seed that he could adapt to make work in his region. After pounding a lot of pavement and being turned down several times, he finally made his way back to Kentucky with the seed in hand. He started out with Havana 214, 217 and Connecticut shade. The year after he began growing broadleaf which has since then comprised the majority of his crop.
His tobacco is blended with tobacco form Puerto Rico. It is processed, dried, and aged in Puerto Rico between 1 and 4 years. After that it is shipped back to Kentucky and sold throughout the United States. Tobacco continues to gain popularity in Kentucky and may progress into neighboring states, producing a lot more home grown tobacco.