THE XXIII EDITION OF THE HABANO FESTIVAL KICKS OFF

• From February 27th to March 3rd, Havana will welcome aficionados, professionals and experts from all over the world
• Montecristo, Bolívar and Partagás will be the main brands featured in this new edition of the Habano Festival
• Live music, gastronomy and the best of Cuban culture will once again flood the Caribbean capital to pay tribute to the world of Habanos

HAVANA, Feb. 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Havana will once again dress up to host the 23rd edition of the Habano Festival and thus become the world capital of this unique product. Between Monday, Feb. 27th and Friday, March 3rd, aficionados, experts, and professionals will gather around what is considered the world's best tobacco and pay tribute to three of Habanos, S.A.'s most prestigious brands: Montecristo, Bolívar and Partagás, among others.

For this week-long celebration, a host of activities, workshops, lectures and presentations have been prepared with Habanos as the central theme and with the aim of continuing to convey and share knowledge of both its tradition and its entire value chain.

As in previous editions, attendees from more than 110 countries will get a first-hand look at the novelties Habanos, S.A. will be presenting during the Festival.

The 23rd edition of the Habano Festival kicks off with the opening of the Trade Fair, the most important meeting point for professionals in the tobacco sector, manufacturers of premium products and artisans.  This year's edition brings together more than 270 exhibitors from 10 countries. That same night, Club Habana will host the first of the special evenings with a Welcome Evening, which will revolve around Montecristo and its much-appreciated Línea Open, and during which its latest novelty will be presented.

The Mid-week evening will take place at El Laguito Protocol Room and will feature Bolívar and La Casa del Habano. It will celebrate the brand's 121 years and the worldwide importance of the international network of franchised specialized stores with the presentation of a new vitola.

The grand finale of this long-awaited Habano Festival will be the Gala evening to be held on Friday, March 3rd, at Pabexpo. This magical evening will be dedicated to Partagás. One of the most important moments of the Festival will be the Habanos Awards Ceremony and the traditional Humidor Auction, whose proceeds will go, as is customary, to the Cuban Public Health System.

A WEEK FULL OF ACTIVITIES

In parallel, the International Seminar will kick off with the Conference "The Partagás brand as seen through Vitolfilia", presented by Mr. Fernando González García, President of the Cuban Association of Vitolfilia, and Ms. Zoe Nocedo, member of the Association, at the Havana ConventionCenter. Throughout the week, the same venue will host different masterclasses on the Habanos-making process, as well as tastings and pairings with different products.

We will also experience the excitement of a new edition of the Habanos World Challenge in which, in couples, participants will have to demonstrate their knowledge and mastery of the different stages of Habano making and enjoyment. The successors of Tarek Gamayel and Fadi Hammad, winners of the last edition, will be determined through a series of tests competitors will have to pass.

The program of activities at the 23rd Habano Festival will be rounded out by visits to plantations, which this year will take place in in the Vuelta Abajo zone, in the Pinar del Río* region, as well as visits to the Partagás and La Corona factories to gain first-hand knowledge about the whole Habano-making process.

*(P.A.O.) Protected Appellations of Origin.          

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