Behind the Nicarao cigar brand is Didier Houvenaghel, who is one of the very few non-Cubans to have completed his Master’s thesis in agricultural economics at the University of Pinar del Río in Cuba. Even whilst he was a student, he had the idea of creating his own cigar. After finding the right microclimate for this in the Jalapa and Esteli growing regions in northern Nicaragua, the Nicarao brand was born.