Quai D'Orsay

About

Quai D'Orsay Cigars The release of the original five Quai d’Orsay cigars in 1973 was a huge moment for the tobacco industry. Never before had a Cuban cigar brand been conceived and established for exclusive distribution in one country, at the specific request of that country’s government. Others, like Saint Luis Rey , had been devised by brand owners to target a particular nation’s palette, but when SEITA (the official French importer of Cuban cigars at the time) approached the Cuban government with their original proposal they broke new ground completely. For the first 40 years of their existence, Quai d’Orsay could only be found in France: a new concept for the luxury cigar market. France itself is famed for its luxury products, be they the couture of Chanel and Dior or the gastronomy of Champagne and foie gras. It was this pedigree that sparked the imagination of France’s then-Minister of Finance Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, leading him to approach the director of SEITA and ask him to create a cigar brand which would pair well with champagne and could be used to further enhance the image of France. The offices of both M. d’Estaing’s ministry and the importers themselves were located at the time on Paris’ famous Quai d’Orsay, and the name was chosen as yet another example of the nations elegance. French tastes at the time were, and still are today, for lighter cigars, both in body and flavour. The blend created for the new brand paid specific attention to that, and wrappers of the softest golden-brown claro shade were chosen for each stick. The forty years of French exclusivity were not without issue. A lack of supply from Cuba in the 1990s saw SEITA send cash donations to assist farmers and related industries, secured against future cigar deliveries. A failure to adjust the brand’s offering – at the time, mostly long, slender sticks – to the increased demand for thicker ring gauges saw sales plummet. The first use of Quai d’Orsay for the Regional Edition programme i