For Jonathan Delgado, Mr. Jony Cigars, his journey with cigar craftsmanship started from scratch, revealing a hidden talent that neither he nor anyone else knew he possessed. A health issue was preventing José Gabriel Cruz Ayala, El Chan, from working at full capacity, so he needed someone to help him. That’s when he turned to his cousin, who agreed to work by his side as an occasional assistant.
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Jonathan has been a smoker since the age of 17, but it wasn’t until he arrived at the La Hoja del Chan workshop that he realized what a cigar truly represents –its craftsmanship, the effort of the hundreds of hands involved in its creation, and everything he had “disrespected” when he simply lit a cigar to blow out smoke without thinking much about it.
“With Gaby, I saw the work, the attention to detail, and I began to develop a love for tobacco, agriculture, and the craftsmanship. Once I understood that, I started to enjoy it more.”
Until 2020, Jonathan worked for a company subcontracted by the airport to handle baggage. However, the Covid-19 pandemic drastically reduced operations, and he lost his job. This marked the beginning of his full-time career with tobacco, which now involves working at La Hoja del Chan, creating his own brand, and collaborating with the Tobacco Museum in Caguas.
Going back to his roots, Jonathan had no idea he could make cigars. “But it was something I had inside me, and I started from scratch until I could do it on my own.”
He also realized that this business had vast growth potential, but what truly made him decide to pursue it was the craftsmanship. “I fell in love with it and found a passion for working with the leaf.”
Jonathan became an outstanding wrapper roller. During the first few months, El Chan handled the filler, and Jonathan only worked on the wrappers. But over time, the trust in his work grew, and he began running the workshop while Gaby went out to seek clients. This has been the routine for the past four years.
In fact, he is part of the group called Los Hijos de La Hoja del Chan, certified as cigar rollers in 2022.
A Brand of His Own
Jonathan’s talent with tobacco was undeniable, just as El Chan’s passion for the growth of the tobacco industry in Puerto Rico was. Therefore, the next step had to be creating his own brand. “I was afraid to start a business because I didn’t want to fail. It took me a while, but I’ve now had my brand for a year and a half.”
The brand is called Mr. Jony, a cigar that started as a product entirely based on his creator’s taste. In fact, he chose the Torpedo format, 6 inches long with a 52 ring gauge, as the only reference he had in mind for what a cigar should be, before getting involved in the industry and learning about different formats or sizes like Toro, Robusto, and Churchill, among others.
“In my mind, a cigar had to be a Torpedo. That’s how I saw them when I imagined a cigar, maybe from some reference on TV or something like that. Also, I like that format because depending on the cut, you can achieve a looser or tighter draw, according to personal taste.”
The base blend of his cigars features Nicaraguan tobacco for the filler and Ecuadorian tobacco for the binder. The variety is in the wrappers: Habano and Broadleaf for the Maduro, Connecticut, Habano Ecuador, and a combination of Connecticut and Maduro to create a Barber Pole or Bolero.
Jonathan believes that the lessons he learned from El Chan have been crucial at every step of his journey in the industry, from how to make a cigar to how to market it. When it came to his cigars’ strong flavor and character, which were the first blends for Mr. Jony with those bold notes and aromas, Gaby pointed out that palates are varied in the market, and that’s when Jonathan decided to expand his offerings.
“As I participated with him in various activities –private events and fairs– that’s where I learned to vary my blends because there are people who haven’t smoked before, and a strong blend might be too aggressive for them. In other words, it could result in a bad experience.”
As for the local audience, Jonathan adds that the brand enjoys good reviews and a loyal customer base, so exporting isn’t far off. “Although it’s not a priority right now, because I dedicate most of my time to La Hoja del Chan and the Tobacco Museum in Caguas, which helps spread the history of this municipality as one of the largest producers of tobacco during the golden age of tobacco in Puerto Rico.”
“Although no one can deny that goal, I don’t aim to have the best cigar in the world, but for every enthusiast to have a Mr. Jony in their home as a handcrafted product made in this country.”
The Tobacco Revival
Since 2020, the growth of the tobacco industry in Puerto Rico has been significant, and there’s much more buzz around it than before, directly impacting the new generations and changing the paradigm that cigars are only for older people.
Jonathan recalls that years ago, tobacco was the island’s second or third largest economic source, just behind sugar cane and possibly coffee. “I hope that soon, maybe in a couple more years, we can have a 100% Puerto Rican cigar again.”
As progress toward that goal, he talks about the lands where tobacco is being cultivated again. “Although I don’t know what seed is being used, I hope that over time we can develop our own variety. Right now, what we can see is that the sector is advancing and evolving.”
