Robaina was born in AlquízarinLa Habana ProvinceofCuba but he grew up and lived most of his life in the tobacco-growing Vuelta Abajo district of Pinar del Río Province where his family had been growing tobacco since 1845.[1][2] He became involved with his family's tobacco growing business at the age of ten, having smoked his first cigar just shortly before then.[1][2] He took over the operations of the plantation after the death of his father Maruto Robaina—also a tobacco grower—in 1950[3] and remained an independent grower even after the 1959 Cuban Revolution when plantations were often absorbed into cooperative organizations.[4] In a 2006 interview with Cigar Aficionado magazine, Robaina stated that he spoke with Castro and that he "told Fidel I did not like cooperatives or state farms and that the best way to grow tobacco was through family production. He wanted me to join a cooperative and I told him no."[5]
The tobacco leaves from Robaina's plantations are often considered among the best in the world[4] and have been used by high quality cigars brands such as Cohiba and Hoyo de Monterrey.[1] Robaina himself has been dubbed the "Godfather of Cuban tobacco."[4][6]
During the 1990s, Robaina was recognized by the Cuban government as the country's best tobacco grower.[1] In 1997, the Vegas Robaina cigar brand was created by the Cuban government-owned company Habanos S.A. to honour Robaina's accomplishments in the industry,[1][4] although cigar experts have had a hard time detecting Robaina's tobacco in the cigar and Robaina himself never provided a definitive answer.[1] Robaina is the only tobacco grower with a Cuban cigar named after himself and has spent several decades travelling the world as Cuba's unofficial tobacco and cigar ambassador.[7][8] His travelling subsided as he got older and he received visits at his home and plantation by thousands of cigar enthusiasts and tourists annually.[4][1]
Robaina was diagnosed with cancer in 2009 and died in his home on his tobacco plantation near San Luis, Pinar del Río.[6][2] He handed over the majority of the day-to-day operations of the plantation to his grandson Hiroshi several years before his death.[6][5]
