RoMa Craft cigars

The RoMa Craft story begins with a road trip. In 2010, Mike Rosales — then head of Costa Rican Imports — traveled to Estelí with his friend Skip Martin of Galveston Bay Tobacco, where they met a young blender named Esteban Disla. The three began rolling the CroMagnon line out of Disla's garage, drawing on unusual tobacco selections that diverged sharply from the mainstream Nicaraguan blends of the moment. The name "RoMa Craft" combines the first syllables of the two founders' last names: Ro from Rosales, Ma from Martin.

By 2011 the partners had built Fabrica de Tabacos NicaSueño, a dedicated facility in Estelí, and formally launched the brand in 2012. CroMagnon was the first cigar released under the RoMa Craft banner and remains a benchmark — a full-bodied, complex blend using an Ecuadorian wrapper with aged Nicaraguan and Dominican binders and fillers. It established the brand's house character: big flavor, considered construction, tobaccos chosen for distinction rather than accessibility.

Neanderthal extended the anthropological naming scheme and became one of the most-awarded limited lines the brand has released, with concentrated strength and long finish that attracted serious collectors. Aquitaine, named for the prehistoric French region, demonstrates the brand's willingness to deploy Connecticut wrapper on a full-bodied core — the contrast between the silky exterior and the robust interior is a deliberate signature. Intemperance rounds out the core portfolio with a different structural approach, using smaller vitolas to showcase the tobacco more directly.

Rosales splits time between Austin and the road visiting retailers; Martin is based primarily in Estelí, maintaining close oversight of production.