Brand guide
Diamond Crown cigars
Diamond Crown is a J.C. Newman Cigar Co. brand rolled by Tabacalera A. Fuente in the Dominican Republic, relaunched in 1995 for the Tampa company's 100th year.
Diamond Crown belongs to a Tampa family firm
J.C. Newman Cigar Co. owns Diamond Crown, and Julius Caeser Newman, a Hungarian immigrant, founded that company in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1895.
The business moved to Ybor City in Tampa in 1954, to be closer to Cuban leaf. It later settled into the Regensburg cigar factory there, a building put up in 1910. Wikipedia describes the firm as private and family-owned, now in its fourth generation, with Eric Newman as president and Robert Newman as executive vice president. It sells cigars in 81 countries.
The name is older than the modern cigar. J.C. Newman says Diamond Crown was first introduced more than a century ago, then brought back in 1995 to mark the company's 100th anniversary. The company does not print the original launch year, and neither do we.
Where is Diamond Crown made?
Every Diamond Crown line is rolled at Tabacalera A. Fuente in the Dominican Republic, according to J.C. Newman's own product pages.
Tampa owns the brand. A Dominican factory rolls it. The link runs deep: J.C. Newman is the worldwide distributor of Arturo Fuente cigars outside Western Europe, and in 2001 the two families started the Cigar Family Charitable Foundation for projects in the Dominican Republic.
So a Diamond Crown band says Newman. The factory behind it is Fuente. Both facts are true at once.
Diamond Crown tobacco, in the maker's words
J.C. Newman builds the core Diamond Crown lines on a Dominican binder and five filler tobaccos from Central America and the Caribbean, and changes the wrapper by line.
The Classic wears a Connecticut Shade wrapper that the company says is aged five years. The Maduro switches to Connecticut Broadleaf. The Tampa edition keeps the shade wrapper but uses a Florida sun-grown binder.
Maximus is a separate recipe. J.C. Newman calls it a collaboration of three families: Fuente, Newman and Oliva. Carlos "Carlito" Fuente Jr. and Stanford J. Newman developed the blend. The wrapper is an Ecuadorian El Bajo sun-grown leaf grown by John Oliva Sr., over Dominican binder and filler, aged five years. Wikipedia adds that the wrapper comes from the upper part of the plant. For what those leaf names mean, see the cigar tobacco regions guide.
Diamond Crown lines and stated strength
J.C. Newman publishes four current Diamond Crown lines with a stated wrapper and strength for each.
| Line | Wrapper (maker) | Strength (maker) | Notable sizes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diamond Crown Classic | Connecticut Shade, aged five years | Mild | No. 2 (7 1/2 x 54), No. 4 (5 1/2 x 54), No. 6 (6 x 64) |
| Diamond Crown Maduro | Connecticut Broadleaf | Medium | No. 3 (6 1/2 x 54), No. 5 (4 1/2 x 54) |
| Diamond Crown Tampa | Connecticut Shade | Mild to medium | One size, 6 1/2 x 52 |
| Diamond Crown Maximus | Ecuadorian El Bajo sun-grown | Medium to full | Churchill No. 2 (7 x 50), Robusto No. 5 (5 x 50), Double Belicoso No. 10 (6 3/4 x 54) |
Nearly every Classic and Maduro size sits at 54 ring, a thick, uniform frame. Wikipedia lists a Black Diamond line too, but J.C. Newman's current Diamond Crown page does not carry it. Check any of these against the cigar size chart.
Diamond Crown dates that matter
Diamond Crown's timeline is tied to J.C. Newman anniversaries, starting with the company's founding in 1895.
- 1895: Julius Caeser Newman founds the company in Cleveland.
- 1954: the firm moves to Ybor City, Tampa.
- 1995: Diamond Crown reintroduced for the 100th anniversary.
- About 2000 or 2003: Maximus arrives. J.C. Newman ties it to the 105th anniversary; Wikipedia says 2003.
- 2001: the Newman and Fuente families form the Cigar Family Charitable Foundation.
- 2026: J.C. Newman reintroduces Maximus with new packaging and what it calls a refined blend.
Before you pick up a Diamond Crown
Diamond Crown sizes go by number, and the same number means a different cigar in different lines.
A Classic No. 2 is 7 1/2 x 54. A Maximus Churchill No. 2 is 7 x 50. Read the full size, not just the number. The Maximus range also runs thinner, at 50 ring for most sizes, against 54 for most Classic sizes.
The 2026 Maximus reintroduction matters too. J.C. Newman says the blend was refined, so a box from before 2026 and one from after are not the same recipe. Older reference sites, including Wikipedia, still list the earlier five-size lineup with an 8 inch double corona that the current page no longer shows. If a ring gauge is new to you, the ring gauge converter turns 54 into inches.
Diamond Crown questions people ask
Who makes Diamond Crown cigars?
J.C. Newman of Tampa owns the brand, and the Fuente factory, Tabacalera A. Fuente, rolls all of its lines.
Is Diamond Crown made by Arturo Fuente?
Yes, in the sense that the Fuente factory rolls it. J.C. Newman owns the brand, and its product pages list Tabacalera A. Fuente as the factory for each line.
What wrapper is on Diamond Crown Maximus?
J.C. Newman lists an Ecuadorian El Bajo sun-grown wrapper grown by John Oliva Sr., over a Dominican binder and Dominican filler.
When did Diamond Crown Maximus come out?
Sources disagree. J.C. Newman says it was created for the company's 105th anniversary, which falls around 2000, while Wikipedia gives 2003.
Where the Diamond Crown facts come from
- Diamond Crown, J.C. Newman Cigar Co.
- Diamond Crown Maximus, J.C. Newman Cigar Co.
- J.C. Newman Cigar Company, Wikipedia
- Diamond Crown Maximus, Wikipedia