Simon Chase, one of the most respected authorities of Cuban cigars, has died at 74.

He is best known for working for Hunters & Frankau, the British distributor of Cuban cigars, for over 30 years, retiring as marketing director in 2009. His retirement didn’t mark the end of his career in cigars, however, as he served on the board of Hunters & Frankau as non-executive director and hosted the annual auction at the Festival del Habano.

Chase was known for his extensive knowledge for Cuban cigars and their rich history. In 1998, Chase was given the Habanos Man of the Year award from Habanos S.A. and a 2011 article in The New York Times described him as “a British sage of the cigar world.”

His later years were spent working as a consultant in the tobacco business, writing for various cigar publications and, up until a few years, hosting the annual auction in Havana.
Hunters & Frankau issued the following statement on his passing:

It is with great sadness we announce that Simon Chase passed away earlier today following a long illness.

Simon joined Hunters & Frankau Limited in 1977 and served as a Director for 35 years. His dedication and contribution to the company and the fine cigar industry was without equal.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Simon’s family and his many friends around the world at this very difficult time.

Avatar photo

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. I previously co-founded and published TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry for more than a decade, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. In addition, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff here at halfwheel. I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.