The descendants of the founding family of Cervecería La Tropical, established in 1888 in Havana, celebrated the relaunch of the iconic beer Crystal, known as "The Favorite of Cubans," this Wednesday in Miami, after winning a legal battle that lasted nearly three decades, which allowed them to regain the rights to the brand and its commercial identity in the U.S., following a lawsuit with an American company.
The event, titled «Family Reunion», took place at the Cervecería La Tropical in the Wynwood neighborhood, with a VIP ceremony at six in the evening and opening to the public at eight at night.
The celebration brought together the Cuban exile community to commemorate the return of a brand that the family considers part of their heritage and which was taken from them following the expropriation of the company by Fidel Castro's regime in 1960.
A victory to reclaim the Cuban heritage
Manny Portuondo, a member of the fifth generation of the Blanco Herrera family and great-grandson of Federico Kohly, explained to EFE that the judicial victory means much more than just the recovery of a trademark.
"Our brand is coming back home, and that means a lot of pride, not only for my family, the Blanco Herrera family, who founded the brewery, but I believe also for the Cuban community," he said.
Portuondo recalled that the victory is the result of a legal strategy initiated in 1998 to recover trademarks and rights in various countries and to prevent the Cuban government from continuing to commercially use names that, according to the family, were confiscated from them after the revolution.
“The idea was always to prevent the Cuban government from being able to legitimately use our brand, which was La Tropical and Crystal,” he explained.
"Our history belongs to us."
During the event, Portuondo spoke before the gathered community to assert the legacy of the brewery.
"Our heritage and our lineage belong to all Cubans, no matter where they are. It is our history. It is the history of the community. We are bringing it back home, back to its founders, the Blanco Herrera family, who established this brewery by the banks of the Almendares River in 1888. And no one can take that away from us," he said.
On Instagram, Portuondo also wrote: "Thanks to the Miami community for celebrating with us our recent legal victory that has reclaimed our identity and heritage. Our history belongs to us and to the Cuban community, regardless of where we may live. Cheers."
Days earlier, on July 2, Portuondo had published images from the advertising shoot for the relaunch, describing the moment as a celebration of "perseverance, determination, and believing that anything is possible if you have a big heart."
And he added, "May liberty also find the Cuban people in 2026!"
The official account of La Tropical Miami celebrated the return with the message: “The Favorite of Cubans is finally home in Miami, and we couldn’t be prouder to celebrate our culture together.”
The original recipe from 1928 comes to life once again
Portuondo inaugurated a new Cervecería La Tropical in Wynwood in 2021, with the support of the Dutch brewer Heineken.
The establishment reclaimed part of the legacy of the original company, even featuring gardens inspired by those of the historic Havana headquarters. However, it was unable to launch the Crystal due to the ongoing litigation to recover the rights to its commercial identity in the United States.
That relaunch has now become a reality with a beer crafted from the original recipe of 1928.
According to Portuondo, the drink was created when Cuban consumers began to prefer "lighter, more drinkable beers, better suited for tropical climates, with a bit less alcohol."
"Then, why reinvent something that was already incredibly good?" he commented on a recipe that preserves the spirit of the original beer and is now marketed under the name Tropi Crystal, linking it once again to the La Tropical brand.
A story of 138 years and a forced expropriation
La Cervecería La Tropical was founded on July 21, 1888, by the Almendares River in Puentes Grandes, Havana, by the Blanco Herrera family on land owned by Federico Kohly.
In 1928, the brewery launched Crystal, a Caribbean pilsner with 4.9% alcohol, designed for the tropical climate, featuring notes of honey and biscuit. The brand came to dominate more than 60% of Cuba's national beer production and received international recognition with awards in London, Brussels, and Paris.
Everything changed in 1960 when the regime expropriated the factory.
The last master brewer, Julio Fernández-Selles, was forced to hand over the brewery "at gunpoint." The owning families went into exile, but they never gave up on reclaiming their legacy.
Almost three decades of litigation
In 1998, the descendants of the founders initiated a legal strategy to prevent the Cuban government from using the names "La Tropical" and "Crystal" in the U.S. market.
The process resulted in a lawsuit with an American company that held the trademark rights to the brand in that country.
The dispute concluded in July 2026 with a settlement that restored the family's control over the branding of Crystal in the United States, including historical elements such as the royal palm and the color scheme of green, red, and white.
"We are reclaiming the iconic symbols of Crystal. We are bringing back the color combination, which is green, red, and white, something that the Cuban consumer recognizes anywhere in the world," Portuondo explained while showcasing one of the new beer cans.
The businessman, son of a Cuban political prisoner who was incarcerated for two years, downplayed the company with which they had the dispute and asserted that, for him, the true background of the battle was always something else.
"I have always seen since I started this project in '98 that these efforts, no matter where they are, are always against Cuba, with the idea that they can take us out of Cuba, but they can never take Cuba out of our hearts. And always, no matter where we are, we will always be Cubans," he stated.
"Yes, it is possible" to recover what was lost
For Portuondo, Crystal represents much more than just a beer.
"Crystal is a symbol that it is possible; it is possible to take action, it is possible to reclaim what was lost, and it is possible to envision a future that goes beyond Cuba," she stated.
He also stated that all generations of Cubans have the responsibility to preserve their identity.
"I believe that all Cuban generations have a duty, a duty to do whatever they can to preserve their heritage and culture, so that it is never erased, and for me, La Tropical is part of that effort," he stated.
The reunification of Cuban families
Portuondo explained that the name of the event, Family Reunion, symbolizes the desire to bring together Cuban families separated for decades by exile.
"What I want to do with Crystal and the reason why La Tropical exists is to reunify our identity, our heritage, our culture, and our family," she stated.
Regarding the possibility of producing La Tropical in a free Cuba one day, he replied: "That would be a beautiful way to close the last chapter of La Tropical, but who knows, it's beyond our control."
A symbol that transcends beer
The Crystal case is part of a broader pattern of disputes over expropriated Cuban brands, similar to the litigation over Havana Club rum between Bacardí and the Cuban State.
On the island, the brand "Cristal" is currently produced by Cervecería Bucanero, a state-owned company based in Holguín, which the founders in exile consider an illegitimate appropriation of their business heritage.
La Tropi Crystal is now the official beer "Imported from Miami" of the Miami Marlins and the sponsor of the team's Cuban Heritage celebrations during the 2026 season, a recognition that reflects the cultural significance the brand retains within the Cuban-American community.
Filed under: