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Cuban crops wiped out - fakes rampant....?

BlindedByScience

BlindedByScience

Proud Father of a Kearney, NE LEO
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Jan 31, 2005
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Stumbled onto this, this AM (looks like the blogger should get a spell checker...;-) :

".....Fort the fifth time in 10 yers the Areas of Santiago de Cuba, Bayamo, Las tuknas, Marti, Camaguey, Santa Claor, Pedro Betarcourt Colon, and Pinar del Rio have been ripped apart by Hurricanes. Irene and Sandy have done most of the final damage, recently to the tobacco crops in cuba. Supporting articles and details appear below. It takes five to ten years to grow and cure proper cigar tobacco on the island. Beginning ten years ago Cuba began to import most of its cigar tobacco from Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica and fell well behind in quality and quantity of production.

Many visitors to cuba represent that they have a "connection" at a Cuban cigar factor, but in fact the cigars from Cuba have been on back order and have been up until now divided on a percentage basis between the five largest distributors of cigars in the world. Now, and from now on, the only authentic thing about Cuban cigars is the ring or box they come in. And many of those will have to be reproductions from other islands or countries for the time being. Every agricultural product on the island has been damaged severely or destroyed......"

http://doncollins.blogspot.com/

Working on verifying from other sources....interesting stuff.
 
They haven't been able to keep their secret that Cuba has been importing Nicaraguan tobacco for a couple of years now, in order to keep up with demand. I can only expect this to increase after the storm.
 
Hmmm, interesting. Lots and lots of NCs around that are equal, if not better then Cubans, for a lot cheaper.
 
There are those that smoke ISOM's and only ISOM's. Always seemed curious to me; much like the person that says "...I only drink French wine..." and ignores the wonderful vintages coming out of CA and the rest of the world.

I don't want to start a religious argument because I'm a firm believer in "smoke what you like, like what you smoke". But, from where I sit, I haven't bought any ISOM's in a long time. I'm completely happy with my NC's. In terms of quality, I don't think there's much comparison. The cigar producers on the island have had problem after problem. And, like Israel says, the "dirty secret" is that they have been importing tobacco from NC and DR for a long time, to keep up with the demand for their cigars.....
 
Don't believe everything you read!

Take this "the only authentic thing about Cuban cigars is the ring or box they come in"...I thought the rings/bands are not made in Cuba!? ....and what about the clasps?
 
BlindedByScience said:
There are those that smoke ISOM's and only ISOM's. Always seemed curious to me; much like the person that says "...I only drink French wine..." and ignores the wonderful vintages coming out of CA and the rest of the world.

I don't want to start a religious argument because I'm a firm believer in "smoke what you like, like what you smoke". But, from where I sit, I haven't bought any ISOM's in a long time. I'm completely happy with my NC's. In terms of quality, I don't think there's much comparison. The cigar producers on the island have had problem after problem. And, like Israel says, the "dirty secret" is that they have been importing tobacco from NC and DR for a long time, to keep up with the demand for their cigars.....
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Agreed, on all aspects. I've burned through my ISOMs, ones I've purchased and ones I was gifted. I haven't bought any in 3-4 years and don't plan on it either.
 
bfreebern said:
Hmmm, interesting. Lots and lots of NCs around that are equal, if not better then Cubans, for a lot cheaper.
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Ehhhhh I look at it differently. It is VERY hard to beat a parti short or ERDM PC (or boli PC/ce if you go back) with a comparabely priced NC. I think the current real world bar is around $10 (i.e., below I think there is much more quality diversity amongst CC and above I think the playing field is much more equal in terms of production cigars). Of course, that is sort of a deceptive analysis since CC prices are deflated on the international market due to the whole tax thing (obviously ymmv depending on where you live....).
 
Phil, I would've agreed with you up until 2009-ish when Cuba started discontinuing some of the great every day smokes that simply couldn't be beat by an NC for flavor and price. Cigars like the Punch Petite Punch, Boli CE and the Partagas Connoisseurs. Not to mention virtually every lonsdale from every line. In my eyes those cigars from the island had very little competition for flavor/price. Since Cuba has gone the way of Viaje and Tatuaje, my money has gone elsewhere almost exclusively.
 
I remember running a GB on some SLR lonnies with some age on them, some time back. Wow, what a smoke for the $$$....good luck finding those again.
 
MoeCizlak said:
Phil, I would've agreed with you up until 2009-ish when Cuba started discontinuing some of the great every day smokes that simply couldn't be beat by an NC for flavor and price. Cigars like the Punch Petite Punch, Boli CE and the Partagas Connoisseurs. Not to mention virtually every lonsdale from every line. In my eyes those cigars from the island had very little competition for flavor/price. Since Cuba has gone the way of Viaje and Tatuaje, my money has gone elsewhere almost exclusively.
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My thoughts as well. If you would have asked me 4 years ago, I would have said hands down the best bang price wise, would have been some of the sub $10 Cubans. Hell, many of my favorites were in the $6-7 range, with a few right around $5.

I find myself gravitating towards: Tatuaje Angeles, VSG Tres Mystique, AF Chateau SG....among others.
 
The majority of my smoking rotation consist of CC's 75% to 25% NC. I have a few reasons for this. The majority of my cigar smoking happens while i'm commuting to work. I need a GOOD cigar that will last no longer than an hour. so a 4 to 4.5 x 42 or 44 ring. up to a PC sized cigar is perfect. NC manufactures overlook this size and focus on the donkey dong. I also look at price. The cc's that I gravitate to are 9 times out of 10 cheaper than their NC cousins.

Flavor and strength is another reason I prefer CC's. I HATE cigars (cough, opus, cough) that is nothing but nicotine. I also know that the majority of CC's take well to aging, We know this by our ability to look at their history. With the majority of NC's we just don't know as they haven't been around for nearly as long. We do have a good idea about Fuente and Padron, but that's about it.
 
Backslide said:
... a 4 to 4.5 x 42 or 44 ring. up to a PC sized cigar is perfect. NC manufactures overlook this size and focus on the donkey dong...
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This is one of my biggest gripes about buying today's NC's. There are very few under 5"/sub-50 RG cigars being made by the bigger manufacturers these days. You might be able to find a Churchill in 46 or 48 RG, but that's still a 7" cigar. I enjoy a good 6/60 as much as the next guy, but that is only an occasional thing. I don't have a whole lot to intelligently add to the conversation otherwise, but I just know where my preferences lay, and it's becoming harder and harder to come by.
 
To many taste similarities between CC and NC over the last 5 or so years when speaking of the classic Nicaraguan flavor...can't deny that unless you only smoke one exclusively. The 'Cuban cigars only' guys will deny that to the grave...as well as quite a few CC dealers worldwide. The honest dealers will reluctantly admit there is something fishy afoot.

When you factor in the number of storms and the amount of destruction Cuba has sustained over the last few years, there's no way they can put out the number of cigars they do with the amount of tobacco originating on that island.... :whistling:
 
ironpeddler said:
When you factor in the number of storms and the amount of destruction Cuba has sustained over the last few years, there's no way they can put out the number of cigars they do with the amount of tobacco originating on that island.... :whistling:
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What would you know about tropical storms and the damage they can do? Oh.....wait.....nevermind. :p
 
Bsneed51 said:
ironpeddler said:
When you factor in the number of storms and the amount of destruction Cuba has sustained over the last few years, there's no way they can put out the number of cigars they do with the amount of tobacco originating on that island.... :whistling:
Click to expand...

What would you know about tropical storms and the damage they can do? Oh.....wait.....nevermind. :p
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:0 Dayummm! That was quick! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
 
If this has been going on for years, are they really "fake"? Sure, the tobacco may not be 100% Cuban, but I don't think the word fake is appropriate.
 
There are those out there Tom (BBS) that smoke only CC's as a status symbol. Then I really do believe some really do just prefer the profile exclusively. Heck, I know some people that won't even mess with a Cuban Cigar.

I assume most fall under the "there's plenty of good cigars coming from all over the general area".

I don't see the similarites in taste though Gary? Not saying impossible, but I don't see it yet........ Just wish the prices of CC's would stop rising so fast coupled with all of the expensive LE's/Regional Releases coming out of the woodwork.
 
tomthirtysix said:
If this has been going on for years, are they really "fake"? Sure, the tobacco may not be 100% Cuban, but I don't think the word fake is appropriate.
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Exactly...wouldn't call them fake at all if they come from there either...but it sure does bring new meaning to the phrase 'Cuban Puro' ;)

Bsneed51 said:
ironpeddler said:
When you factor in the number of storms and the amount of destruction Cuba has sustained over the last few years, there's no way they can put out the number of cigars they do with the amount of tobacco originating on that island.... :whistling:
Click to expand...

What would you know about tropical storms and the damage they can do? Oh.....wait.....nevermind. :p
Click to expand...

Dick :laugh:
 
tomthirtysix said:
If this has been going on for years, are they really "fake"? Sure, the tobacco may not be 100% Cuban, but I don't think the word fake is appropriate.
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The OP wasn't a reference to the blending in of NC or DR tobacco as Gary alluded to. Really re-defines the meaning of a "Cuban Cigar" though, doesn't it....??
 
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