Padron Quote

[jabba]

Q: Then, have you created a replacement for Cuban cigars?

A: No, I haven't. Cuba will always be Cuba. What we are trying to do is equal, not surpass, Cuba. We will never be able to outdo Cuban cigars.

 

[Zeebra]

Q: Then, have you created a replacement for Cuban cigars?

A: No, I haven't. Cuba will always be Cuba. What we are trying to do is equal, not surpass, Cuba. We will never be able to outdo Cuban cigars.

I read that in CA a while back. It's too bad companies like Padron and Fuente can't work out a deal where they could use Cuban tobacco in their products. Imagine if they ran 2 distinct lines, a Cuban Padron and a regular Padron for the American market. I could only imagine the Cuban Padrons and Cuban Fuentes would be the most sought after cigars in the world. I'd love to be able to go down to Cuba and take a tour of a Fuente factory there....*drooling at the prospect*

 

[jabba]

I was surprised he didn't say "Cuban tobacco isn't better, it's just different!" LOL

 

[Strayvector]

He is Cuban and his family owned a tabacco farm in Cuba. His nationalist pride is certainly understandable.

 

[jabba]

He is Cuban and his family owned a tabacco farm in Cuba. His nationalist pride is certainly understandable.

But he is American now and his livelihood is selling NC Cigars.

 

[Smokyballs]

The cuban goverment has tryed to kill him on several different occasions. I don't think he would want tobacco from an unfree cuba!

 

[OpusXKC]

I don't know if I would go for cuban Fuente or Padron. I think the greatest thing about both cigars is the fact of how they have excelled in their own field. Would they produce an interesting smoke with cuban tobacco? Most likely yes, but it wouldn't be a Fuente or a Padron, it would just have the name.

 

[Zeebra]

I don't know if I would go for cuban Fuente or Padron. I think the greatest thing about both cigars is the fact of how they have excelled in their own field. Would they produce an interesting smoke with cuban tobacco? Most likely yes, but it wouldn't be a Fuente or a Padron, it would just have the name.

They would be better just as the Cuban Davidoffs are better than the NC Davidoffs.

 

[Gonz]

He is Cuban and his family owned a tabacco farm in Cuba. His nationalist pride is certainly understandable.

I agree with this, and it goes to show that even though he is a us citizen now, his pride for his former country and their tobacco legacy is more important than a comment in a magazine which could undermine the sales of his cigars made in other countries.

 

[jabba]

I don't know if I would go for cuban Fuente or Padron. I think the greatest thing about both cigars is the fact of how they have excelled in their own field. Would they produce an interesting smoke with cuban tobacco? Most likely yes, but it wouldn't be a Fuente or a Padron, it would just have the name.

This is a great point.

 

[ricmac25]

The cuban goverment has tryed to kill him on several different occasions. I don't think he would want tobacco from an unfree cuba!

This is blatantly incorrect. The cuban government NEVER tried to kill Padron. The bombings in Miami weren't carried out by the Cuban government. They were carried out by Cubans in Miami that were upset that Padron went to Cuba. This is an excerpt from an interview on CA:

CA: Didn't you get in trouble once in Miami because you went to Cuba?

Padrón: Yes. This is an important story. I was a revolutionary. I was very involved in the Cuban revolution. But when I left Cuba because I didn't like the way the revolution was going, I had left behind a few friends that told me not to forget about them, that they were going to see just how far they could go in Cuba. But many of them ended up in prison.

CA: The majority of them were revolutionaries, correct?

Padrón: Exactly; the majority were, well, actually all of them were. We went with a group of six people from the United States to see if we could get them out of prison.

CA: What year was that?

Padrón: 1978. I had never thought I would return to Cuba until the conditions that had made me leave had changed. We arrived in Cuba October 20, 1978, in the evening with the intention of getting my friends and as many other political prisoners released. At that point, we were not able to get them released, but we did interview one. Later during our visit, on a Saturday morning, they took me to see the University of Havana. At around 1 p.m., we went to a government house and Fidel Castro appeared.

We started talking. We were trying to figure out a way to have the prisoners released in an orderly fashion. We were calculatingit all: how many prisoners there were, how they could be taken out, the planes. We needed to have some organization to be able to get those prisoners out of the country. We were sitting at a table and they brought out a box of Cohibas. They gave me that box as a gift so that I would be able to try the cigar. We still hadn't discussed the prisoners, since this was at the beginning of the visit. I had a box of my cigars on the table and I was sitting at the head of the table. Fidel said to me, "Padrón, they tell me that you are making cigars in Miami. Can I try one?"

CA: You had met Fidel before?

Padrón: Yes, of course. I put the three cigars on the table; I wasn't about to just put one down, I put the three there for him to choose. He takes one and I take another, so now I have one left in my pocket. This is the way it all happened. I began to smoke the cigar as did he.

CA: Had he removed the ring?

Padrón: He had taken off the ring. So we started to talk of Nicaragua because I had told him that we harvested three times a year in Nicaragua. He asked me how that was possible. At that point, we still hadn't touched on the issue of the prisoners. But when the conversation turned to that subject, there were no reporters or anyone else, just our delegation and his people. But then after the discussion, the reporters entered, including someone from The New York Times, and [Fidel] tells me, "Hey Padrón, this cigar is very good, but I think that you have copied the ring. Let me see one." So I handed one over to him. That's when the picture was taken. But that same afternoon we returned to Miami with 42 prisoners.

CA: You were able to get them freed?

Padrón: Yes. When we got to Miami, it still wasn't a big thing until the picture hit the papers. It was something else after that. Padrón Communist was the headline, and yet they didn't know the sacrifice we went through to get people out of prison.

In November 1978 there was another dialogue, about them releasing to us 300 prisoners. Although there were not any big problems, the people were saying that we were communists because we were going over to where Fidel was. And they kept bringing up the cigar thing. Anyway, they released to us 300 prisoners. But I still hadn't gotten the three I most wanted to get out. The Cubans gave me a chance to go into the prisons and look for these guys. Finally, it was after that trip that the bombs started.

The first bomb was on March 24, 1979, but it didn't explode. Extremist groups put it on the side of our Miami factory and a nephew of mine found it and called the bomb squad. After that, the anti-Castro folks bombed us three more times from 1979 to 1982. I must have done something in my favor, because during the bombings, I broke my own sales records in Miami. I put a large banner outside the factory, a saying by José Martí that read: Men are divided into two camps/Those that Love and Build and those that Hate and Destroy.

You know, I took nothing from Fidel. The Cuban government respected me and respects me still today because I made myself be respected. I never said that the situation was good in Cuba, because the system does not work. I never said it to the government nor am I saying it now. I think that they have been wrong; they have to change. They can never say to me that I joined them. All that happened was they treated me with respect and I treated them with respect.

CA: At last count how many political prisoners were freed by the process that the group initiated?

Padrón: 3,600 prisoners.

CA: That's incredible.

Padrón: It was followed by some sacrifice. Not a business sacrifice, because I have already told you that the business did not decrease. On the contrary, it increased. It was what happened with my family and the tension in my factory. I had to put a camera system up to protect ourselves. It's still there. My car had to have an automatic starter. My house had alarms. That is the sacrifice. In regard to the business, I think that the people in Miami realized that what was happening was an injustice. Because the result of what we did came out later.

 

[Zeebra]

The cuban goverment has tryed to kill him on several different occasions. I don't think he would want tobacco from an unfree cuba!

This is blatantly incorrect. The cuban government NEVER tried to kill Padron. The bombings in Miami weren't carried out by the Cuban government. They were carried out by Cubans in Miami that were upset that Padron went to Cuba. This is an excerpt from an interview on CA:

CA: Didn't you get in trouble once in Miami because you went to Cuba?

Padrón: Yes. This is an important story. I was a revolutionary. I was very involved in the Cuban revolution. But when I left Cuba because I didn't like the way the revolution was going, I had left behind a few friends that told me not to forget about them, that they were going to see just how far they could go in Cuba. But many of them ended up in prison.

CA: The majority of them were revolutionaries, correct?

Padrón: Exactly; the majority were, well, actually all of them were. We went with a group of six people from the United States to see if we could get them out of prison.

CA: What year was that?

Padrón: 1978. I had never thought I would return to Cuba until the conditions that had made me leave had changed. We arrived in Cuba October 20, 1978, in the evening with the intention of getting my friends and as many other political prisoners released. At that point, we were not able to get them released, but we did interview one. Later during our visit, on a Saturday morning, they took me to see the University of Havana. At around 1 p.m., we went to a government house and Fidel Castro appeared.

We started talking. We were trying to figure out a way to have the prisoners released in an orderly fashion. We were calculatingit all: how many prisoners there were, how they could be taken out, the planes. We needed to have some organization to be able to get those prisoners out of the country. We were sitting at a table and they brought out a box of Cohibas. They gave me that box as a gift so that I would be able to try the cigar. We still hadn't discussed the prisoners, since this was at the beginning of the visit. I had a box of my cigars on the table and I was sitting at the head of the table. Fidel said to me, "Padrón, they tell me that you are making cigars in Miami. Can I try one?"

CA: You had met Fidel before?

Padrón: Yes, of course. I put the three cigars on the table; I wasn't about to just put one down, I put the three there for him to choose. He takes one and I take another, so now I have one left in my pocket. This is the way it all happened. I began to smoke the cigar as did he.

CA: Had he removed the ring?

Padrón: He had taken off the ring. So we started to talk of Nicaragua because I had told him that we harvested three times a year in Nicaragua. He asked me how that was possible. At that point, we still hadn't touched on the issue of the prisoners. But when the conversation turned to that subject, there were no reporters or anyone else, just our delegation and his people. But then after the discussion, the reporters entered, including someone from The New York Times, and [Fidel] tells me, "Hey Padrón, this cigar is very good, but I think that you have copied the ring. Let me see one." So I handed one over to him. That's when the picture was taken. But that same afternoon we returned to Miami with 42 prisoners.

CA: You were able to get them freed?

Padrón: Yes. When we got to Miami, it still wasn't a big thing until the picture hit the papers. It was something else after that. Padrón Communist was the headline, and yet they didn't know the sacrifice we went through to get people out of prison.

In November 1978 there was another dialogue, about them releasing to us 300 prisoners. Although there were not any big problems, the people were saying that we were communists because we were going over to where Fidel was. And they kept bringing up the cigar thing. Anyway, they released to us 300 prisoners. But I still hadn't gotten the three I most wanted to get out. The Cubans gave me a chance to go into the prisons and look for these guys. Finally, it was after that trip that the bombs started.

The first bomb was on March 24, 1979, but it didn't explode. Extremist groups put it on the side of our Miami factory and a nephew of mine found it and called the bomb squad. After that, the anti-Castro folks bombed us three more times from 1979 to 1982. I must have done something in my favor, because during the bombings, I broke my own sales records in Miami. I put a large banner outside the factory, a saying by José Martí that read: Men are divided into two camps/Those that Love and Build and those that Hate and Destroy.

You know, I took nothing from Fidel. The Cuban government respected me and respects me still today because I made myself be respected. I never said that the situation was good in Cuba, because the system does not work. I never said it to the government nor am I saying it now. I think that they have been wrong; they have to change. They can never say to me that I joined them. All that happened was they treated me with respect and I treated them with respect.

CA: At last count how many political prisoners were freed by the process that the group initiated?

Padrón: 3,600 prisoners.

CA: That's incredible.

Padrón: It was followed by some sacrifice. Not a business sacrifice, because I have already told you that the business did not decrease. On the contrary, it increased. It was what happened with my family and the tension in my factory. I had to put a camera system up to protect ourselves. It's still there. My car had to have an automatic starter. My house had alarms. That is the sacrifice. In regard to the business, I think that the people in Miami realized that what was happening was an injustice. Because the result of what we did came out later.

Thanks for clearing that up Ricmac, I found it incredible that Padron would prop up a country that was trying to kill him. Glad I got the real story about this.

 

[OpusXKC]

They would be better just as the Cuban Davidoffs are better than the NC Davidoffs.

Oh I am not going to say they wouldn't be good (I am sure they would be). I am saying they would be different, and I like what they have become now. The cuban tobacco would create a different cigar, and I like my FFOX the way it is :laugh: .

 

[Zeebra]

They would be better just as the Cuban Davidoffs are better than the NC Davidoffs.

Oh I am not going to say they wouldn't be good (I am sure they would be). I am saying they would be different, and I like what they have become now. The cuban tobacco would create a different cigar, and I like my FFOX they way it is :laugh: .

Ah but you wouldn't know until you tasted it would you? I agree it would be a totally different cigar, but to say it wouldn't be a Fuente or Padron is incorrect. If those two families are behind the production and quality control of those cigars, they WOULD become Fuentes and Padrons. Not the kind you are used to now, but something different and very probably better. We will probably never see it happen, but I would guess that if it ever came to pass alot of Fuente and Padron fans would jump ship and worship the new line of the Cuban counterparts from the two respective companies.

 

[bfreebern]

Oh yeah, well what if pigs flew out of your arse?

 

[Qualls07]

Thanks for the interesting story.

 

[Zeebra]

Oh yeah, well what if pigs flew out of your arse?

 

[moki]

Q: Then, have you created a replacement for Cuban cigars?

A: No, I haven't. Cuba will always be Cuba. What we are trying to do is equal, not surpass, Cuba. We will never be able to outdo Cuban cigars.

I think he wants his land back.

I'd disagree with him; I think the 1964/1926 lines have indeed surpassed a number of Cuban brands in terms of taste. They certainly have in terms of quality/consistency.

They would be better just as the Cuban Davidoffs are better than the NC Davidoffs.

That's quite a statement. Have you had any "NC" Davidoffs with 20 or so years of age on 'em to compare to equivalently aged Cuban Davidoffs?

 

[Zeebra]

Q: Then, have you created a replacement for Cuban cigars?

A: No, I haven't. Cuba will always be Cuba. What we are trying to do is equal, not surpass, Cuba. We will never be able to outdo Cuban cigars.

I think he wants his land back.

I'd disagree with him; I think the 1964/1926 lines have indeed surpassed a number of Cuban brands in terms of taste. They certainly have in terms of quality/consistency.

They would be better just as the Cuban Davidoffs are better than the NC Davidoffs.

That's quite a statement. Have you had any "NC" Davidoffs with 20 or so years of age on 'em to compare to equivalently aged Cuban Davidoffs?

No offence Moki, but I'd take Padron's opinion over yours considering his entire life has been about cigars.

I haven't had any aged NC Davidoffs vs. Cuban Davidoffs, I'm only going off the overwhelming majority of opinion on the two lines of cigars.

 

[jabba]

I'd disagree with him; I think the 1964/1926 lines have indeed surpassed a number of Cuban brands in terms of taste. They certainly have in terms of quality/consistency.

Personally I think he was referring to what he could do with Cuban Tobacco. I'm not sure he was comparing a PAM to currently production Cuban. He probably does want his land back.

All the Cuban cigars I've smoked lately have been very consistent and well constructed, which is a welcomed change.