www.CostaRicaTicas.com

I left out a fine Trinidad, my second favorite. Jazzbo, if I ever meet up with you in CR, MDE, Lima, etc, I will share some fine Cubans....and even from the current crop.


PURA VIDA!


PS Needless to say, never buy the "Cubans" the CR street guys are hawking. Sometimes I see guys with boxes of Cohibas in the DR that they just purchased. I don't say anything but I once watched a guy light one up and he winced.

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Livin' & Lovin' in Key Largo....oh....And the one in The Keys, too!

Bogus, fake, counterfeit cigars. They advertise a box of Cohiba Robusto for $180. You cannot buy a box of those at that price at the cigar shop outside of the Cohiba Factory in Cuba.

There are legit internet sites that will mail to the U.S. Two dependable suppliers: http://www.cigarsofhabanos.com/detail.asp?ItemId=02042 . They operate in a duty free zone in Hong Kong and in fact cannot sell or send ciargs to Hong Kong.

Another reliable vendor is http://www.puroexpress.com/ . This is another tried and true vendor of Cubanos. This site is also located in a Duty Free zone off the coast of Spain in the Canary Islands. The company is run by a Dutch family called the Bjork Brothers. The Dutch know cigars (Ever heard of Dutch Masters).

Please note that there are risks to importing Cuban Cigars into the United States. Homeland Security does not have to actually confiscate your cigars to charge you with a crime. They have access to credit card records of “known Cuban cigar exporters”, and have caused some people some big hassles. Buyer beware.

The vendors that export non-banded cigars also sell Dominicans, Honduran as well as Nicaraguan cigars. Thus, there is plausible denial that the cigars are not Cuban.

As to going through the hassle buying unbanded cigars receiving the bands in a separate mail is a hassle and probably not for the guy who does not want a specific Cuban cigar or just wants to impress someone with the fact that they have Habanos. But, for the guy who is truly a lover of great cigars, then there are options.

If you need a description and unbiased review of good Cuban Cigars, go to http://www.cigars-review.org/Cohiba-Siglo-V.htm


I beg to differ on this statement. Cuba has stepped up their quality control 10 years ago.....the construction is very good and the draws are less prone to plugs than most non-cubans. The rap that Cuban cigars are not as good today as 10years ago comes from cigar merchants in the US and from poorly written articles. They are misinformed and do not have first hand knowledge and are obviously spewing misinformation that they have acquired "second hand".

Cuban cigars with box codes from 1996 to 1999 are suspect and acknowledged by LCDH (La Casa Del Habano ) who owns certified world wide distributorship for Cuban cigars out side of Cuba.


Of course Cigar Aficionado will state that Nicaraguan and Dominican cigars are best……. They advertise in the magazine. I subscribe to and enjoy reading Cigar Aficionado but I put Zero credence in the reviews.


Bingo. Smoke what you enjoy and enjoy what you smoke. The “no business, no shop, no bands that Cap Cohiba mentions are sometimes known as a “Farmey” that are made on plantations that sell the tobacco to the cigar manufactures. Quite often these cigars are the cigars that the farmer makes for himself and his workers. The ones that I have enjoyed are distinct in that they have a “shaggy foot” instead of a clipped, sharp, smooth end. If you are lucky enough to find a good Farmey that has been aged, it is truly special.

Also, any good cigar can turn bad if it is not handled properly i.e. dried out, exposed to extreme heat, over humidified (can cause plugging and make it taste funky).

Not all Cuban cigars are good, as not all Cuban, Columbian, Nicas, etc girls are great in bed. But, if you pick the right one and it has been handled properly, it can be an incredible treat.

As for me, I smoke all kinds of cigars, and I like many non-Cuban cigars. The Padron Anniversary (Nicaraguan Puro) you list is a great example of a very good Non-Cuban cigar. But there's something special about Cuban tobacco, especially from the Vuelta Abajo (lower valley) of Pinar del Rio. There's a flavor in there that can not be duplicated, and yet the tobacco runs the flavor gamut from mild and subtle as evidenced by the El Rey del Mundo Choix Supreme, to the richness of a Partagas Serie D #4, or a well aged Bolivar.

There's the history and mystique that plays in to it, as well as the fact that it's forbidden fruit, contraband. I believe that it IS superior to others, but not nearly as much as it used to be, and I don't believe in limiting myself to cigars from just one manufacturer or country.

I don’t profess to be an aficionado or expert on cigars. That connotation of a wine-snob or cigar-snob has always turned me off. Cigars have been a hobby of mine for many years and I have considerable collection of aged Habanos as well as others. As some people collect stamps or coins or baseball cards, for me it is only a hobby. The only problem is, unlike coins or cards; you sometimes intentionally end up burning your collection.

IMO, great Dominican, Nicaraguan and Honduran Cigars are good, but good Cuban Cigars are special.

(oh, and with permission, Pac 55’s disclaimer applies)

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Cigar smoking doesn’t reduce us, it elevates us; It makes us more content to be alone, or it helps us to enjoy our companions. It encourages us to dwell on the simple moments and celebrate the sublime.
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Hung like Einstein and smart as a mule.
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You're not drunk if you can lay on the floor without holding on.