If you can, list the size and country of origin as well. Some of my favorites include the Macanudo Vintage 1997 (size #5 I think), the A. Fuente Flor Fina 8-5-8 and H. Upman Cameroon torpedo.
Nicotine Tabacum, commonly known as the tobacco plant, comes from South America and was called cohiba by the aboriginal groups that cultivated the plants of tobacco in the same area where they cultivated yucca (apparently because these plants protected the root vegetables from some plagues) and its use was mainly medicinal and spiritual. The arrival of Columbus in Cuba in 1492 allowed the inland exploration of the island. On November 4 of that same year, the explorers came back to the camp very surprised of the lit charred sticks that the natives had in their mouth and which receives the name of tobacco. This was, of course, the first historical reference to the plant.
Nevertheless, Catholic Spain did not approve it in the beginning, and the colonial legislation forbade the planting of tobacco, which was called “the devil’s weed”. Despite this, tobacco was spread throughout the world from the moment the Spanish had control of it. Poor farmers, most of them coming from the Canaries, inherited the cultivation of the plant and made of it a family tradition. During the 17th century, tobacco planting was consolidated and the promoters of the precious leaf were mainly countrymen. In a first stage it was planted on the banks of rivers, nearby the villages and cities. Havana and its surroundings became important cultivation areas (Santiago de las Vegas, Bejucal and San Miguel del Padrón)
With time and the constant opposition of the governments in the villages, the planting of tobacco moved away from the cities, giving birth to the settlement of San Cristobal, Los Palacios, Río Hondo, Guamá, San Juan and Cuyaguateje in Pinar del Río province, which was a very slow process. In those settlements, the method of tobacco cultivation that the aboriginal groups used was kept the same: tobacco was planted in meadows generally very close to rivers. There is evidence, as well, of the cultivation of the plant in the mountains, in places like San Felipe and Viñales.
Pirates and privateers that abounded in the area during the 17th and 18th centuries also developed a strong tie to the crop. These sailors were in charge of spreading the news about the quality of the tobacco produced in the eastern part of Cuba in the 17th century. They truly appreciated the quality of the leaf, everywhere they arrived in they talked about it, and so the number of consumers became increasingly larger.
The vegueros (people who cultivate tobacco) from Guane earned their fame since the 17th century due to their harvests and the quality of the tobacco they produced. After several rebellions, the area of Vueltabajo became the producing center of tobacco in Cuba. The Spanish then intervened with a tobacco levy policy and placed a factory in Guane in order to control the buying-selling and to avoid the increasing smuggling.
The lifting of the tobacco levy policy in 1817 created an environment ideal for the development of production: the existence of financial sources; the obtaining of ideal lands for cultivation; and higher prices that facilitated an increase of the production and commercialization, among other factors. With the development of the industrial process, factories and cigar brands appeared, linked mainly to the production of a set of meadows. Later on, these factories and brands were reduced to the most well known located in Pinar del Rio, Havana and Las Villas. During the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th, the cultivation of the leaves and the quality of Cuban cigars were consolidated. The cultivation of tobacco has become a genuine product of the Island which has transcended to the development of worldwide brands like Partagás, Romeo and Juliet, Montecristo and Cohiba.
This brief history of the Cuban cigar was written by a expert from Cuba For Less, a specialist in fully customizable .
One of the cigars that are always in your humidor but not always reviewed. Ken has dressed up for this review for www.friendsofhabanos.com and gives a frank analysis of this cigar.
The number of cigar aficionados has been steadily increasing with cigar becoming chic once again. Many celebrities and social icons can be seen enjoying a stick of their favorite cigar in public gatherings adding to its ever growing popularity. Cigars are made in many parts of the world but the most sought after types of cigars are Cuban cigars or Havana cigars as they are widely called. Authentic Cuban cigars undergo multiple sets of intricate processes during production, giving them a unique taste and aroma that won a large number of enthusiasts.
After production, Havana cigars are distributed to selected authorized dealers around the world. The remaining portion will be divided among local cigar shops which are mostly located in Havana. Though there is a large demand for Cuban cigar around the world, its availability is very limited especially in western countries where a significant percent of cigar aficionados belong. The inability of producers to meet the demands for Cuban cigars has urged opportunists to produce counterfeits which of course taste poorly compared to its authentic counterpart and are made of low quality materials, degrading the name of genuine Cuban cigars. With the large number of fake Cuban cigars running around the market, here are certain things to take note of when looking for genuine Cuban cigars.
* Probably the safest way to buy genuine Cuban cigars is to travel to Havana where Cuba distributes most of its Habanos for local sale. Be wary however of locals that would approach and try to sell Havana cigars. Seeing how profitable the cigar business is, there are a number of locals that would sell fakes to foreigners at a cheaper price claiming that what they sell were stolen from cigar factories or other stories proving how genuine their goods are.
* Only buy cigars from well established cigar store, a number of cigar shops in Spain, Canada, United Kingdom, and other countries are famous for selling genuine Cuban cigar and have good reputation.
* If the price is too good to be true, then it probably is. If you’re new to cigars, find out the market price for different classes of Cuban cigars, anything sold with a big reduction in price is most probably counterfeit.
* Examine the box, make sure it is tightly sealed and has a warranty seal marked on it. Avoid buying Havana cigars that come in boxes that appear to be damaged or tampered.
* If you’re allowed to open the box, examine the cigar by smelling it, genuine Cuban cigars have very rich and strong aroma, and if you have a bit of experience with cigars you would easily identify which is genuine and which is counterfeit.
* If you’re planning to buy cigars online, examine the website first. Most well established businesses would make sure that they have a formidable website set up for online customers. You may search for customer reviews about them as well.
Remember however, displayed above are only general tips on how to avoid counterfeit Cuban cigars. Experience is the best teacher, once you get a hand of how cigar enthusiasts do their business, finding and buying genuine Cuban cigar will become easier.
If you want more information on , visit Sauttercigars.com, a in London, UK with 50 years of existence in the cigar business.
Among cigar smokers Cuban cigars are always abuzz. However, legalized Cuban cigars aren’t as close as you might think. Though there are many out there that suspect the embargo could be lifted in 2010, you can bet that there are other things that will have to happen before coveted Cubans are going to be legal in the USA.
Since the new administration has taken over, Barack Obama has discussed lifting the Cuban embargo and lovers have salivated at the chance to get all the Cubans they can at reasonable prices. It’s not likely, unfortunately, that this can happen overnight. It is going to have to happen in stages and to quote Rush Limbaugh –“…you have no clue what is ahead of us as cigar smokers. What will happen is that the domestic manufacturers, defined by those who are in the Dominican and in Honduras, Nicaragua, Cameroon, all of the places where elements of cigars are grown, and all the places where they’re assembled, these people have in many cases marketed the brands of the Cuban cigars you’re talking about Hoyo De Monterrey, Punch, Simon Bolivar, all of these great Cuban brands have been marketed by other owners in the United States, and they are going to go to the Commerce Department, and they’re going to say we have made these brands popular, we have invested in the product and in the brand in this country, and they’re gonna ask the Commerce Department to ban the import of competing brand-name cigars from Cuba.”
Though it’s likely that we’re going to have to wait a while for Cuba cigars to be legal in the US I think that once Cubans are legal there will be a huge surge of cigar smokers and cigar smoking. Much like the storm of online poker websites and poker players hit once Texas Hold’em became popular the cigar world will see the biggest cigar boom it has ever seen if Cuban cigars are legalized in the US.
There are also other economic factors that come into play when you’re talking about legalizing the most coveted cigars on the planet. The economies of Honduras, The Dominican Republic, and Nicaragua will be severely affected once legal Cuban cigars are available to the masses. But, as I stated before, these economies will eventually come back to life stronger than ever once everyone realizes that Cuban cigars aren’t really that much different than the cigars produced in the above mentioned countries. Not to mention that once Cuba has to produce cigars for Americans its production will be so overdone that the likelihood of the quality control diminishing is quite strong.
So, if you’re crossing your fingers for 2010 to be the year that you’re able to get all the Cuban cigars you want without having to sneak them in – keep dreaming! We’ve got a long way before stocking up on Cubans will be legal in the US!
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