Cuban cigar are the best of the best...

Hey guys, this is my first post on the forum. I am aware of the embargo of Cuban cigar to USA so in all respect I can only share my experience of smoking Cuban cigar since I havent try cigar from other country yet.

As a canadian citizen, I can travel freely to Cuba, my first Cigar ever was a Montecristo, that was in 1988 at that time the box of 25 Robusto was 29.95$ US, what a joke compared to today's pricing, at that time I though there were strong but what did I knew at that time.

I went back in 2006 and brought a box of Romeo & Juliette, they didn't last very long, I smoked all of them with my friend after a BBQ or good dinner on the terrace, every one enjoyed them, but now I can say they are stronger than the Montecristo.

I just got back from Cayo Coco and brought 2 box of 25 of the Cohiba Siglo #1 and those are amazing Cigar, very nice mild taste. I had never smoke the #1 before as I always purchased the Robusto. I particularly enjoy those while having a 10 Year old porto or just a Bailey's after dinner, they seem to have become my favorite.

Please let me know if it is allowed to post the pics of the Cuban cigar as I dont want to be an alien here.

If anyone from Canada want to discuss about Cuban's availability, please pm me and we will do this accordingly with forums rules meaning outside the forum. I hope I'm not breaking any rules here, if this is border line please let me know and I will erase any portion of the threads this is not acceptable.

Cheers to all

AA

I've smoked several Cubans and I'm not overly impressed with them. I think the appeal here is the "forbidden fruit" aspect.

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Originally Posted by DoubleA

Hey guys, this is my first post on the forum. I am aware of the embargo of Cuban cigar to USA so in all respect I can only share my experience of smoking Cuban cigar since I havent try cigar from other country yet.

As a canadian citizen, I can travel freely to Cuba, my first Cigar ever was a Montecristo, that was in 1988 at that time the box of 25 Robusto was 29.95$ US, what a joke compared to today's pricing, at that time I though there were strong but what did I knew at that time.

I went back in 2006 and brought a box of Romeo & Juliette, they didn't last very long, I smoked all of them with my friend after a BBQ or good dinner on the terrace, every one enjoyed them, but now I can say they are stronger than the Montecristo.

I just got back from Cayo Coco and brought 2 box of 25 of the Cohiba Siglo #1 and those are amazing Cigar, very nice mild taste. I had never smoke the #1 before as I always purchased the Robusto. I particularly enjoy those while having a 10 Year old porto or just a Bailey's after dinner, they seem to have become my favorite.

Please let me know if it is allowed to post the pics of the Cuban cigar as I dont want to be an alien here.

If anyone from Canada want to discuss about Cuban's availability, please pm me and we will do this accordingly with forums rules meaning outside the forum. I hope I'm not breaking any rules here, if this is border line please let me know and I will erase any portion of the threads this is not acceptable.

Cheers to all

AA

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Nice intro and thanks for reading and trying to comply with the rules. Feel free to post pics of Cuban cigars, or as they're sometimes referred to ISOMs. Welcome to the board.

I agree, The Siglo's are the strongest of the bunch, I've enjoyed all the marcas and vitolas you mention. They're fine cigars. Check out some of the more affordable cubans though, you'll be nicely surprised. Your canadian taxes will still suck, but at least the wholesale cost of marcas like San Luis Reys, Cuaba's, etc. are much less.

As far as I know, many Cuban cigar factory has moved (or opened another factory) to Dominican Republic or Honduras so I don't know if we can still call these "cuban" ?

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Originally Posted by ProDpro

As far as I know, many Cuban cigar factory has moved (or opened another factory) to Dominican Republic or Honduras so I don't know if we can still call these "cuban" ?

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No. Their brands were stolen, and moved to DR, H, or Nic. They have absolutely no correlation with the Cuban brands except the name.

Glad we resurrected this guy's intro post after we all missed it 2 months ago.:smiley36:

Will

Who is it that said, "It's better to be silent and thought a fool, than to speak up and remove all doubt."? I hear it's attributed to Abraham Lincoln, but I've also heard it was attributed to Mark Twain...

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Originally Posted by ggiese

Who is it that said, "It's better to be silent and thought a fool, than to speak up and remove all doubt."? I hear it's attributed to Abraham Lincoln, but I've also heard it was attributed to Mark Twain...

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You just ruined it by speaking up fool! :smiley36:

Hope all is well George!

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Originally Posted by DoubleA

Hey guys, this is my first post on the forum. I am aware of the embargo of Cuban cigar to USA so in all respect I can only share my experience of smoking Cuban cigar since I havent try cigar from other country yet.

As a canadian citizen, I can travel freely to Cuba, my first Cigar ever was a Montecristo, that was in 1988 at that time the box of 25 Robusto was 29.95$ US, what a joke compared to today's pricing, at that time I though there were strong but what did I knew at that time.

I went back in 2006 and brought a box of Romeo & Juliette, they didn't last very long, I smoked all of them with my friend after a BBQ or good dinner on the terrace, every one enjoyed them, but now I can say they are stronger than the Montecristo.

I just got back from Cayo Coco and brought 2 box of 25 of the Cohiba Siglo #1 and those are amazing Cigar, very nice mild taste. I had never smoke the #1 before as I always purchased the Robusto. I particularly enjoy those while having a 10 Year old porto or just a Bailey's after dinner, they seem to have become my favorite.

Please let me know if it is allowed to post the pics of the Cuban cigar as I dont want to be an alien here.

If anyone from Canada want to discuss about Cuban's availability, please pm me and we will do this accordingly with forums rules meaning outside the forum. I hope I'm not breaking any rules here, if this is border line please let me know and I will erase any portion of the threads this is not acceptable.

Cheers to all

AA

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I think you really need to branch out and try some non-Cuban cigars. There are many, many of them that are easily as good as, if not better than, Cuban's.

Limitiing yourself to only Cubans is well............crazy...........in my opinion.

Being a Canadian I've tried quite a few different Cuban cigars in the last 3 years that I've been smoking cigars. Of the different ones I've tried, I've only found 2 or 3 that I liked enough to want to smoke them regularly.

Of the many different non-Cuban's I've smoked, I've found many that I liked enough to want them in my humidor.........and I've only scratched the surface of the available non-Cuban's out there. There are so many good offerings from other places than Cuba I think you do yourself a disservice by not trying them.

If you truly enjoy a good cigar, you won't much care where it came from as long as it's good.

^ gets it

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Originally Posted by badwhale

No. Their brands were stolen, and moved to DR, H, or Nic. They have absolutely no correlation with the Cuban brands except the name.

Glad we resurrected this guy's intro post after we all missed it 2 months ago.:smiley36:

Will

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Or, Thier buisness and land where stolen and they moved what was rightfully thiers to another country. 6 of one, half dozen the other. :smiley2:

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Originally Posted by Paddy

Or, Thier buisness and land where stolen and they moved what was rightfully thiers to another country. 6 of one, half dozen the other. :smiley2:

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Well, I never claimed to be a Cuban cigar expert, but my point was a Cuban Cohiba and a Dominican Cohiba have nothing to do with each other except they bear the same name.

Personally, I'm much more interested in this new "Non-Cuban Cuban (or NCC)" cigar production.:smiley1:

Will

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Originally Posted by badwhale

Well, I never claimed to be a Cuban cigar expert, but my point was a Cuban Cohiba and a Dominican Cohiba have nothing to do with each other except they bear the same name.

Personally, I'm much more interested in this new "Non-Cuban Cuban (or NCC)" cigar production.:smiley1:

Will

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Myself as well, I procure the occasional box of CC’s, but the aging requirements along with the construction and draw issues are more trouble than they are worth IMHO.
CC’s are probably 5% of my stash.

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Originally Posted by BigMacFU

You just ruined it by speaking up fool! :smiley36:

Hope all is well George!

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The "mugu" my post was intended for is a mouth breather and can't possible comprehend the intent of the post. :smiley4:

Not you, though, Sean - you're a crafty one... :smiley2:


Let's smoke one together REAL soon! :smiley37:

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Originally Posted by Big Sarge

I've smoked several Cubans and I'm not overly impressed with them. I think the appeal here is the "forbidden fruit" aspect.

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Funny - because I hear the same banter with various wines or other aged spirits - "Why would I spend $100 on a bottle when I can pick up something similar for $8 at Costco???"

I suspect you've not had an awful lot of contact with the wide variety of Cuban cigars. Much like non Cubans, there is quite a bit of difference amongst the various Cuban brands.

Cuban cigars do have a very distinct flavor that is difficult to find in non-Cuban brands. But - It is very dependant on which ones you're smoking. Not everyone will like every Cuban cigar they smoke. :smiley2:



...or your taste buds are shot and it doesn't matter which cigar you smoke - they all taste the same. There is that too. :smiley37:

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Originally Posted by CptnBlues63

I think you really need to branch out and try some non-Cuban cigars. There are many, many of them that are easily as good as, if not better than, Cuban's.

Limitiing yourself to only Cubans is well............crazy...........in my opinion.

Being a Canadian I've tried quite a few different Cuban cigars in the last 3 years that I've been smoking cigars. Of the different ones I've tried, I've only found 2 or 3 that I liked enough to want to smoke them regularly.

Of the many different non-Cuban's I've smoked, I've found many that I liked enough to want them in my humidor.........and I've only scratched the surface of the available non-Cuban's out there. There are so many good offerings from other places than Cuba I think you do yourself a disservice by not trying them.

If you truly enjoy a good cigar, you won't much care where it came from as long as it's good.

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For those Canadian's in the know, there is no greater feeling for me when I hand a them the RIGHT non-Cuban cigar. I once handed a Canadian military officer an Opus X Chateau Fuente - from his reaction you woulda thought I gave him my first born child!!! :smiley36:

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Originally Posted by ggiese

For those Canadian's in the know, there is no greater feeling for me when I hand a them the RIGHT non-Cuban cigar. I once handed a Canadian military officer an Opus X Chateau Fuente - from his reaction you woulda thought I gave him my first born child!!! :smiley36:

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LOL

I haven't had the Opus X yet, but I have tried a few Fuentes and brought back 4 of the "house" version from Casa Fuente store in Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. I have one left and I'm hanging on to it for a special occasion. All the Fuentes I have smoked so far were VERY good cigars.

My favorite B&M does stock the Opus X and I'm eventually going to buy one. They run around $50.00 each here if I'm not mistaken so it'll have to be a special treat. If I like it enough, I'll buy a box next time I'm across the border.

Honestly, I can't imagine smoking only Cuban cigars when there are so many fine non-Cuban cigars out there. That's why I posted what I to the OP about trying some others.

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Originally Posted by CptnBlues63

LOL

I haven't had the Opus X yet, but I have tried a few Fuentes and brought back 4 of the "house" version from Casa Fuente store in Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. I have one left and I'm hanging on to it for a special occasion. All the Fuentes I have smoked so far were VERY good cigars.

My favorite B&M does stock the Opus X and I'm eventually going to buy one. They run around $50.00 each here if I'm not mistaken so it'll have to be a special treat. If I like it enough, I'll buy a box next time I'm across the border.

Honestly, I can't imagine smoking only Cuban cigars when there are so many fine non-Cuban cigars out there. That's why I posted what I to the OP about trying some others.

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That was the reaction I got from the guy I handed it to - "Geez... You know what these cost??? These are $50 each!!!". I told him, "No - not where I get 'em" I believe he woulda done just about anything to get a box of them.

So... I suppose a Padron '26 is out of the common man price range too??? :smiley3:

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Originally Posted by ggiese

That was the reaction I got from the guy I handed it to - "Geez... You know what these cost??? These are $50 each!!!". I told him, "No - not where I get 'em" I believe he woulda done just about anything to get a box of them.

So... I suppose a Padron '26 is out of the common man price range too??? :smiley3:

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Last October my very good friend and hunting partner was in the US and brought me back a couple boxes of cigars. The guy at the cigar store there talked him into buying two Padron 26's. He paid about $30/each That would put them around $90+ here.

Our cost, thanks to the exhorbitant "luxury" tax our government puts on tobacco products is three times what you guys in the US pay for the exact same cigar.

We smoked those two 26's as our "victory dance" after we finished skinning out his dad's bull moose (His dad's 80 and that might be the last year he ever hunts. It's almost certainly his last bull moose tag since you only get drawn for them about once every three to four years) they were an extremely tasty cigar and the went very well with the company and situation (sitting on the edge of a beautiful river valley watching the sun set) but they're definitely out of my price range for "regular" smoking.

I'm going to bite the bullet and buy an Opus X and try it. If I like it as much as I think I will, I'll buy a box the next time I'm in the US. The only question now is, when am I going to be in the big city again and get over to my B&M..........LOL

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Originally Posted by CptnBlues63

Last October my very good friend and hunting partner was in the US and brought me back a couple boxes of cigars. The guy at the cigar store there talked him into buying two Padron 26's. He paid about $30/each That would put them around $90+ here.

Our cost, thanks to the exhorbitant "luxury" tax our government puts on tobacco products is three times what you guys in the US pay for the exact same cigar.

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I think there is a federal component to the tax as well as a provincial component. Here in BC I'm sure the cost is even higher. I believe the local B&M had 1926's at $115 per stick.

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Originally Posted by VancouverMark

I think there is a federal component to the tax as well as a provincial component. Here in BC I'm sure the cost is even higher. I believe the local B&M had 1926's at $115 per stick.

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That's distinctly possible. I know we don't pay sales tax at the till's here in Alberta and you do in BC.

All I know is I'm sick and tired of our gov't picking on smokers and drinkers. They call it a luxury tax. I (and others) call it a "sin" tax. What it comes down to is, it's addictive and if you're hooked, you'll pay whatever you have to for your next cig/drink. Which if you think about it, causes crime. I know most robberies of convenience stores around here tend to involve he robber taking as many cigarettes as he can grab. I'd wager a large percentage of those types of robberies are a direct result of the exhorbitant cost of smoking in Canada. Reduce the taxes and cost, crime would go down!

What's really stupid is the government (in this case both the US and Canadian) pretend to be anti smoking and pretend they'd be happy to see all smokers quit. The gov't and the anti-smoking groups quote the health care costs as the biggest reason for wanting to tell us what to do.

If all smokers (cig's and cigars) quit tomorrow, do the anti smoking groups really believe the gov't is going to give up those billions of dollars of revenue generated by tobacco? Not a freaking chance!!! They'ld just jack up the taxes on everything else to compensate.

If it did come to pass, the anti smoking groups would be screaming for us smokers to take the habit up again inside of a month.

I chain smoked about a pack and a half of cig's a day for over 30 years before quitting 3 years ago (and subsequently taking up cigars...........LOL). Those are Canadian 25 packs too.....so figure close to 40 cig's a day average. Want to know what my smoking cost the healt care industry.............nothing.

I'd love to see an honest comparison of the directly related health care costs as versus income (including gov't tax money) generated by smoking. What do you want to bet there's a HUGE difference between the two with the heavy side being monies made by the sales of tobacco (again, including taxes).

Sorry for the rant and possible hijack of this thread but how badly we get screwed up here in Canada on the sin taxes and all the associated lies and BS makes me real angry at times.........LOL........I don't mind paying more than you guys do in the US for the same products. It just makes me a little crazy at times we have to pay so much more.

I'd bet you. I've seen the numbers. I've been responsible for some of the numbers.

You might have a chance in the USA due to the differential health care there, but in Canada, that argument was lost decades ago. Canadian tobacco taxes are very high solely to discourage smoking. Economically-speaking, a lower tax rate in Canada would generate more (gross) revenue (because more people would consume tobacco). Pretty much the only reason taxes aren't higher is the impact of smuggling.

In any case, this is a no-politics board. B*tch about the cost of cigars, but discussing the politics of taxation ...