question about cubans

[ggiese]

it's amazing what only 2 yrs of aging can do for the likes of a RASS or Juan Lopez. just wish i could get some that are 5-7 yrs older than that.

You're absolutely right - I love a RASS with a coupla years of age on em... It's even mroe amazing what a couple of years age will do to a Quinteros Brevas!!!

[The Master]

In my opinion the RASS is one of those cigars that takes forever to get good. I had a box of 97's that took over 6 years and I have a box of 99's that are just coming around.

If you are looking for a Cuban Robusto that is smokeable early on, then the Juan Lopez 2 would be my recommendation.

[Coolbus]

Although age is very important on any cigar, I look to the date on Cubans for quality issues. There were several years pre 2003 in which the construction was questionable for many island sticks.

[The Master]

The two years that were Cubas worst construction wise were 1999 and 2000. The real bad part about 1999 was that the crop of 1998 tobacco was one of the best in Cubas history, so many of the poorly constructed cigars were made with great tobacco. As with any year, there are great boxes and there are lousy boxes. As long as your tobacconist is willing to gaurantee your satisfaction, taking a chance on 99 and 2000 cigars isn't a big deal. You can find some incredible boxes from those years.