Cuban Cigars

scotty says on Nov 21, 2006, 23:34:

Cuban I used to love to smoke cigars, everywhere i went in Colombia i could not find cuban cigars...i thought for sure Colombia would have a good Cuban cigar. You know where i finally found them? At the Bogota airport.

Get Rhythm, when you got the blues. Johnny Cash

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EMAN says on Nov 22, 2006, 07:47:

LA CAVA DEL PURO sells CUBANS. It is a very nice store with a good selection. Their contact information is below:

LA CAVA DEL PURO
Cr 38 10-21
COLOMBIA - Antioquia, Medellín
Telefonos: (57)(4)3114051

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billyb says on Nov 22, 2006, 08:23:

Good link DG. BillyB

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morphus says on Nov 22, 2006, 13:53:

I used to buy fake Cuban cigars in Cuba for $10 a box. The way I saw it was, they were still Cuban cigars since they were rolled in Cuba...lol.

I have'nt seen Cuban cigars in Colombia. I would guess that the airports and hotels have the real deal.

Cuban cigars are overrated anyway. The best cigars come from Honduras.

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rocinante says on Nov 22, 2006, 17:09:

seanjuan is correcto La Cava del Puro. They are an official Habanos SA retialer. The smokes are authentic and the only reason I purchased on was to test the authenticity. Their prices are astronomical.

Go to Parque Lleras and go to the corner of restuarant Ave Marias. From the corner where the restaurant entrance is walk down that street (Cra 38) away from the park. 1.5 blocks on the left hand side (no 10-21) is the joint.

Outrageous prices. Outrageous prices. Did I mention Outrageous prices? 40,000 COP ($17USD) for a Partagas Serie D #4 (small, Robusto). I pay less than half elsewhere. I'd only buy there if it's a must - otherwise it's cheaper to bring your own.

Morph I'll bring you a rockin' stick on Monday - Elmo's going by the way, just got off the phone with him.

"World economic indicators point to a democrat winning 2008. It will surely be Obama. Peso 1400 by November" Feb 5, 2008

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miamimike says on Nov 22, 2006, 19:42:

The last 20 Count Box Of Cohiba Torpedos I had Cost $100 and they were purchased by a Cuban Doctor friend of mine when he went on Vacation to Cuba. Purchased from a Friend of his in the Havana Airport after the person took them home to his house. !! They were the real McCoy and Not a bad Cigar but not for the money! Way Way Overpriced at $100 a box(20 count)! They were around 7 Inches long, 50 Ring size. In my opinion, the Gloria Cubana that they roll here in Miami is evey BIT as Good at half the price I payed for 20($100)They sell tem here in Little Havana on Flagler street!

"Wait a minute. What did you just say? You're predicting $4-a-gallon gas? That's interesting. I hadn't heard that." -- Feb. 28, 2008 --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C.

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morphus says on Nov 22, 2006, 19:56:

Oh yeah, in Cuba somebody always has a friend or relative that works at the factory and they can get you cigars for cheap. Its bullshit! They look and smell real though. I used to buy a couple boxes of the fakes in Cuba and sell them to the taxi drivers in the Bahamas for a profit.

Rocinate, save me a puro. I won't be able to make it monday

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rocinante says on Nov 22, 2006, 20:49:

morph/mike I don't like to agree with you in public because people will talk but you are 100% correct.

Miami mike, Cohiba torps cost about $15 USD a smoke in Cuba, $100/20 is $5 a smoke - Like Morph says, everyone has some story - my grandmother works in the factory and stole these 4 boxes, yada yada always fakes, yada.

Did the box have a glass lid?

"World economic indicators point to a democrat winning 2008. It will surely be Obama. Peso 1400 by November" Feb 5, 2008

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scotty says on Nov 23, 2006, 20:55:

Hmmmm Maybe they stopped selling them or ran out of them. Im trying to remember the store name, it was down at one of the far ends of the airport, they had Dominican cigars, Colombian cigars and cuban cigars , i got myself a box of each and i just had a blast everynight trying the different cigars with a glass of wine.

I recall something that kinda surprised me the Colombian cigars were very good also, you may want ot try some of their home grown stuff.

I dont smoke anymore, dont talk about it im starting to remember those very good cigars and missing them. ha!

I do recall having a difficult time finding cubans in Colombia, i think your average colombian cant afford a cuban so they dont sell many, you have to really search out. I wonder if places like upscale hotels or very upscale resturants could help send you to the right places to find a good cuban? might try that.

Get Rhythm, when you got the blues. Johnny Cash

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scotty says on Nov 23, 2006, 20:59:

cigars to US I had a friend that went to Brazil bought several boxes of cubans, and just packed them in his suitcase . he had no problems getting them in to USA, he was walking around at work passing out cubans to everybody.

Get Rhythm, when you got the blues. Johnny Cash

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scotty says on Nov 23, 2006, 21:02:

Right I agree..airport, upscale hotels, upscale resturants and upscale cocktail lounges. I also agree Cubans are good but overrated. I have enjoyed Colombian cigars, Dominican cigars are good. Never tried a Honduras cigar.

Get Rhythm, when you got the blues. Johnny Cash

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miamimike says on Nov 23, 2006, 22:51:

No They did not have a Glass Lid, But Neither Did The Ones that they were selling in the Duty free shop of the Havana Airport where this one came from in the same month. So if the Box I received were fake, then so where the ones they were selling in the Duty Free Havana Airport Shop. LOL And FYI, over the past 10 years or so I have been given several Cohibas(from Cuban friends who received them from Family members who went to Cuba to visit family) that were supposedly La Verdad(real mcCoy) but sadly, ALL were Fakes up until this Box I received. I know they were by the Fact they would not even stay lit, when they did, they burned uneven and Black, they were full of clippings that were swept up off the factory floor and taken home to make Fakes. The Cohibas I had would hold an Ash over 1 inch long, nice and grey and consistently colored and textured . They were a Real Pleasure to Smoke,,, The Yellow white black Cohiba Bands aren't even a good copy of the of the ones in the Box I received! I treated a few Old Cubanos to a few of these Cohibas and they all agreed, they were the Real McCoy so I will accept thier word(who knows better?) over a stranger's opinion on the Internet! These were the Real Deal! I save the Bands for my collection! In my 40 years of Cigar smoking I will tell you, I know the difference between a Fake and the real McCoy. ANyone who pays BTW $15 for one those Cohibas I had has more Money then BRAINS! As PT Barnum said "A Sucker is born every Day" I see them on eBay selling for$400-$600 a Box per 20 and I'll tell you, remember that Lady in Miami who sold the Toasted Cheese Sandwich which had a facsimile of Jesus's Face on it for $28,000???,,,, LOL She is probably also in on selling Cohibas at $15 to the same Suckers LOL. I have some other Cuban Tobacco boxes patients of mine in Miami gave me as keepsakes--some from the 50s, 60s, 70s(Romeo and Juliet,Cohiba,ect and NONE had Glass lids. These boxes were brought over by Cuban residents. I have seen quite a few Cuban Cigar Boxes in the Houses and Apartments of my Cuban Patients in Little Havana and Hiahleah(here in miami) over the last 5 years and to date, NEVER have seen any Glass Lid Boxes. Not to say they don't exist, only I to date, have not seen them in these Old Cuban Exile's Houses. Remember every product changes, be it Cigars or Mercedes; Mercedes used to be a quality car in the 40s-80s, now from the 90s to the present, its an overpriced car whose qulity has slipped and today sells on its past reputation. I feel the same about these Cohibas. LOL A Decent $3-$4 cigar and nothing more! LOL I refer you to the Aficinado Cigar Magazine as they consistently rate La Goloria Cubana at or over 93 almost every year. Why do you think in this Day and Age Cuban Tobacco is any better then Dominican Leaf? Sure isn't because of Cuba's Agronomy Technology as Cuban has lagged way behind the last 20 years. At one time it was true(40s-60s), the Leaf from Cuba's La region Vuelta Abajo was the world's best but that's not true today. Fidel's Communism killed that sector of Cuban's Economy. Hey, all the more power to someone if they can get $15 a Pop for a Cigar, I wouldn't pay it as the Value isn't there. I could care less about the Impression of where a Cigar comes from then how it actually tastes. I'll end this Rant by saying if 3 guys were given Blind Smoke Tests, that is, Blindfolded the Testers and I'll bet $100 a seasoned cigar smoker couldn't tell the difference between a Real Cohiba, Gloria Cubana or Arturo Fuente(or other Good Dominican Cigars),,, Tommy to answer your question where in Medellin to find Good cuban Cigars I can't tell you. Maybe posters Don Gringo or Gator can,,, I can tell you, when I first visited Bogota in 1994, I searched Bogota High and Low and was unable to find any. A couple In The Know Taxi Drivers in Bogota couldn't locate any either so at that point I gave it up for a lost cause not worth my time,,,

"Wait a minute. What did you just say? You're predicting $4-a-gallon gas? That's interesting. I hadn't heard that." -- Feb. 28, 2008 --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C.

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rocinante says on Nov 24, 2006, 17:49:

Perez rolled me 2 boxes Wow Miami - can't really get through the entire post but most of it. Glass lids are fakes on Cohibas - usually the Esplandidos, which is why I asked.

You have no idea how much I am holding back on unloading. I'm the last guy you want to school on Cuban Cigars and I'm probably half your age. I am sober so this will be the "nice" me. I will not post my credentials as they matter little."Anyone who pays BTW $15 for one those Cohibas I had has more Money then BRAINS! As PT Barnum said "A Sucker is born every Day" I see them on eBay selling for$400-$600 a Box per 20 and I'll tell you, remember that Lady in Miami who sold the Toasted Cheese Sandwich which had a facsimile of Jesus's Face on it for $28,000???,,,, LOL She is probably also in on selling Cohibas at $15 to the same Suckers LOL."

My answer to you is "That's the price" - That's what they cost.

You paid less than 1/4th of the price in Habana - They ain't cheaper ANYWHERE on the planet than the Partagas store in Habana. Could one possibly be buying a 7" 50 ring Cohiba torp for $5 a stick when a Robusto that is half the cigar sold for over $8, 7 years ago? (see 2000 price list and links below)

I'm sorry but buying under retail is a red flag, simple as. Who's the sucker?

Your doctor friend must have hooked you up big time to charge less than the lowest price available on earth. I have faith that you and your cuban friends know Cuban tobacco, but you did not buy an authentic Cohiba Torp for $5 bucks. At least you enjoyed the cigar.

That's all I'm saying.

Article from 2001 prices : http://www.cigaraficionado.com/Cigar/CA_Archives/CA_Show_Article/0,2322,44,00.html (read the whole article about prices in the stores - not about prices and availibilty in the bars - and realize that Cohibas are pretty much the most expensive Cuban cigars and that these prices are from 6 years ago)

prices below (from 2000) here's the link - http://www.cigarnexus.com/counsel/cubanprices/index.html

Cohiba price list from 2000
Coronas Especiales 6 x 38 $268.75
Esplendidos 7 x 47 $384.00
Exquisitos 4 7/8 x 36 $158.00
Lanceros 7 1/2 x 38 $322.00
Millennium Piramides (jar) 6 1/8 x 52 $500.00
Panetelas 4 1/2 x 26 $145.00
Robustos 4 7/8 x 50 $228.50
Siglo I 4 x 40 $128.00
Siglo II 5 x 42 $167.00
Siglo III 6 1/8 x 42 $175.00
Siglo IV 5 5/8 x 46 $206.00
Siglo V 6 3/4 x 43 $285.00

"World economic indicators point to a democrat winning 2008. It will surely be Obama. Peso 1400 by November" Feb 5, 2008

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morphus says on Nov 28, 2006, 18:48:

There are good faslsos in There are good falsos in Cuba if you buy them in Pinar Del Rio. Thats where they grow the tobacco and some of the locals know how to roll cigars.
There are also peso cigars in Cuba that the locals buy. I like those. A peso in Cuba is about a nickel.

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miamimike says on Nov 28, 2006, 19:59:

Like I say, Some Old Cuban Friends who sampled the Cigars I received and concurred that they were the "Real Deal" so I accept their Word on that. They also were real real familiar with that Cuban green and white Seal on the box. They concurred this was not a fabricated Seal, something cooked up on a computer. They also examined the Wood Box very closely and concurred it was real. They stated the Fabricators would not have the material quality or the tools/saws ect to produce a Box of this quality(perfect Miters, angles ect). They compared it to a Partagas and Romeo and Juliet Box in their home brought from Cuba 50 years ago and this Cohiba box had equal quality--very high quality. They are Cubans and they know their Cigars! I will also add the Doctor I mentioned is originally from Cuba, his Large family there is well connected and if anyone can get a deal on something his family are the ones who can affect that into a deal. So Believe what you will and I will beleive what I think is true ,,,More of what I was getting at though was how the Cuban Cigars can command these Crazy prices as I have smoked Cigars since 1965 and can't see the Value of a Cohiba even at the price I payed; many other Cigars are as Good or Better for a Fraction of the Price like the Gloria Cubana made here in Miami on Flagler Street or Arturo Fuentes(DR). BTW, just because something is VERY costly does NOT mean it is always the highest Quality. Today's MB Auto is a perfect example, overpriced and under constructed Quality wise(consumer report on frequency of repair issue). . Like I say, give 3 Cigar smokers a Blind Taste Test and see how many Smokers correctly pick a Cohiba, Arturo Fuente or Gloria Cubana corrrectly time after time. I have a $100 Bill that says they can't do it repeatedly,,,, You know Miami is a pretty good cigar town,,, These Old Time Cuban Cigar Smokers agree 100% on that matter and they have had a cigar hanging out of their mouths for the last 50 years. LOL

"Wait a minute. What did you just say? You're predicting $4-a-gallon gas? That's interesting. I hadn't heard that." -- Feb. 28, 2008 --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C.

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