After reading a few of the comments on Peppermint Patty's site, I wanted to try to dispel some of the myths about Cuban cigars. Cuban cigars like Cohiba, Montecristo, and Romeo y Julieta are not the same cigars as their Dominican and Nicaraguan cousins. When Fidel Castro took over Cuba in 1959, one of the first things he did was seize the local tobacco factories for the government. Owners of the factories fled Cuba and took with them, the knowledge, the processes, and sometimes even the seed used to grow their world famous tobacco.

Many of them set up shop the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Mexico, and other various countries, to start rebuilding their business. With court approval, they even held on to their trademarks, which explains why there is a Cuban Montecristo and a Dominican Montecristo. They are not the same cigars, and the only thing they share is the name and sometimes the look of the band. Before the manufacturers had court approval to continue to use their former trademarks, many cigar manufacturers tried to re-establish brand names, and thus cigars like Montecruz were born.

Although Castro seized control over the Cuban cigar factories, the commie variants that he produces there now are in no way as good as pre-1959 Cuban cigars. They may be decent smokes, but the Dominican, and Nicaraguan sticks typically rival or exceed them in quality and taste. Much of the appeal for Cuban cigars in today's society stems from the U.S. embargo of all things Cuban. People assume that since they cannot have them, they must be good. With the high demand, Castro's factories have focused more on quantity and market saturization than on quality. While Cigar Aficionado noted that Cuba is starting to focus more on quality as of late, they still have a long way to go.

Not only is their quality usually substandard, but Cuban cigars demand a premium. Cubans that you buy in Canada and Europe are usually much more expensive than similar non-Cuban cigars. Not only do they cost more, but by buying Habana-made sticks, your money is supporting a communist dictatorial regime. Now, I'd be a pretty big hypocrit if I stood on my soap box and preached against smoking Cuban cigars solely on that basis, mainly because I've bought more than my fair share of them. However, I will say that outside of the prestige of having something that you aren't supposed to have, or something that nobody else can get, Cuban cigars are typically a mediocre smoke, and not worth the money.

Naturally, some Cuban varieties are a better than others. I found the Montecristo #4s, and Romeo y Julieta Excepcionales to be an excellent cigar. But when you factor in the price, you can get a much better Dominican smoke, and you don't need to travel overseas or break the law to do it.

Another problem with Cuban cigars is that there is a huge market for counterfeits. If you are buying them on the streets of Havana, they are likely to be a counterfeit label wrapped around some skunk weed. The same goes for flea markets. I saw some at a gun show a few months back that were obvious counterfeits. Aside from the label being completely wrong, the cigars themselves looked like they'd been run through a washing machine. The only thing that did look genuine was the box, but even then I didn't get a close enough look to see if the tax stamp was real or not. (To be honest, I didn't really care.)

If you are a cigar lover whose never had one from Habana, next time you are out of the U.S. you might want to try one. I certainly wouldn't blame anyone for wanting to sample something they've never had before. I'm just saying that you should beware that it may not be all that you were expecting.

Related articles:
Priming your Humidor -- 06/24/2003
A Fine Cigar -- 06/15/2003
Guns and Cigars -- 12/18/2002
Cigars are an obsession -- 10/16/2002