shakeybrainsurgeon:
One advantage of going to the Caribbean is, after the diving, I can smoke a real Cuban cohiba. However, I think I was ripped off in the Caymans --- the Cubans didn't taste right and i suspect some were counterfeit.
In the US I prefer the dominican red dot cohibas, although the macanudo gold leaf and helix cigars are pretty good and much cheaper (by two-thirds).
Any cigar lovers out there, and have others suspected that some of the Cubans we have been paying for may be fake???
I smoke 1 - 2 cigars a day (hope my wife is not reading this...!) and live in the fake Cuban cigar capital of the world (Miami).
I think you take a chance anytime you purchase a Cuban cigar from any source - the chance you take is that it will be terrible; even if its "real" - bad tobacco, bad construction, too lose, too tight - its a real crap shoot.
I've gotten away from Cuban's because even if you get a real one, a good one - you can pay $15 - 30 per cigar in the Carib., with no assurance of quality. (A few years ago in Toronto, in a place I would swear was legit, they wanted $35 CI per cigar!!! I'll quit first).
That said, 6 years ago I bought 3 Cohiba robusto's at the airport in Grand Cayman on the way to Little Cayman - the first one was one of the best cigars I ever smoked in my life - still remember it. The other 2 - from the same box - were terrible; unsmokable; had to be thrown out. Too much money to gamble; plus I think cigars from the Dominican, Nicaragua, Honduras, vastly more consistant and much cheaper - my everyday brand is La Gloria Cubana Series R #4 or #5 maduro - $5 - 6.50 per cigar); I bring my own when I travel.
( Also, the one's you mention liking in your post are mild - very well made, but mild - most Cubans - not all - tend to be more full bodied, so you might not enjoy even a well made one if your taste runs to mild).
If you want to try a few Cuban's make sure you buy from dedicated sources - avoid gift shops that may have a box or 2, even if they have a humidor in the shop; obviously never from vendors on the street, etc.
In Cozumel, for example, the cigar store on the main drag in town is a dedicated cigar store, but if you go in the humidor its WAY too moist and the place smells musty; moldy even - I'd never buy from there, for example - plus you could squeeze the moisture out - their cigars will never stay lit, in addition to the other possible problems you encounter with Cuban cigars.
Happy smoking!
Be aware that in gov't stores in Havana, Cubans can cost from $250 - 650 a box - so beware the $5 "bargan; it does not exist.
