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25-04-2024, 08:41 AM
So on to Cohiba. The highest profile marca of Habanos, the most expensive & some will say the best cigars, but is the extra cost worth it?
The great Cohiba Debate!
I used to explain my very on Cohiba's as the were 20% better than other Cuban's but 30% cost more. The only question was if you felt this additional cost still presented good value for that occasional red letter day cigar.
I smoked my first Cuban, in Spain - a Monte No4 in '96, Hoyo Epi No1, 2 & then a Cohiba. Might have had the panatela first but at e7, it was always expensive for its size. Then I went straight to the Esplendidos. I probably bought half a dozen & smoked them at home, mainly after catching PB pike & Carp! As well as anniversaries ect. Over the yrs I tried all the line up, up until special releases & collectors humidors. A Cohiba with 5yrs+ age is hard to beat IMHO & I was happy to pay hte extra before the recent price hikes over the last 2yrs. I will never pay £100+ for a Cohiba, although I have spent that on a couple of '80's Davidoff's. I just don't think they are worth x3 or x4 over other excellent Cubans. Taste, value & worth are all very personal & will be different for us all. I recently met a Chinese American citizen, that chooses to smoke 90% Cohiba's but I have always avoided just smoking one marca, one size or one strength. I believe there is a cigar size & strength for every smoking opportunity & the fun is learning, which cigar is most suitable for the occasion. For those who smoke an Sig VI for breakfast, how to follow that? I'd start with a Hoyo, have a Monte for Lunch & a Boli or Cohiba after dinner! Feel free to add to the debate in your comments below.
Bit of history, this was the first new marca, post Rev & legend has it that one of the soldiers in the hills, with Castro was rolling these amazing cigars, which became his favourite; later to be known as the Cohiba Lanceros Laguito No1 38 x 7 1/2". Became formalised in 1966 but only used for diplomatic gifts until '84, when they became commercially available, along with Coronas Especiales (basically the same cigar but 1 1/2" shorter), Laguito No2 & Panatela Laguito No3.
Lafter in 1999, Espendidos Julieta No2, Robusto Robusto & Exquisitos Seoane were added. These 6 vitolas are known as the Classic line up & are considered full-bodied. The Seco & Ligero leaves are given a third fermentation, the only Habanos to have this treatment. Which no doubt accounted for some of the cost in production. They are also made with the best leave available from the Vuelta Abajo region.
In 1992, the Siglo range was created but not launched until 1994 (a sign of late production yet to come). inc Siglo No I Perlas 40 x4", No II Marevas 42 x 5", No III, Coronas Grandes 42 x 6 1/8", No IV Coronas Gordas 46 x 5 5/8" , No V Dalias 43 x 6 3/4" & in 2002 IMHO by far the best, the No VI Canonazo 52 x 5 7/8".This line is considered medium strength, as are the Maduro line launched 2007.
Maduro consists of Genios 52 x 5 1/2", Magicos 52 x 4 1/2" & Secretos 40 x 4 3/8". Called maduro because of their dark wrappers, created by allowing more sun on the leaves when still growing (for lighter shades they tobacco plants are shaded by muslin. Personally, I do not enjoy Maduros, also used in the Edition Limited series, but of course, there are always notable exceptions. If given sufficient aging, the Secretos are really nice with just a coffee, but the others do nothing for me. Maduro leaf is said to taste sweeter due to developing more sugars & although the wrapper makes up a small percentage of the cigar itself, remember you can taste salt in your own blood & the salt is only 0.7%.
Behike: Launched in 2010, this was certainly a vote winner & have gone from just being more expensive than even Esplendosis, to being just hard to find - to near impossible - especially in Cuba, as well as taking over from Esplendosis, as the most faked Cuban cigars. I bought my initial 52's at around £35, if you find any under £100, they are most certainly fakes.
Just a quick mention to fakes. Back in the day (not so long ago for some of us), many Habanos cigars were as nude as the good Lord intended, particularly in cabs. But in an effort to make it harder to sell fakes eventually, all were produced with bands/labels. On Cohiba's, this went through many changes in an effort to stay one step ahead of the fakers. But fake labels are now just as good & impossible for the average punter to detect the difference. The best advice I can give is only buy from LCDH, especially in Cuba, never buy from that guy who's relatives work in the factory & took out a couple of sticks every day & he can now sell you a box. I will leave someone more knowledgeable than myself to write something on fakes when we get to F.
In 2012, Piramdes Extra 52 x 6 1/4" & 2016 Media Siglo 52 x 4" Petit Robusto arrived. The former is a great cigar, I prefer the tubos to seal in that flavour & the later not so great, again, IMHO.
Other Cohibas have come since, as Habanos try to maximise revenue on their leading global brand.
Current Stock Pic's:
My Dec 2002 Seleccion box. The best single box of cigars I ever bought, now sells for £3,500 at auction & in 2016, I paid e1,000 i.e. e33 each. Mainly because it was the last box from a Swiss retailer, 2nd & 3rd hand buys are always going to be far more. But I don't think anyone would have predicted such a price increase. No regrets from me for not selling, enjoyed every stick & as you can see, I have been smoking a couple a year & have shared some too.
It originally can with Esplendidos x 4, CE x 6, Media Corona 38 x 5 5/8" ( a size only found in this box & sadly never repeated), Piramides x 8 Robusto x 6. All with the Reserva band.
Current Exquisitos Stock. 2001 box, bought in Vigo, Spain in 2018, for e330. Everyone a gem, no issues with construction.
2017 bought in St Kitts 2020 for e305, just cracked this box, this Feb. Well worth the wait, I always give Cohiba at least 5yrs to mature. Expect this box to last 5yrs+ & then the
2021 bought in Hagasund, Norway, Nov 2023; will be ready to smoke too. That's the way to ensure you always have aged smokes, if that's what you prefer.
Current
Below: Piramides Extra x3 & Siglo VI Tubos x3 both bought in Vigo, Spain in 2018, for e93 & e86.
Siglo III x2, Media Siglo, last remaining of a 3 pack, not impressed but maybe just too green for me?
Middle tray: Siglo VI, Lanceros x4, Esplendosis x3, Siglo V x 2 & IV x1.
Right Tray: Secretos x3, Reserva Cosecha 201, released 2018. Gifted to me my Steve Halaart, an excellent Belgian BOTL @ my 60th birthday celebration, The Piano Bar - Antwerp. Keeping this to smoke on my retirement.
Behike 52 2013, the last I bought off Wigan & a 56, gifted to me on my last cruise, along with a 55 Aniversario!
Attached Files
Last edited by Simon Bolivar; 31-07-2024, 08:59 PM
- Starting with the best box normal production box from Habanos, must be the Behike range in Black lacquered boîte nature box of 10 cigars, with black velvet bag. Makes a superb desk top humi, kept my extra special cigars in their, which did used to include half a dozen Davidoff's & various Behikes.
My 2006 collection of old band Cohiba's.
A Behike 52, smoked on New Year's Day 2017, in our garage Antwerp. Right: Sharing a 54 with Zowie, at the Piano Bar, after a aged beef steak.
A C.E. smoked 2014, at Loch Ascog, Isle of Bute.
My current box of C.E.2017, bought in 2017, Havana for e298, still not crqcked this one yet, just waiting for visitors!
Exquisitos, oldest band & Cohiba I have smoked, <93.
2009, smoked in Spain, outside a bar; with my daughter. She had a cocktail.
Smoking an Lanceros, in my hotel room, The Britannia, Dyce, Aberdeen. Before they refurbished & banned smoking in all rooms.
Attached Files
Last edited by Simon Bolivar; 18-05-2024, 06:10 PM.Archive pic's
My once proud Cohiba Collection, inc Lanceros 2001 & my complete box of Dec 2002 Reserva collection. This was shortly after receiving it & we smoked the first pair that evening!
Attached Files - Couldn't end this chapter without this late surprise entry! On our last cruise I met a very interesting, fellow BOTL, who now retire, was trying to spend his millions before his kids got to waste the remainder. We met in the Cigar Lounge MSC Epic still has one (although 90% were smoking fags), & exchanged pleasantries. He was always smoking Cohiba, although I did spot one Large limited Edition, can't remember which now. But I admired his 55 Aniversario & then he gave me one! As I was leaving at the time, I could have brought it home but that didn't seem right, so I went after gala night, & we smoked one together.I am guessing that such a pair had never been smoked on that ship, at the same time before? Perhaps not within the MSC fleet!
An amazing evening, & we met again in Brugge, were he gifted me a special R&J, more details of which, when we finally get as far as the R chapter.
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