Like all things, Cuban cigars have a production cost. If illuminated with ultraviolet light, it get phosphorescent. This is the familiar seal you see on all boxes of handmade cigars from Central America. These boxes often carry the Cohiba brand. If id have seen this at the hotel i would of requested a refund. Sign up for JRCigars.com emails and get updates about weekly specials, events, & more! 5) Embossed Lettering . A genuine box of Cuban cigars should haveallof the following five attributes: Not unlike counterfeit cigar bands, the bottom of the box may be missing some of this key information; it could have typos, and may even be printed with different fonts. Embossed Lettering: The famous Cohiba on a white background with a square, gold border is embossed in metallic gold. Know Your Cigar Boxes. ?More on that later. Unless, of course, theyre selling us fakes. The more complex answer to what Cuban cigars cost depends on a number of factors. This was the first time that a Cuban cigar band carried 3-D imaging, clearly an effort to discourage fakes. The logo is also repeated on the holographic edges several times. One of the most important areas of the box to check is the bottom. This check is performed simultaneously the touch analysis (next chapter). It would be very helpful for everyone if you posted clear, front on pictures of the band and cap, as well as a comment advising where the cigar was obtained from. Cuba releases three per year, and those releases are all documented on this website. Results for {phrase} ({results_count} of {results_count_total}), Displaying {results_count} results of {results_count_total}. . If someone tries to sell you a box of Cubans with a glass top, that alone should be a red flag. parejos) are finished with mounted heads, also known as three-seam caps. This is the last analysis that can be performed and it is also an invasive type of analysis. So, its also the biggest target for counterfeiters. Unfortunately, you cant do the ash test while your Cuban is still in the box, but if you can light and try at least one cigar before buying you should pay careful attention to how the cigar ashes. Nation-wide Free Delivery on all Orders above Rs. You should know what a real Cuban cigar looks like. Childrens Parks and Playgrounds in the Cayman Islands, Run down to Harquail Theatre for comedy revue, Cuban in Cayman: A prisoner in a free land, The great escape: Cubans fight waves as big as mountains to reach Cayman, Special report: Inside the Cuban migration crisis, Cuban migration costs nears $3 million for 2022, Broken-down Cuban vessel sparks rescue in waters off Cayman Brac, Travelled to Cuba recently? The foot should be a perfectly straight, clean cut. One of the most important areas of the box to check is the bottom. Sometimes you can tell a fake Cuban vs. a real Cuban just by the box. Required fields are marked *. Therefore, its always better to smoke at least one cigar before you buy. DOP means Denominacin de Origen Protegida, or Denomination of Protected Origin in Spanish. All Rights Reserved. 2. leaf size. Now, about that box of fake Arturo Fuente cigars. If you see that the cigars in a box are not the same length and of the same ring gauge, youve likely got a box of frauds or some very badly made cigars. Today Cuba still produces some of the worlds best cigars, but countries like the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Honduras, where many Cuban tobacco-growers relocated after the Castro regime nationalized the tobacco industry in 1959, have leveled the playing field by making Cuban cigars just another option. Each had the name Cohiba, the vitola, or size of the cigar, and often the number of cigars packed in each box. The hologram is an important thing to check for because they are hard and expensive to copy. Quality cigars are tripa larga, which means they have been made with whole tobacco leaves. Cohibas, such as the Edicion Limitadas or Behikes are even easier to spot. Not sure and dont care. Yes, at one time Cuban cigars reallywerethe best and had virtually no competition. As well, Cohiba's have the triple fermented wrappers that are usually quite soft and mild. A burning Cuban cigar typically produces a gray ash. True, a lot of cigars made outside of Cuba many of these same attributes, but if your Cuban cigars are missing all or most of these attributes, theyre most likelynotof Cuban origin. How to spot counterfeit cigars in Cuba (and everywhere else, too). How to Spot a Fake Cohiba | Holt's Cigar Company Originally this green and white stamp came in three sizes: Large (~ 2 1/2 wide), Small (~1 1/4 wide), and Miniature (~ 13/16 wide). No fear! Dont buy them. Are counterfeiters able to fool the Habanos Authenticity feature on their website? The purchase will also further expand STGs portfolio of top-rated premium cigars worldwide. The foot should be a perfectly straight, clean cut. So how do you spot the fakes . Buying cigars on the streets of Havana is a near-certain way to buy a fake. . Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is frustrated with Twitter. Any Cohiba you are being offered for $10 is fake. What do you look for? If the packaging looks suspicious, the contents probably are, too. ?More on that later. Cigar Aficionado Online, M. Shanken Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. A graduate of the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, prior to his career in the cigar business, Gary worked in the music and video industry as a marketer and a publicist. Today Cuba still produces some of the worlds best cigars, but countries like the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Honduras, where many Cuban tobacco-growers relocated after the Castro regime nationalized the tobacco industry in 1959, have leveled the playing field by making Cuban cigars just another option. In these cases, the seal indicating the type of special edition is placed immediately under the HABANOS S.A. seal. I dont care if you bought them from Mother Teresa; youre probably sitting on imitations. It is a lustrous, metallic gold, however, it is non-holographic. Hi Gary. Repeating Logos & Checkerboard: The holographic Indian head logos and the boxes will repeat along the bottom and top edges. In 2009, a hologram was added on the right side and the placement of the serial code was moved. Is it because theyre still considered forbidden fruit, or is it that many cigar smokers believe Cuban cigars are the best? The Canadian market, which allows the sale of Cubans, is almost as bad as the U.S. market, sitting []. This makes the cigars feel very soft to the touch. Also, inside the box, the Cubans should all be the same length and color. Reading Time: 3 minutes Let all things be done with charity, is Southern Draw Cigars motto for its annual IGNITE program that helps those in need. Check out Cigar Aficionado's newsletters, bringing you our latest ratings & reviews, cigar news and our guide to the good life. All Rights Reserved. Your email address will not be published. Well, it might have been good, but it was a fake. Price How to spot fake Cuban cigars - the complete guide Phase 5 DHA, Karachi | 12 PM to 8 PM. So sad what will become of such a once beautiful Island. Apart from the issues weve discussed about packaging, one way to determine if this is an authentic Esplndido is to smoke it. To ensure authenticity, all you need to do is check the bottom of the Habano Cuban cigar box. 9. Real Cuban cigars are packed in boxes marked with the Habanos seal in the upper-right corner. For more on Cohiba and counterfeits, check out these links and videos: [Video] Counterfeit Cuban Cigars Part I: How To Tell A Fake From The Real Deal[Video] Counterfeit Cuban Cigars Part II: Cutting Open Counterfeits. In counterfeit boxes, this usually has an incorrect print of this logo. Cuo is a stamp that is usually on the bottom of the box. And since at least then, the Cohiba has been counterfeited. Cuban cigars should come in an all-wood box. These marks tell industry-insiders which of the countrys factories made the cigars. Here are the keys: The cigar bands are often difficult to distinguish on fakes. 1 Aug 2018 Last Updated: 20 Jan 2023. With the exception of figurados like Pyramids and Torpedoes, the caps are often more flat than round, and always tripled seamed. In some boxes made in those years there is no hologram, or in some cases, there are two seals affixed to each other (in this case the new seal with hologram has been placed over on top of the old seal). Ive bought 25 Romeo Y Julieta Romeo No.1 from the hotel cigar bar on the last might of my holiday, The Sales person was keen to show me hologram/ barcode, Having since got home and checked what they are worth, Upon closer inspection (with good light) the Habanos dop seal is split and the tape at the back of the hinge is torn. Holograms of the word Cuba and the Taino Indian head logo repeat on the gilded top edge of the band. If you know what to look for before buying a Cuban cigar, its a good bet you will avoid getting scammed. Today, however, youll see the boxes marked as Totalmente a Mano. How can it be a fake?. with the cigar youre considering. 7. You also want to make sure the box has the Cuban warranty seal of authenticity on the left side of the box. So, youve studied and you think youre ready to spot the fakes. What does the word Cohiba mean? - Short-Fact You must be 18 years of age or older to view page. On the Behikes distinctive band, the nine rows of white squares run in a checkered pattern from the gilded top edge to the top of the word Behike. Again, if the squares are not full, even on the edges, then youre likely looking at a fake. The originals were packed in dress boxes, but by the time the line was expanded, the brand moved into plain, wooden boxes. In Cuba, they run around $12.00. The Fleur-de-lis. If theyre made by hand it will also say, Cuban cigars do not come packaged withcellos. Cuban cigars do not come wrapped in cellophane, at least not since 1992 when only machine-made Cubans got a cellophane sleeve. Forgers had something new to figure out. If you want to take a chance, get one cigar and test it. The famous Cohiba on white background with a square, gold border is embossed with proper gilding. The Cohiba brand was offered to the general market in 1982 in the form of a Panatela, 4.5 x 26. To help prevent this, in 2010 Habanos S.A. designed a new seal using watermarks, a super-strong adhesive, a hologram on the right side of the seal, and a bar code on the left. Bands that are not perfect are not used in genuine cigars making. 3) Nine White Squares How sad. Learn how to tell whether thePartags you're smoking is authentic or fake. The only time the seal wont bend up like this and go over the Cote dArms is on very large cigar boxes. http://www.habanos.com/en/verificacion-de-autenticidad/, http://www.habanos.com/en/el-mundo-del-habano/signos-de-distincion/. If youre going to buy Cuban cigars, you need to learn how to tell the difference between real vs. fake. Copyright 2023 Holt's Cigar Company. In counterfeit cigars, filling is usually very low. Real or fake : r/cubancigars - Reddit If the squares are not full, even on the edges, then youre likely looking at a fake. The fact is, the Cuban cigar industry doesnt make cigar boxes with glass or even clear plastic tops. Find out if your Cuban Cohiba Behike BHK is real or fake. It is unlikely that someone will decide to sell off cigars at their own expense. Cubans vs Non-Cubans: Are They Really Better Cigars? 8.1 The band: it must be verified that the band used has no defects. An poor filling is a very good sigh of fake cigars. We are Cayman Islands' most trusted news source. Since youre more likely to purchase fake Cuban cigars in places such as the Caribbean, the hustle goes something like this: Some bad actor buys a bundle of cheapo cigars made in the Dominican Republic or elsewhere, sticks phony Cuban cigar bands on them, places them in a most likely counterfeited Cuban box, and sells them to a sucker for as much as he can bleed him. Cohiba's bands have changed considerably. However, note also that the months are Spanish abbreviations, not English. Cohiba has been using a security hologram band featuring the head of an Indian since 2010, but in 2014 they added additional data that allows consumers to identify the original brand from any country in the world, while also providing information on the distributor and bill number, among other details. So what can you do? With overpriced Cuban cigars, potential buyers will basically sell themselves on the fake cigars by thinking that well, its so expensive. One of the questions Im often asked by other cigar smokers is, How do I know if I bought a box of fake Cuban cigars? Its a good question because, even though on October 14, 2016, the U.S. Treasury Department announced that they had removed the limits on bringing Cuban cigars and rum into the United States from Cuba and other countries, there are still plenty of counterfeit Cuban cigars to be had or to put it another way to be duped. 8.2 Cigar Analysis: the wrapper must be a quality one; it doesnt have to be shriveled or ugly. Finally, the stamp on the bottom of the cigar box should also include two ink marks. The veins should be very fine or barely visible. No box of Cuban cigars leaves the country without it. Let us be the judge. A lot of the so called 'fakes' are actually stolen and smuggled out of the factories. Internal seals Look for the Habanos label in the top-right corner of the box, the Cuba guarantee seal (complete with hologram and box code) on the left and stamps at the bottom. Don't get lured into anyone's apartment either. One good clue isembossing. If youre going to abandon common sense and buy from an unreliable source, make sure you are intimately familiar (you know what I mean!) . The authentic and highly desirable smokes use Cuba grown tobacco and are rolled by hand on the island in a process that involves over 500 . This might be a little tough for a beginner, but for anyone who has smoked a real Cuba, the bands are a dead giveaway. Fake cigars are often sold for unrealistically low prices, and a savvy cigar aficionado should know to beware when a cigar is too great a bargain. 2s cost 8.50 CUCs (about $9.68 when factoring in the 13 percent you lose trading U.S. dollars into CUCs). Before you even need to look at a box or band, you should enquire about the price of the cigar. The cigars might be Cuban, or at least made from Cuban tobacco, but theyre unlikely to be real H. Upmanns and the tobacco will likely be scraps that end up on the floor of a factory. Looking at the foot of the cigar, you can immediately notice how it has been filled. I can usually spot the fake cigars from 30 feet away when the walk in the store. Complicating things further, Cohiba gained a new family member in 2006, the Cohiba Behike. It should also usually bend up to the front right over the center of the Cote dArms. But enough about the hustle; lets get to the heart of how to spot fake Cuban cigars. For example, the popular Cuban brands like Cohiba, Partagas, Punch, Hoyo de Monterrey, Romeo y Julieta, Montecristo, et al., all feature the Habanos S.A. seal on the top right-hand corner of the box. This guide will help you tell fake Cuban cigars from the real thing. That is when it gets a bit more difficult to tell what youre dealing with before you buy. 2. The bottom of the box of real handmade Cubans has. How to Spot a Fake vs. A Real Cuban Montecristo - Holt's Clubhouse The Habanos sticker and Cuban seal of guarantee are on the box. Aside from the specific Edicin Limitada cigar, you should be wary of any kind of special edition cigar that is not sold to be a legitimate vendor. There are gold highlights and squares of a bluish-gray tint. The Habanos Seal should always be present on the upper left-hand side of your cigar box, approximately 3 to 6 mm from the edge. These days, the best counterfeiters make facsimiles of Cuban cigar bands and put them in facsimile Cuban cigar boxes and sell them to an unsuspecting tourist outside the hotel. If someone tries to sell you a box of Cubans with a glass top, that alone should be a red flag. If youre offered a barber-pole cigar a cigar with two wrappers of different colors its not real because there is no real Cuban cigar made this way. Some Cuban cigars come in various packagesothers dont. The Cohiba Behike is distinguished by the use of medio tiempo tobacco leaves in its blend. The bands have several minor marks that you can identify. Delivering your smokes at your doorsteps. Learn how to tell whether theHoyo De Monterrey you're smoking is authentic or fake. yadda-yadda-yadda. In some very rare cases, the cigars are the genuine article, having been snuck out of the factory, but the sucker who thinks hes getting Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta, or Cohiba cigars is more likely getting cigars rolled with cheap tobacco that didnt even come from said factory; they may even be machine-made cigars.
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