COHIBA Esplendidos

[Habanero]

...

 

[Habanero]

Well, since you guys are 'experts', care to share how you can recognize a fake from a real?
I don't see why the Cuban government would sell fake cigars.

 

[moki]

Moki, I don't know how you would tell they are fake, but I am certain they are not, as I brought them from Cuba myself.

There are more fake cigars in Cuba than there are real cigars; people typically will sell 'em to you on the streets, telling you what a great deal you got, etc., etc. The price alone is a dead give-away, it's far too low, and Cohibas are never sold at a discount. There are also numerous things wrong with the packaging.

No, I'm not kidding. And yes, I'm sure.

If you'd like to research it yourself, I'd suggest starting here:

http://www.vitolas.net/displayimage.php?pos=-1021

...and also look here:

http://www.cigarnexus.com/counsel/counterfeit/

Those "Cohibas" are 100% fake.

 

[moki]

Well, since you guys are 'experts', care to share how you can recognize a fake from a real?
I don't see why the Cuban government would sell fake cigars.

You're studying business, why would someone sell fake cigars? Perhaps to dupe silly tourists out of their money, because the Cuban economy is so horrible? Faux Cuban brands are positively rampant in Cuba; you were ripped off and unwittingly bought some fake cigars. Chalk it up to experience.

They are not even particularly good fakes, anyone remotely versed in Cuban cigars can immediately tell that these are very poor quality fakes.

We're not experts, we're stupid, you know more than we do. Carry on in a state of denial attempting to foist your fake Cohibas on people here.

I tried; you refused to listen.

 

[Habanero]

No need to be condescending. I never pretended I knew anything about cigars, but even according to the links that you gave me, the Cuban government is supposed to be the best source for authentic cigars. My employer in Cuba got me the cigars from Hotel Nacional in Havana...is a hotel gift shop reliable? No? Oh well...it seems surreal all this fervour.

p.s. I'm not in business, I left the dark side a long time ago, I majored in Hispanic Linguistics and Comparative Studies.

 

[Habanero]

Oh...and I really do not wish this to become a case of me trying to convince you they are real. I would have no arguments but the trust I have for my employer. But before I delete my profile and leave this place forever (I really only wanted to sell the cigars), I would like to learn one thing from you...how do fake Cuban cigars get to Cuba? "Fake" Cuban cigars must be made outside Cuba, correct? If they are sold on the streets, the local Cubans that sell them must have a foreign boss, no? It just seems weird to me, I spent a long time in Cuba, living with Cubans, and for 'negocios', those who sold cigars to tourists were usually factory workers or relatives of factory workers.

 

[moki]

No need to be condescending. I never pretended I knew anything about cigars, but even according to the links that you gave me, the Cuban government is supposed to be the best source for authentic cigars. My employer in Cuba got me the cigars from Hotel Nacional in Havana...is a hotel gift shop reliable? No? Oh well...it seems surreal all this fervour.

p.s. I'm not in business, I left the dark side a long time ago, I majored in Hispanic Linguistics and Comparative Studies.

Understood, I wasn't being condescending, I was frustrated by your lack of desire to listen. You came to a cigar forum where presumably people know more about cigars than you. That being the case, it makes sense to listen to what they have to say regarding your cigars.

You did not get your cigars from the Cuban government; you got your cigars from a friend who got them at a hotel gift shop. Now if you were to sell fake cigars to unwitting tourists, what would be a good place to do it? Yes, hotel gift shops in Cuba are notorious for selling fakes.

They are fake. Off of the top of my head, I can list any number of things wrong:

-- There's no hologram (which there should be for cigars bought in Cuba)

-- The label on the inside lid is so poorly faked it is almost entertaining

-- Why is the Cuban government seal sitting freely on the cigars like so much packing material? It should be on the box

-- The box is not constructed properly

...and any number of other points that I don't feel like enumerating through. These are fake cigars. Throw them out, or if you have no conscience, try to rip someone off by attempting to sell them. Doing so on a cigar forum where people know about cigars, though, is not a good idea.

A few random pictures from your gallery that have any number of blatantly obvious cues that these cigars are fake:

 

[Habanero]

Sold.

although I was pretty sure the hotels in cuba were operated and owned by the government...it's a communist thing, you know.

anyhow, saludos to you and all who enjoyed this exchange, i am gonna try and sell these without insisting they are fake or real...after all, i'm still unsure, I'm just sure I won't sell them here...

If not, I know a few smokers...

oh and you guys already knew this, but it doesn't hurt to remind you: smoking kills

~Habanero

 

[moki]

Oh...and I really do not wish this to become a case of me trying to convince you they are real. I would have no arguments but the trust I have for my employer. But before I delete my profile and leave this place forever (I really only wanted to sell the cigars), I would like to learn one thing from you...how do fake Cuban cigars get to Cuba? "Fake" Cuban cigars must be made outside Cuba, correct? If they are sold on the streets, the local Cubans that sell them must have a foreign boss, no? It just seems weird to me, I spent a long time in Cuba, living with Cubans, and for 'negocios', those who sold cigars to tourists were usually factory workers or relatives of factory workers.

There is quite a bit to making cigars that you're not aware of. Simply because the cigars are made in Cuba with tobacco grown in Cuba does not make them legitimate branded cigars any more than making your own homebrew wine in the Bordeaux region in France makes your bottle of wine a Chateau Mouton Rothschild.

It takes an incredible amount of work to select properly grown tobacco, cure it, ferment it, blend it, etc, etc. before you end up with a cigar that actually tastes like something worth smoking.

Is a "Rolex" made in Switzerland in the back of someone's apartment by cobbling together crappy Timex watch parts a "real" Rolex?

And yes, those who sell cigars on the streets to people are typically from factories or relatives of factory workers. They have the skills to roll cigars of out crap scrap tobacco, and pass them off as real. It makes complete sense if you think about it.

 

[moki]

Sold.

although I was pretty sure the hotels in cuba were operated and owned by the government...it's a communist thing, you know.

anyhow, saludos to you and all who enjoyed this exchange, i am gonna try and sell these without insisting they are fake or real...after all, i'm still unsure, I'm just sure I won't sell them here...

Now you're either being greedy or you're not listening. These cigars are fake; attempting to sell them means you are wittingly ripping someone off. Don't try to paint it any differently.

If not, I know a few smokers...

oh and you guys already knew this, but it doesn't hurt to remind you: smoking kills

~Habanero

Now who is being condescending? Smoking a cigar every now and again is a completely different thing from smoking cigarettes. You do not inhale the smoke. You do not chain smoke throughout the day.

The fact that insurance companies acknowledge this by not classifying occasional cigar smokers are "smokers" should make it fairly clear to you.

Anyway, I have to love your moralizing. You're going to attempt to sell cigars you know are fake to someone to rip them off so you can make money from it, and it's a product you feel will harm them.

Seriously, is your head firmly planted up your ass such that you can't see how incredibly amoral and hypocritical you're being?

 

[rectifythis]

Crack kills. You wanna hit my crackpipe?

 

[Habanero]

Jesus moki, let it go...I know tons of smokers who wouldn't mind to spend money on FAKE cigars, maybe not 400 but it really doesn't matter...better it goes towards my loan than to a tobacco company...also, just because you don't inhale the smoke, cigars can actually be worse for you:

"Regardless of whether they inhale, smokers expose their mouths and throats to harmful substances in tobacco smoke, swallow some of those substances, and absorb some (including nicotine) through the linings of their mouths. The exposure to harmful substances that occurs in these ways is enough to greatly increase the cigar smoker's risk of serious diseases."

http://thescooponsmoking.org/xhtml/effects/cigarsGW.php#top

but anyway, i'm sorry if I offended you with that comment, I'm used to saying this all the time to people.

 

[Habanero]

Well, the fun ends here for me, I have to be at work in an hour.

 

[BobbyRitz]

LOL...the Cohiba insert on the lid is an absolute joke!

Dana, you have to come with a better fake than that! :laugh:

 

[Ginseng]

Awwwwwww heck. And I thought I'd finally found another box of these after looking for years and years.

Wilkey

 

[tone-ny]

Wow I should sleep less! What a skewed case of morals. Smoking is bad for you, but I can sell you a fake instrument of death cause I need money. This is the youth that will serve me when I'm in the nursing home, I rather hang out with Moki!

 

[cohibasurfer]

Really? That is unfortunate. While I respect your hobby, I really have no desire to become one of you. Lung cancer actually runs in my family. The fact that Cuban cigars smell nice and are coveted worldwide (while being very cheap in Cuba) are about all I learned from my 2 years of living in Holguin. Hence my selling them to...wait, why do people sell things again? Oh that's right, they have tuition loan payments, and perhaps not the luxury to indulge in "cigar appreciation".
Anyway, if there is someone here who is actually interested, the offer still stands...If not, there is really no point trying to initiate someone who is not one of you.

Saludos,

~Habanero

Time for you to go now ... Just excuse yourself to the ladies room and sneak out the door.

bu-bye.

 

[Marcos]

Wow I should sleep less! What a skewed case of morals. Smoking is bad for you, but I can sell you a fake instrument of death cause I need money. This is the youth that will serve me when I'm in the nursing home, I rather hang out with Moki!

:laugh:

 

[BobbyRitz]

Moki, I don't know how you would tell they are fake, but I am certain they are not, as I brought them from Cuba myself.

No need to be condescending. I never pretended I knew anything about cigars, but even according to the links that you gave me, the Cuban government is supposed to be the best source for authentic cigars. My employer in Cuba got me the cigars from Hotel Nacional in Havana...is a hotel gift shop reliable? No? Oh well...it seems surreal all this fervour.

p.s. I'm not in business, I left the dark side a long time ago, I majored in Hispanic Linguistics and Comparative Studies.

Not to beat a dead horse, but which is it??

 

[DePasta]

Moki, what you are overlooking is the fact, that the person selling these is actually pretty hot. That's gotta be worth something.