Criollo question

[jawofboston]

Maybe this is a stupid question, but why can't the Cubans add Criollo back to their product? I know it's not as disease resistant as the new varieties, but the cigars I bought in London in 92 and 93 (when I had my first Havana cigars) were just SO much deeper in flavor. My understanding is that the loss of depth of flavor is primarily a switch of tobacco varietal.

[cigcars]

*AAAhhhh - for the good ol' days!

[CanuckSARTech]

I think it's due to them still being worried about blue mold again. However, with the drastic slashing in cigar production in Cuba right now due to the worldwide market, we could hopefully see a change. They definitely have an (over-?) abundance of tobacco leaf right now - aged leaf is definitely not a problem for them. If they feel like they are stocked more than enough, it would be interesting to see if someone made a call to use the Criollo '99 (??, I think that's the varietal). They could do a test run of say 1/4 or so of their estimated production - it would definitely be cool to see what could come of it. And, if something bad went wrong, they'd still have lots of tobacco stores in reserve.

I remember an interview I read a while back with Alejandro Robaina, and he said he dreamt of getting his hands on that tobacco again, for how good it was. It would definitely be worth a look, I'd think.

[El Presidente]

original Criollo has been used for several genetic variations.

I can't off my head remember when the last serious run of Criollo was planted in the 90's but I do know it was a disaster in terms of mold and pata negra. Given farmers get paid on yield I can't see too many rushing out to plant it beyond a test finca.

The seeds exist so it is always a possibility.

[Leopolis Semper Fidelis]

Maybe this is a stupid question, but why can't the Cubans add Criollo back to their product? I know it's not as disease resistant as the new varieties, but the cigars I bought in London in 92 and 93 (when I had my first Havana cigars) were just SO much deeper in flavor. My understanding is that the loss of depth of flavor is primarily a switch of tobacco varietal.

I don't think this is a stupid question. Now I know why I prefer the cigars produced up to 1995 to those made since. Bring back Criollo (and Corojo, if that one's also been discontinued)!