An unexpected find in suburban Havana

[Guest rob]

After reading so many great accounts (and seeing the great photos) of everyone’s time in Cuba, I was inspired to write my own little piece about one of the more memorable days I had there. Please bear in mind my writing skills are rubbish and my photography skills less so.

It was 4 am on Wednesday - and Don Ayala encouraged us to go to bed (after 3 "just one more night caps") because we had an early start. The details he passed on were a little vague… but he told us he and Jose had arranged a visit to a “little humidor factory” that made custom made humidors. He said the humidors that they make generally feature as the Habanos Festival auction humidors.

To be entirely honest, I wasn’t overly enthused by the prospect of getting up at 7:30am to do that. It sounded like it could be interesting… but certainly not memorable. I mean, we’re in Cuba… a place of minimal wealth and a poor use of their natural resources – it would be foolish to expect that “custom made humidors” would be any different to what I had seen right throughout Cuba for the last week – from the ‘Widow Maker’ hot water shower heads with raw electrical wire inches above the stream of flowing water.... and electrical wall sockets / switches of Casa Particulares……to the home made (two man operated) lawn mower at El Laguito… to the beat up Jalopies in every street...

Our good buddy Jose arrived. We had breakfast, and then made the ½ hour drive out to one of the back streets, of another back street, in Eastern Havana. I dragged my butt out of the cab and looked at this building and thought to myself

“Hmmm, this looks like they’ve done a nice job of setting up a little business… kudos to the presentation guys…”

After meeting one of the two proprietors (sorry, their names escape me) he walked us through the woodworking part of the shop. In my past life I worked in manufacturing (in a state-of-the-art metalworking workshop), and I was suitably impressed that these guys had very good equipment, well layed out and in very good condition.

Jose translated for us; the owner explained that even though they had nice equipment, the raw wood and timber was the hardest challenge they faced. Cuba didn’t have timber mills or plantation timber for industrial use, so they sourced suitable wood from wherever they could – discarded furniture scraps, rotten floorboards, old window frames…. anywhere they could.

We were then taken to a room where there were some completed desktop humidors on display.

They looked very nice, though my attention was quickly taken away from them by some of the more artistic and ‘one off’ pieces they had completed.

There was a beautifully made bicycle humidor where every element was completely made of wood… including the tyres, ‘leather’ saddle etc…

So, things went pretty well and after we finished in the display room I figured we would likely be heading back home. It turns out that wasn’t the case at all…

We were then led across the road, though a rusted metal fence, into a run down property that looked like the basement of one of the local casas. Not really sure what we were going here for… but I’ve learnt to relax and go with the flow by now

We met the other owner inside, and he was introduced to us as the mastermind of these humidors. He was an energetic, larger than life figure, who oozed charisma! His manner was one of utmost pride and humility all rolled into one.

He showed us one of their nearly completed projects – the axe / wedge humidor. Our jaws were on the dusty floor as we stared in awe at what these guys had created. And the more we looked at it… the more impressed we became. The detail was extreme!

We were then taken into what was literally the sub-floor area of the building we had just entered. It was a crouch for us to get into, and the ceiling height was less than 6 foot high. Cuba definitely isn’t setting standards for Occupational Health and Safety!

In here there were four guys hard at work… all with extreme concentration and care. They were making the ornamental pieces that adorn the humidors. They worked with wood, ivory, metal and just about anything else you could think of. Their talents were nothing short of amazing.

The detail was superb and the craftsmanship impeccable. It was clear that these guys weren’t just running a little humidor manufacturing business. They were artisans and craftsman of the highest order.

Below is a humidor project that they have been commissioned to create for Arnold Schwarzenegger. The pictures don’t do justice to either the wood work or the sculpture that will sit in the center of the ‘crater’.

Aside from the impressive artistic vision and quality work these guys produce from a humble setup, one of the things that struck me most was the manner, pride, welcoming enthusiasm and humility these guys had.

I showed these pictures to Hamlet when we were at Jose’s house a couple of days later, and seeing his awe at these (considering all the amazing humidors he is likely to have seen in his time) was definitely cool!

It was an absolute privilege to have them invite us to look at what they do. Thank you guys! May you get the recognition you deserve.

[mychetboy]

Thanks Rob...what a wonderful and inspiring adventure. I have never seen humidors anything like what you have shared with us.

[Balboa]

beautiful stuff !!!

[rckymtn22]

Great stuff Rob, thanks for taking the time to post this. I would love see that place sometime, could spend hours checking their work out.

[AndrewNR]

That all is pretty amazing, Thanks for sharing the pictures and story!

[Fuzz]

Fantastic, absolutely fantastic work. To go from scavenged raw materials to works of art that wouldn't look out of place in a museum, truly showcases their skills.

Thanks Rob for posting this.

[bummy]

Thanks Rob, great story & pictures.

[El Presidente]

Brilliant Rob

Unless nino can post prior, I will post the names and addy when back in the office Friday.

[First Lady]

How amazing are these guys, the raw talent in Cuba is amazing.

I remember the power points in Cuba a Sight to behold LOL but it wouldn't be Cuba

Thanks for posting

[tdlfoto]

very cool - thanks for sharing!

[Overproof]

Awesome story. That bike is something else!

[Colt45]

Thanks Robbo - well done, and big kudos to the craftsmen

On a side note, reclaimed lumber continues to grow bigger, it seems - but a bit different when you have few alternatives.

[Mtlpadron]

That's pretty amazing! Great read and photos

[anacostiakat]

Very impressive. Especially given the location.

Thanks for the great pics.

[rusty]

Great stuff cheers

[Nino]

Brilliant Rob

Unless nino can post prior, I will post the names and addy when back in the office Friday.

Great story, Rob !

The artist is Jose Ernesto Aguilera Reina and he and his team have been handcrafting humidors for the last 12 years in that hole - it's only for the last year and a half that he was able to rent the empty state warehouse opposite and renovate it.

He's extremely proud of having achieved this - now he feels he can really work and show his talent.

Also - he was still schocked in a positive way about his first and only trip outside of Cuba that he took very recently : he was invited to visit L.A. and San Francisco and is overwhelmed by his impressions and experiences there.

Visiting him was one of the highlights of my last trip.

Here's the link to his site :

http://www.humidorsofhavana.com/

I've known Jose Ernesto for 5 years now and have visited him there a few times as he was commissioned by a good friend to manaufacture a "Mr Punch" humidor and I assisted both this friend and Jose Ernesto, the most humble, enthusiastic artist I've ever met.

http://flyingcigar.d...d-for-mr-punch/

He has been commissioned to manufacture award winning humidors for the Festival gala dinner auction - see my 2 photo galleries of his works and of the gala dinner humidors for auction :

http://flyingcigar.d...nesto-aguilera/

http://flyingcigar.d...umidor-gallery/

Nino

[Joker]

Thanks Rob

Fantastic !!

[Puros Y Vino]

Wow! I'm artistically inclined myself, but I don't think I have the patience to create the works these guys are making. Not only are they beautiful, they have to be functional. Thanks for the write up Rob. I'm going to have to make this a "must visit" my next time around in Havana.

[canadianbeaver]

Stunning!! And wonderful story too. I think I recognize the style and materials in some of the humidors that were on display and sold for 10's of thousands at the festival last year? Particularly for Hoyo

and Upmann ?

[LGC]

Truly amazing stuff!!!

[Squarehead]

Absolutely amazing stuff,thanks for sharing your expirience with us.

[kjellfrick]

This was a great read! Thank you, Rob! So good to see artists get recognition for their talent and hard work.

[smokum]

Nino , the link to your humidor gallery just takes ones breath away. Unbelievable craftsmanship.

[CigarB]

Great stuff, absolutely amazing craftsmanship Hopefully they are rewarded for the skills and ingenuity.

[MnMWC]

Sweet humidors! It is amazing to see what creative minds can come up with... very talented.