Question: Percentage of Counterfeited Cuban Cigars


Recommended Posts

On 4/25/2017 at 7:28 PM, Leopolis Semper Fidelis said:

When I examined the (alleged) Cuban cigars on display at a duty free outlet at Quito (Ecuador) airport some years ago, it was quite apparent they were fakes.  The "Cohiba" glass-topped lid was a dead give-away!

I deliberately bought a box of counterfeit Cohiba Espléndidos from that vendor at Quito out of curiosity.  What a total waste of money!  I tried only one cigar, but it was so bitter, it made my head spin.  The rest were quickly ditched.  I couldn't be even bothered keeping the glass-topped box as a souvenir, so that was tossed out as well.  If I had held onto it, maxcjs0101, I would've been happy to have given it to you!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, bnasse9900 said:

Has anyone accidentally (or intentionally) purchased counterfeit Cuban cigars while in Cuba (or abroad) and found them as good as (or better than) their non-counterfeit counterparts?

Convoluted sentence, but you get the point.  

 

I have purchased during my visits to Cuba fakes here and there as a "thank you" to locals.  From fishermen to barmen,bouncers, doctors and surgeons (yes...surgeons)  who have shown us a wonderful time and who wouldn't take "straight" cash but offered a "special cigar or box of cigars".

Some were decent. Most were crap. None smoked like their namesake. I really didn't expect them to. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 4/27/2017 at 0:56 PM, bnasse9900 said:

Has anyone accidentally (or intentionally) purchased counterfeit Cuban cigars while in Cuba (or abroad) and found them as good as (or better than) their non-counterfeit counterparts?

Convoluted sentence, but you get the point.  

While in the Dominican a few years ago I purchased fake Cohiba Maduro 5's (accidentally). I had a few left over and lit one up the other day. It was actually not half bad.  No Cohiba, but a decent maduro stick.

About eight years ago, a friend bought some "Cohiba Espléndidos" from Solo Cigars (an outfit I would not touch with a ten-foot barge-pole).  He offered me one, and I lit up with apprehension.  Surprisingly, it was very good, although I wouldn't have taken it for a CE.  Whatever its provenance, it was a perfectly acceptable cigar.  Theo smoked all the others and was well satisfied with them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 years later...
On 4/25/2017 at 3:48 PM, cigcars said:

     * I've read numerous articles on the subject through the years, and yet I don't really recall too many of those articles being able to give even a guestimate on a particular percentage of cigars that are fakes.  Only that the counterfeit cigar business is so lucrative, drug dealers were switching to the business of selling fake Cubans because the penalties were not as heavy as for selling drugs, and the financial gain was just as good!  The only thing I can contribute in answer to this question is that one has to assume that those "Habanos for sale" under the table in some establishments that can be had a little too easily are very possibly fakes. The proprietor only has to know that you're not a "Fed" or a blabbermouth to too many ears that can reach a goody-two-shoes-do-gooder-somebody, and out will come some, at times, very plausible looking smokes with Habana cigar bands on them. 

This is a great topic, and aficionados know not to purchase in person outside of a LCDH.  Even at a LCDH singles are questionable!

Taking this discussion to online sales though where most of us shop I now wonder how many of these “vouched” for gray market sites are really legit? Especially when factoring in free shipping at $30-40 per package their margins are next to nothing not to mention satisfaction guarantees on covering returns.  Hard to find In stock items where they are not available anywhere such as Behike 52, Sir Winston, Esplendidos and Fundies - red flag warning yet people still vouch (probably people in the business with burner accounts).

As a noob with some online shopping experience with many boxes on hand now I can’t help but question what percentage of my stash is truly authentic product.  I cannot trust the packaging/labeling as a source for authenticity as they can be easily replicated nowadays.  All of us know how labels and packaging is supposed to look like it would not be hard for an organized counterfeiter to achieve the same packaging and labeling expectations.  If they can counterfeit money, then they have the means to counterfeit embossed labels with UV printing.  Bribing people in the know for serial numbers and duplicating them and consumers wouldn’t be the wiser.

That takes us to the cigars themselves.  There are sites that mass produce Cuban inspired cigars with long fillers and triple capped at $50 for a bundle of 25 on all Vitolas including lanceros, robustos and Churchills.  It is very cheap to roll a fake cigar in 3rd world countries to manufacture a quality fake.  Dissecting them wouldn’t be able to tell authenticity anymore, I can’t help but think about how lucrative counterfeits are that there are factories repackaging these by slapping on the labels and putting them into boxes.   Now you have at some serious margin. That leaves us to the taste test, and the only way to know is if we smoked from an authentic verified source.  

They say know a source you can trust, but we can’t trust any source unless it is a LCDH or a specialist listed on Habanos SA (our host listed and now my primary supplier).  The gray market guys now have warehouses larger than distributors that speaks volumes!  I am sure some product is authentic, but a large share is not.  Think about the percentage of your spend on Cubans, it is not at LCDH or FoH and not buying in person then it’s the gray market dominating able to provide bargain prices alluring us with their tax/duty free prices. 

I truly believe online Cuban counterfeiting is a very lucrative business and wouldn’t put it pass being just as lucrative as the drug trade. When you have this kind of money and organization counterfeits can be as visually real as legit product. 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Ash Bridges said:

There are so many fake cohibas in the US market!

 

 

image.png.a4085aecc56d0e2f1ffd2d4631861dac.png

Hahaha, when I was a youngster just getting into smoking cigars, I bought a bunch of R&J's and Montes and wondered why they made sticks in the Dominican Republic and Cuba. A wise and experienced relative of mine broke the news that 1) I know nothing of cigars and 2) I should ask questions first versus after and maybe get a cigar mentor. After smoking a fake Cohiba shortly thereafter, I finally listened. 

He was right. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, CalStogie said:

Hahaha, when I was a youngster just getting into smoking cigars, I bought a bunch of R&J's and Montes and wondered why they made sticks in the Dominican Republic and Cuba. A wise and experienced relative of mine broke the news that 1) I know nothing of cigars and 2) I should ask questions first versus after and maybe get a cigar mentor. After smoking a fake Cohiba shortly thereafter, I finally listened. 

He was right. 

Haha great advice.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 4/26/2017 at 10:20 AM, GP012 said:


glassfakes.jpg

 

Man, this picture was a real pleasant surprise to me! I took this back in 2008 in Cancun. I'm glad it's still making the rounds on the Internet 12 years later, hopefully educating people! Don't worry folks, I got the real deal when I was in Cancun. If you look at my profile pic, that was at the LCDH. I had an Edmundo Dantes 109 there with a whiskey, maybe a JW Black.

Just curious, where did you get the above pic?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 4/27/2017 at 12:28 PM, CaptainQuintero said:

You would think that the punishments in Cuba for selling fakes would be quite harsh. But I'm guessing if you play that game, you know who needs their cut in order to continue selling/organising?

The hustlers pay a cut for the police to look the other way.

There were ( past tense as no tourism right now ) crowds of hustlers in front of the Partagas LCDH offering their "services", some even with fake factory badges and when the manager threaten to call the police the hustlers threathened her ...

There are buildings behind the old Partagas factory full of shops that sell fakes openly.
Walk down Obispo and you will get dozens of "offers".

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • JohnS changed the title to Question: Percentage of Counterfeited Cuban Cigars

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.

Community Software by Invision Power Services, Inc.