Cohiba.......real?

KingoftheCove

First - sorry about the crappy pic - I need a better camera.
A friend gifted me this cigar yesterday. He and his wife used to "cruise" once/twice a year (Bahamas) and he would buy cigars. He is just now getting back into cigars, and confessed that this cigar has been sitting in a UN-himidified smallish humi (75ct?) for over a year...........ouch.

So, first, anyone care to guess as to whether it's real or not based on my crappy pic?
Second, what's the best/safest way to try and save this stick (if it's real)?
I was thinking of simply putting it a humi and letting it sit for 6 months.
Thanks
btw - you can't really tell by the pic, but the word Cohiba is embossed on the band.......
oh - and I did go to many sites to lok at pics.....just got more confused.....this looks good to me though

aeon_spiral@yahoo.com

uhm saving it after its been dried out for a year?.......ouch

KingoftheCove

aeon_spiral@yahoo.com:

uhm saving it after its been dried out for a year?.......ouch

yeah I know.........it might be a lost cause.....but I was hoping that his humi would hold 50rh or so??........it spent most of that year in northern Arkansas........thought maybe I could revive it slowly........maybe not

marineatbn03

I do not know about saving it, but having been to the Bahamas myself, there is a very high liklihood that it is real. ISOMs are very prevelent there and cheap to come by for the most part.

rzaman

Most probably it is fake. The cigar band has three rows of white dots on top of the COHIBA name which is right but the white boxes are not well uniformed. Also the word COHIBA lack clear embossment and a fine golden luster. However, I will be able to tell you more if you can post more 3D view of the band. Until then please do not accept my comment for granted.

KingoftheCove:

First - sorry about the crappy pic - I need a better camera.
A friend gifted me this cigar yesterday. He and his wife used to "cruise" once/twice a year (Bahamas) and he would buy cigars. He is just now getting back into cigars, and confessed that this cigar has been sitting in a UN-himidified smallish humi (75ct?) for over a year...........ouch.

So, first, anyone care to guess as to whether it's real or not based on my crappy pic?
Second, what's the best/safest way to try and save this stick (if it's real)?
I was thinking of simply putting it a humi and letting it sit for 6 months.
Thanks
btw - you can't really tell by the pic, but the word Cohiba is embossed on the band.......
oh - and I did go to many sites to lok at pics.....just got more confused.....this looks good to me though

Diamondog

Nope not real, there is no Cohiba EL for 2010, besides the banding being terrible...

catfishbluezz

Diamondog:

Nope not real, there is no Cohiba EL for 2010, besides the banding being terrible...

This... You can tell by the band pretty easily

marineatbn03

catfishbluezz:

Diamondog:

Nope not real, there is no Cohiba EL for 2010, besides the banding being terrible...

This... You can tell by the band pretty easily

Shows what I know, lol. But you can get authentics in the Bahamas, you just have to get away from the tourist areas. The cigars I got down there a few months ago were what prompted me to get back into it.

dennisking

Cigar AFicionado counterfeit gallery

kuzi16

marineatbn03:

I do not know about saving it, but having been to the Bahamas myself, there is a very high liklihood that it is real. ISOMs are very prevelent there and cheap to come by for the most part.

i would say the opposite. you can get real ones there but they need to com from a certified dealer. fakes are everywhere. the banding on this one gives it away. what stuck out to me is the spacing between the rows. the top row is way frother away from the middle than the middle is from the bottom.

KingoftheCove

Diamondog:

Nope not real, there is no Cohiba EL for 2010, besides the banding being terrible...

That's what I figured.............did some more digging and found some pics of fakes that look just like this one
Also, whoever put the main band on, as noted, did a poor job, they aren't even closed to being lined up.
The Habana, Cuba lettering looks too "fine" to me as well - at least from the pics of real ones I've seen....
Guess I have to tell him.............make sure he doesn't buy ore of those.....
Just curious, what would a REAL one of these cost if purchased in the Bahamas at a B&M, either single or box, say about one and a half years ago.....

Diamondog

KingoftheCove:

Diamondog:

Nope not real, there is no Cohiba EL for 2010, besides the banding being terrible...

That's what I figured.............did some more digging and found some pics of fakes that look just like this one
Also, whoever put the main band on, as noted, did a poor job, they aren't even closed to being lined up.
The Habana, Cuba lettering looks too "fine" to me as well - at least from the pics of real ones I've seen....
Guess I have to tell him.............make sure he doesn't buy ore of those.....
Just curious, what would a REAL one of these cost if purchased in the Bahamas at a B&M, either single or box, say about one and a half years ago.....

What vitola is it? You'd HAVE to go by that only because there is no EL for that year OR you go by pricing of a 1966 which I doubt you can find there...

Roberto99

Diamondog:

KingoftheCove:

Diamondog:

Nope not real, there is no Cohiba EL for 2010, besides the banding being terrible...

That's what I figured.............did some more digging and found some pics of fakes that look just like this one
Also, whoever put the main band on, as noted, did a poor job, they aren't even closed to being lined up.
The Habana, Cuba lettering looks too "fine" to me as well - at least from the pics of real ones I've seen....
Guess I have to tell him.............make sure he doesn't buy ore of those.....
Just curious, what would a REAL one of these cost if purchased in the Bahamas at a B&M, either single or box, say about one and a half years ago.....

What vitola is it? You'd HAVE to go by that only because there is no EL for that year OR you go by pricing of a 1966 which I doubt you can find there...

yeah, since this cigar doesn't exist as an authentic cuban, there would be no price to give. They do have a limited edition for 2011...the 1966...which would probably go for about $70 per stick at a b&M at least that is what I would guess.

KingoftheCove

Pretty sure a Corona, or a "thin" robusto - it's 5 x 44/46?? - just guessing on the gauge

amz1301

Been to the Bahamas several times and the only place I've found that had legit CC's was Havana Humidor in the Crystal Court Shops in Atlantis. Prices there are not cheap. Someone there told me there is a 200% tax on cigars in the Bahamas. If you find them cheap they're probably fake. I think I paid around $30 for a Cohiba Siglo II Tubo there. I know that it is extremely high but you're at Atlantis, a 12oz can of soda is $3.00+.

marineatbn03

I found a real nice shop ran by an old cuban fellow in Freeport. It was about 9 miles outside the port, so less tourism. He had some decent prices. I didn't bother to look for cohiba's specifically.

Steve2010

If you use this one as a reference for the rows of white squares, the difference is readily apparent:

Gaetano7890

While this cigar is probally not well blended if it is a fake cc out of cuba it may still contain cuban tobacco which could be a plus. I was gifted a cc from my father in law after he went on a cruise that was wrapped in cello so I knew it was fake immediately but it was a gift so I was gracious excepted and smoke it. It was not a bad stick and still had some decent cuban flavor. Just to look at the glass half full I guess.

kuzi16

Gaetano7890:

While this cigar is probally not well blended if it is a fake cc out of cuba it may still contain cuban tobacco which could be a plus. I was gifted a cc from my father in law after he went on a cruise that was wrapped in cello so I knew it was fake immediately but it was a gift so I was gracious excepted and smoke it. It was not a bad stick and still had some decent cuban flavor. Just to look at the glass half full I guess.

this is true.

often times fake brand name cubans are actually the scraps from the real deal, shredded down blended with other tobaccos and rolled with fake bands. the quality is low, but the tobacco may be from the island.

Diamondog

I can guarantee you this cigar will taste like ****, don't inflict your tastebuds to it lol, dump it, move on...

Roberto99

Diamondog:

I can guarantee you this cigar will taste like ****, don't inflict your tastebuds to it lol, dump it, move on...

I can tell you I tried some fake cubans in the carribean. Me and a friend of mine each bought 4 cigars of different brands. The first one was decent, the other 3 were terrible. Got kinda sick the next day from one of them. I'm with DD on this one, I'd trash it.

docbp87

Even Havana Humidor sells fakes... There's a reason they lost their LCDH status. Don't buy CCs in the Bahamas.

scarlin

Just curious, were the letters of "Cohiba" raised?

Direwolf

If DD says to toss it that's good enough for me.

amz1301

docbp87:

Even Havana Humidor sells fakes... There's a reason they lost their LCDH status. Don't buy CCs in the Bahamas.

I'll put it like this. I wouldn't buy any quantity from them as they are extremely overpriced but I bought a few to see if they were legit. If they're fake they sell the best fakes ever made period. The bands are dead on, Partagas, Cohiba, and Upmann, and the sizes are dead on to the millimeter. I heard Graycliff originally had an LCDH license but lost it do to some sort of deal with Avelino.

rzaman

La Casa del Habano's requirements are very straight forward because they want to maintain their reputation and the quality. There is a reason why there are so many fake Cuban in the market. The unlimited demand. Talking about Grayciff, you are correct Andrew. The owner used to have the LCDH licensee until he started making his own cigar. LCDH decision was professional because the same person cannot promote his own brand at the same time LCDH's cigar. Enrico Garzaroli hired Avelino Lara after his retirement from Cuba. In Cuba the set salary is $20 a month. There is no relationship between hiring Avelino Lara and losing LCDH license. It was a strategic marketing decision. I know the sole distributor of LCDH in Nicaragua and Costa Rica. One of local store started selling fake Cohiba and once they realized it they immideatly canceled his sells account. LCDH can not full fill the current market demand, as a result they do not hesitate to cancel license right away. They care a lot about the quality and fighting hard to protect their image from the negetive media. Their quality suffered in early 90's but lately Cuban quality control process improved a lot. On top of that they got British investment and marketing partnership. One of the result is Cohiba Behike. Cuba is working on many new cigar projects to capture the high end cigar smokers along with their regular line. We all the know about the outcome.

amz1301:

docbp87:

Even Havana Humidor sells fakes... There's a reason they lost their LCDH status. Don't buy CCs in the Bahamas.

I'll put it like this. I wouldn't buy any quantity from them as they are extremely overpriced but I bought a few to see if they were legit. If they're fake they sell the best fakes ever made period. The bands are dead on, Partagas, Cohiba, and Upmann, and the sizes are dead on to the millimeter. I heard Graycliff originally had an LCDH license but lost it do to some sort of deal with Avelino.

KingoftheCove

scarlin:

Just curious, were the letters of "Cohiba" raised?

yes they are - you can feel it with your fingers - my crappy camera doesn't show it well though
it's a fake though........99.99% sure of it now...........

Shaun.Harrison87

Since we are on topic, I have a picture I can share. Here is a picture of a real Cohiba and a fake...the fake is from the Bahamas and one of the better ones I have seen...

Diamondog

KingoftheCove:

99.99% sure of it now...........

Correction, 100% lol

zeebra

Shaun.Harrison87:

Since we are on topic, I have a picture I can share. Here is a picture of a real Cohiba and a fake...the fake is from the Bahamas and one of the better ones I have seen...

Thats a pretty damn good fake. I don't even know which is the real or fake one!

camgfs

zeebra:

Shaun.Harrison87:

Since we are on topic, I have a picture I can share. Here is a picture of a real Cohiba and a fake...the fake is from the Bahamas and one of the better ones I have seen...

Thats a pretty damn good fake. I don't even know which is the real or fake one!

My guess is the one on the left is the fake. Hope I'm right, lol.