I'm assuming fakes..

[unitedfly]

A buddy of mine, has a friend who is a cuban national that travels back and forth a few times a year. Each time, he brings back some boxes for him. This is one of them:

 

 

When I inquired on the Seal not being attached to the boxes, he said because hes a national he has them just stick them on the inside and brings them back for personal use. Also, whats up with the SN showing RYJ Churchills?

 

 

[Derboesekoenig]

Dead giveaway fakes. Why would the seals not be affixed? Makes no sense. Might as well just bring back some custom rolls instead of counterfeits. 

[unitedfly]

9 minutes ago, Derboesekoenig said:

Dead giveaway fakes. Why would the seals not be affixed? Makes no sense. Might as well just bring back some custom rolls instead of counterfeits. 

Being new to all of this, I had to investigate..

[jcorona]

The bands are really bad. Definitely fakes.

[nKostyan]

If a Cuban guy gets caught by the Cuban police with original Cigars without a sales receipt, it's a prison. If the Cuban guy carries a fake, the police will say: "well done, the guy cheated the American and earned a little»

 

This is 100% fake. In Cuba, these Cigars cost 1 CUC apiece, a box-25CUC. The taste can be quite good, without bitterness and sharpness. If it's a good fake and you like it - add 20-30$ for transportation - this is the maximum price for these cigars 50-60$

 

[Corylax18]

As the other guys have stated, these are 100% fake Cohibas. If your buddy actually got them on the island, chances are very high (about 100%) that they are Cubans, just not COROs. This vitola/marca is the most faked on the planet, many people argue there are more fake COROs in circulation than real ones. 

The cigars themselves don't look too bad. They may still be good cigars, or they may have string, hair, banana leaves, etc. in the roll, you never know. 

[multi-useless]

11 minutes ago, Corylax18 said:

 They may still be good cigars, or they may have string, hair, banana leaves, etc. in the roll, you never know. 

Cut one open and find out?

[Corylax18]

14 minutes ago, multi-useless said:

Cut one open and find out?

It depends on how much/little you trust the source. I have smoked cigars of similar provenance before, they can run the gamut from a mid range regular production CC all the way down to bitter and disgusting. A good look at the foot can tell you a lot. If the bunch looks relatively even and there aren't any green leaves, strings or other detritus visible I wouldn't hesitate to light one up. You have to be careful though, almost anything could be in there. 

[unitedfly]

So there's a few holes in the sticks themselves so I went ahead and threw them in the freezer to sit for a while. Also found a larvae in the bottom of the box.

This is what the foot looks like. Ill be cutting them open once I take them out of the freezer..

 

So we've determined that they're fake. My question is, does Cohiba only produce one band throughout their entire line? Is this write-up still accurate?

https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/how-to-spot-a-fake-cohiba-19545

 

 

 

[Derboesekoenig]

A good reference for all Cuban cigars: https://www.cubancigarwebsite.com/brand/cohiba

Especially for fakes, pay special attention to paper quality, coloring, font size and type, font location.

[unitedfly]

5 minutes ago, Derboesekoenig said:

A good reference for all Cuban cigars: https://www.cubancigarwebsite.com/brand/cohiba

Especially for fakes, pay special attention to paper quality, coloring, font size and type, font location.

Good stuff, thank you.

 

[nKostyan]

This year I was holding a very high quality fake Cohiba, with all the attributes of the original: box, bows, stickers, stamps, number authenticity , neat hat and cigar wrapper, smell... it was possible to define a fake only when you smoke a cigar - weak and empty taste. So for myself, I decided that the only guarantee-to buy at a reliable store with a good reputation

[Corylax18]

17 hours ago, unitedfly said:

So there's a few holes in the sticks themselves so I went ahead and threw them in the freezer to sit for a while. Also found a larvae in the bottom of the box.

This is what the foot looks like. Ill be cutting them open once I take them out of the freezer..

 

So we've determined that they're fake. My question is, does Cohiba only produce one band throughout their entire line? Is this write-up still accurate?

https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/how-to-spot-a-fake-cohiba-19545

 

 

 

Cohiba has produced several bands, maybe more than any other Marca, due to the fact that they are so frequently counterfeited. Cubancigarwebsite is probably the best source on the planet for accurate up-to-date information on everything cuban cigar. 

Most of the cigars actually look OK, but a few down at the bottom there have some odd colored leaves. I would definitely open one up before you smoke any. 

4 hours ago, nKostyan said:

This year I was holding a very high quality fake Cohiba, with all the attributes of the original: box, bows, stickers, stamps, number authenticity , neat hat and cigar wrapper, smell... it was possible to define a fake only when you smoke a cigar - weak and empty taste. So for myself, I decided that the only guarantee-to buy at a reliable store with a good reputation

I've had plenty of real Cuban (and NC) cigars that were terrible. It happens, Cuban QC is a joke. Just because a cigar tastes like S**t doesn't mean its fake. If that were the case every single reputable cuban cigar merchant on the planet has dealt in fakes. 

[peteando]

I have- once- smoked a genuine cc where the habanos sticker was unapplied and just stuffed in the box.  It was only that sticker tho.  This was during the very early 2000s frantic production period.  Anything is possible in cuba.  They were not cohibas, but something far less likely to be faked... rg lonsdales

[ha_banos]

So many CC fakeries, you got to trust your source chain. Provenance as we keep hearing here.

Be curious what the dissected stick looks like, to close of the thread nicely. ?

[unitedfly]

Here’s what they look like cut open. I gave a couple to a friend and he had no problem smoking them. Once I actually smoke one I’ll give an update!

[ha_banos]

Proper bunched long filler! LOL

No bitty bits or hairy outcrops. Nice fake that. Might smoke well after all!

Here's Dr Joe show surgically dissecting a half smoked fake. He gets well pi$$ed with fakes lol