New vendor vetting/purchasing

[Bijan]

1 hour ago, mprach024 said:

Unfortunately I’m not sure I could tell a real Quintero from a fake 😂.  But that’s a good idea.

Also I could see a vendor selling real Quinteros and fake Siglo VI and Behike.

[Mrcpt]

Not sure how dated this info is but i found it helpful in understanding the market:

 

[smbauerllc]

20 hours ago, Cigar Salute said:

 There are definitely private Cuban cigar enthusiast groups that allow discussion of sources, but joining any forum/group with folks that have been around the community for a long time will likely get you the info on the merchant in question

Yeah, very true.
Can't find anyone who has heard of or purchased from the one in question though

18 hours ago, Mrcpt said:

Not sure how dated this info is but i found it helpful in understanding the market:
 

Yeah, they appear to be a grey market vendor as they do have a couple b&m shops, but they aren't LCdH's

[Chas.Alpha]

Here is my rule of thumb: Go to the Habanos S.A. Website. They have a list of every authorized shop on the planet. If is ain’t on the page, it ain’t on the stage!

😀

[SCgarman]

7 hours ago, Chas.Alpha said:

Here is my rule of thumb: Go to the Habanos S.A. Website. They have a list of every authorized shop on the planet. If is ain’t on the page, it ain’t on the stage!

😀

Not all cuban cigar online vendors will show up on Habanos website, including mine. Doesn't mean they are not legit. It merely means they are not "official " and likely source their boxes from multiple distributors. Every box i have purchased has been legitimate. Some have warning stickers, some have a UPC code, some have neither. This is akin to purchasing a grey market Rolex watch. The watch is genuine, but sourced from a distributor selling outside his territory and not to an " official Rolex jeweler ". The grey market has it's useful place for all sorts of commodities.

[smbauerllc]

20 hours ago, NYgarman said:

Not all cuban cigar online vendors will show up on Habanos website, including mine. Doesn't mean they are not legit. It merely means they are not "official " and likely source their boxes from multiple distributors. Every box i have purchased has been legitimate. Some have warning stickers, some have a UPC code, some have neither. This is akin to purchasing a grey market Rolex watch. The watch is genuine, but sourced from a distributor selling outside his territory and not to an " official Rolex jeweler ". The grey market has it's useful place for all sorts of commodities.

Yeah, they aren't a LCdH or official vendor, but they do have a pretty large b&m from the pictures on Facebook.
Still on the fence about trying them. A few things make me a little nervous, while a few things are encouraging...

Only even considering them because they have a handful of cigars as singles that i have been wanting to try for a long time, but could only ever find them anywhere else in boxes.

I have about a week before I get my pension and make my monthly order to decide, so if I do give them a shot I will certainly update this thread with any info

Not ordering any Cohibas or anything particularly rare or expensive, so I'm not really worried about fakes as I doubt what I'm looking to order is likely to be faked. Doesn't seem like it would be worth the effort

20 hours ago, NYgarman said:

Not all cuban cigar online vendors will show up on Habanos website, including mine. Doesn't mean they are not legit. It merely means they are not "official " and likely source their boxes from multiple distributors. Every box i have purchased has been legitimate. Some have warning stickers, some have a UPC code, some have neither. This is akin to purchasing a grey market Rolex watch. The watch is genuine, but sourced from a distributor selling outside his territory and not to an " official Rolex jeweler ". The grey market has it's useful place for all sorts of commodities.

I too have purchased grey market smokes in the past with no issues. Would have no problem doing it again

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[Cairo]

36 minutes ago, smbauerllc said:

they have a handful of cigars as singles that i have been wanting to try for a long time, but could only ever find them anywhere else in boxes.

Ordering singles has additional issues imho.     They are more easily damaged if the shipping is not top rate, particularly if the singles are not tubos.

In addition you will not know the age or box codes of the singles, so you may not learn as much about the smoke as you wish.   (You may not like the singles and then write off great smokes from one bad experience.)

 

[smbauerllc]

Ordering singles has additional issues imho.     They are more easily damaged if the shipping is not top rate, particularly if the singles are not tubos.
In addition you will not know the age or box codes of the singles, so you may not learn as much about the smoke as you wish.   (You may not like the singles and then write off great smokes from one bad experience.)
 

Everywhere I have ordered from some far had great packaging. So hopefully this place does too
I always request the box date codes for all singles I order, and so far have always gotten them

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[Chas.Alpha]

I was not for a moment insinuating that “gray market” shops weren’t selling legit Habanos. Just for MY rule of thumb, if you can trace the origins back to an authorized HSA dealer, you shouldn’t have to worry about what you’re buying.

I also like the ability to check the serial numbers. Maybe it’s a status symbol...

[Hammer Smokin']

48 minutes ago, smbauerllc said:

Everywhere I have ordered from some far had great packaging. So hopefully this place does too
I always request the box date codes for all singles I order, and so far have always gotten them

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that's interesting. 

I wish I was able to get info when purchasing singles. 

If you purchase through the Int Store here I don't believe you get that info. 

[Enduin]

1 hour ago, Cairo said:

Ordering singles has additional issues imho.     They are more easily damaged if the shipping is not top rate, particularly if the singles are not tubos.

In addition you will not know the age or box codes of the singles, so you may not learn as much about the smoke as you wish.   (You may not like the singles and then write off great smokes from one bad experience.)

 

These are some very good points! I personally never have very good luck with singles, unless they are tubos. It's not about the cigars being damaged during shipping, it's just somehow the singles I get have a much greater chance of being crap than when I get tubos or boxes... I suspect singles are a lot more vulnerable to humidity/temperature fluctuations during shipping. Then it's also a numbers game: with CCs we know there is a high chance that some cigars in a box will be not great. Maybe there are 5 crappy cigars in a box of 25, if you buy 2 singles they might both be crappy and give you a biased opinion on that specific cigar. With a box maybe the 3rd cigar wows you and you don't write them off. Obviously boxes are expensive, but if after trying a few you decide that you just don't like that specific cigar, you can always trade the rest for something you like. 

[Cairo]

42 minutes ago, Enduin said:

I personally never have very good luck with singles

I am still working my way down the learning curve, but I have many boxes that are coming into their own at the four year mark.

If the singles did not have that kind of age (and were from those boxes) they could have been mediocre at best, and I would have been one of those saying "I don't like x...." or worse "I don't like Cubans".

What I have learned is that I enjoy all premium Cubans--if they are given enough time to show their stuff....