Quote Originally Posted by rondog View Post
Keep in mind that just because it's made in Cuba doesn't make it a "Cuban cigar". I've been told by my cigar shop that there's more fake "Cubans" made in Cuba than anywhere else. As in, there's real Cohibas and many bootleg Cohibas.
Cohiba (Esplendido), Monte Cristo (#2), and Romeo y Julieta (Churchill) are the three most faked cigars in the world (all of which are 7x50 in size or close to it...why fake a little one?!). The only place I'd trust buying a "real" Cohiba is at the Partagas factory in Habana, where they are rolled. Anywhere else, including a certified "Habanos" store entails a significant chance you are getting a fake.

There are other brands rolled in the same factory that are very good but not as frequently faked and are therefore far less risky.

When you do get a good one, a real one, it is the closest thing I've found to religion....and that's coming from a devout born-again atheist.