Tag Archives: Cuba

The Irony of Friday’s Executive Order Regarding Cuban Cigars

Since I managed to catch a cold, and can neither taste anything, nor even really have a desire to smoke a cigar, I figured today I would write about Friday’s executive order and how I think it’s weird. Let’s go back to January 2015, which is when President Obama, by executive order, made it legal for U.S. citizen, traveling to Cuba directly, to legally bring back $100 in cigars and alcohol. This was a big deal, as it had been illegal to spend money on Cuban goods of any kind, anywhere, for 52 years. I personally know several people who went to Cuba on “people to people” trips (toured cigar factories) and came home with their allotment, and that’s cool. Of course, the general public only read the headlines and deluged cigar retailers with questions about Cuban cigars. Remember, the year prior, the FDA released their deeming documents on regulating cigars that had everyone up in arms about the future of the premium cigar industry. I thought about taking a trip to Cuba, BTW, but for the money it would cost, I could go to Nicaragua twice and have as good a time. I know, it’s Cuba and it will change when the embargo is lifted and not be the back-in-time workers paradise it is now (sorry, my sarcasm filter broke there for a bit),  but I can’t justify the cost. Back to the subject at hand…

 

Starting Monday, October 17, 2016, it will now be perfectly legal to buy and bring into the US, Cuban cigars and rum, and, presumably, other Cuban goods (cite here). The quantities are limited by US Customs, I think there’s an $800 limit before you have to pay duties, and they can only be for personal use, not for resale. No container loads allowed.  That means don’t go calling up your local retailer asking if they are selling Cubans! Believe me, they will get tired of it. So, in a couple of weeks when I am in Reykjavik, Iceland I can buy Cuban cigars and legally bring them back, which I don’t expect to do, as I imagine they will be stupidly expensive. So this news is great for the uneducated, entitled, douchebag who has been smoking his fake Cohibas exclusively because they are the best in the world. Sorry if I offend any of the uneducated, entitled, douchebags reading…actually, no, I’m not.  Remember that 2014 FDA deeming document? Back in May, the FDA ignored all the comments that they were legally bound to read and respond to, ignored all the congressmen and senators who said regulating premium cigars wasn’t their intention in the Tobacco Control act, and went right ahead and imposed worse restrictions on premium cigars that they do on cigarettes! As a result, thousands of Americans will potentially be out of business, many of whom are our friends, not to mention tens of thousands of people in the cigar producing countries in the Caribbean and Central America, people already living in poverty. The president of the Dominican Republic has asked Mr. Obama to do something about the FDA thing, because of the economic harm it will do to his country, and the answer is allowing (and encouraging) the largest cigar market on the planet to buy unregulated, un-taxed cigars (from a communist country with human rights violations out the yingyang, no less)? So lets plunge five or six countries who rely on cigars further into third world country status, so we can normalize Cuban relations by letting people buy their luxury goods? It just makes no logical sense. Now, when it is legal to sell Cuban cigars in the US and they can tax them and subject them to all the FDA fees and regulations that the Cubans won’t pay anyway…wait, it still makes no sense. How else can I point out the absurdity of simultaneously supporting a communist regime, and making it impossible for legitimate businesses who have been legally participating in the American economy to continue? It irritates me that friend’s businesses get destroyed while people lose their shit buying Cuban cigars in other countries. Way to support small business in America!

 

I could keep going, and I realize that premium cigars represent only 0.1% of the tobacco industry in the US, but that’s a 0.1% I happen to care about, and have a lot of friends who put food in their children’s mouths as a result. Please go to CigarRights.org and sent your elected officials a letter, it’s the least you  can do, and might just help and certainly can’t hurt. Remember, you still can’t sell Cuban Cigars in the US, you still can’t order them online, but the customs folks can’t take those five Cuban Montecristos out of your shirt pocket and throw them in the trashcan anymore. The whole situation is offensive to people making better cigars and trying to save their livelihood.

 

On a more pleasant note, if you’re a fan of Sam Leccia, wrestling, or both, check out MarkOutRadio.com (NSFW) tonight, Sunday, October 16, 2016, at 5:00 Eastern where Sam will be a guest on the show.

 

That’s more than enough from me for today, until the next time (when I can taste things and enjoy some fine cigars, maybe I’ll smoke a pre-executive order contraband cigar and be a rebel!),

 

CigarCraig

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Film Review: The Heart and Soul of Cuba and a Punch

A month or so ago I was invited to download and review this film, “Cigars: The Heart and Soul of Cuba” – a documentary film by James Suckling and James Orr.  Of course, James Suckling is well known for having been the European editor for Cigar Aficionado magazine for many years, and has a wine review site at jamessuckling.com.  James Orr is an award winning filmmaker, responsible for such titles as “3 Men and a Baby”, “Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit”, but you may know him more for his most famous films “The Fuente Family: An American Dream”, and “Fuente Fuente Opus X: The Making of A Legend”.

 

In my life I’ve had the good fortune to enjoy cigars from all over, including those from Cuba, which this film is about.  The quality of cigars from different countries is a constant debate, and there are those who believe that Havanas are the best, and there are those who don’t.  I happen to be of the opinion that there are great cigars from all over, and we are currently in a golden age of cigars.  Cuban cigars are different, distinctive, and happen to have flavors that I find appealing.  Watching this film, after having toured factories in Nicaragua and Dominica, I was taken back to those visits.  The cigar manufacturing in Cuba isn’t all that much different than it is in those other countries.  It’s all about the tobacco and the people, and this movie does a nice job of presenting the human side of the manufacture.  James hits all the major points of the processes involved, paying special attention to the fermentation process, including a very nice segment with Hirochi Robaina (Grandson of Don Alejandro), not only showing his advances in controlling the leaf processing, but interacting with his children as well.  I just love watching cigars being rolled, and there’s some very nice footage of rolling and packaging.  He points out that 200 pairs of hands and 140 individual steps are involved in the making of a cigar, and I wonder if that’s not a conservative estimate.  When one watching this, and sees all of the steps, one must remember that there is a different recipe for each cigar, and many different tobaccos, primings, and sizes.  How they keep it all straight, I can only imagine.

 

This is a movie you want to watch as a cigar lover.  It could have been made in Honduras, Nicaragua, or Dominica just as easily, but of course the glimpse into a country we aren’t allowed to go to is interesting.  The quality is excellent, it’s really shot well, and James’ narration is easy to listen to and informative.  Unfortunately, my file encountered a problem about 5 minutes from the  finale, so I don’t know how it ends!  Please don’t spoil it for me!  I finally was able to see the last few minutes of the movie, and it reinforced one of the things I mentioned above, the people.  It ended with an interview with Jorge Maique, the co-president of Habanos S.A., stressing that it’s the passion of the people that make the product excellent.

 

After watching, I felt compelled to open the “special” humidor and pick out something appropriate.  Since time was short, I selected a Punch Petit Coronation for a quick walk.  This is a nice little cigar, it has that signature Cuban “twang” and every once in a while you get a little taste of something that is intriguing, a mild exotic spice of some sort.  A really pleasing little smoke.  I won’t go out of my way for a Havana cigar anymore, there are too many great cigars out there, but it is a nice treat once in a while!

 

Here’s the trailer for the movie.  If you love cigars and have the opportunity, by all means see this film.  It’s got some great information and is really beautiful visually, and the soundtrack is really cool too!  Thanks to Krystal Schwegel at JamesSuckling.com for providing me with the copy of this film for my viewing pleasure.

 

httpv://youtu.be/ZiXM8TkoV3I

 

That’s it for now, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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