I bought these cigars in Cozumel yesterday. Went to the recommended cigar shop. I hope they are real...
Cozumel CC Purchase
- Thread starter K Williams
- Start date
Those. Look. Tastey
SurpriseMVP
Mike
I hate having to say something is fake, can't speak on the Partagas, but the Cohiba are 100% fakes. The bands are the tell on those.
The Cohibas are fake, the portages might be real.
Check here: http://www.cigaraficionado.com/counterfeit
Check here: http://www.cigaraficionado.com/counterfeit
Havana Bob's or Havana Club. I trust the trip advisor reviews, and thats the ones that are confirmed.
Jfire
BoM 9/9' 9/11' 8/12'
I keep a locker at the lcdh in cozumel and live there part time. I also buy from Bob and have known home for the better part of 7 years. I have never seen fakes at either of these location. The rest of cozumel is another story lol. So where was your recommended shop located?
Be prepared for sticker shock compared to what we get from our online vendors. Of course whole box discounts are the norm as are local discounts if you live on island . Selection is very good for a walkin that is on the smaller side. Nice seating area outsid if the weather is nice. Upstairs inside seating also nice but since they have also gotten into the food biz there are now more tables than couches and chairs. I would say that they are more than ok with you buying food and drinks and lighting up one of your own, but you know your gonna end up buying at least one stick lol. I bring aged boxes from the states to keep in my locker. MX tobacco taxes continue to rise so do the prices per cigar...and the worst thing are those fooking anti smoking stickers placed on the boxes, can't even see box codes any more!
Havana Bobs is on the other side of the block and has a larger selection because it is run by an enthusiast like us. He is from the states but has been in czm for ever and has a nice MX wife ( thus the reason he is able to have a business on island). Bob also orders from IEPT in MX city just like the lcdh does so no worries there...but what's cool is that he also brings special items back from Cuba as he makes a trip or two a month there. He has a whole dedicated humidor that is huge in the walk in with his custom rolls. Of course they always change blend and taste wise but they are well made and taste great...on the med to full side. Bobs is located inside of a courtyard area that also hosts one of the islands top margarita bars. Plenty of open air tables, cold drinks, and wonderful food to be had here.
I have been living part time on island since 05 and started going in 94. a lot has changed in that time, but one thing that won't is the plethora of fake cigars on every street, corner shop, and tienda. Some of them look great and unless you are like us would never know that they are fake. Most of them have I seen have easy tells ie glass boxes lol. When I ran the lcdh down there for a summer in 05 we had to take our empty boxes home to throw away because others on the island would dig through our trash to get the boxes to put their fake cigars into. It was crazy! I could go on and on with island stories but it's time for a coffee.
Visit cozumel. The people are friendly, seafood is great, and the 15 different shades of Caribbean blue water never gets old.
Here is an article I wrote for Cigar Weekly when they first opened. Like I said the seating is a bit different now everything else the same.
http://archive.cigarweekly.com/magazine/cigarticles/07-22-2010/new-la-casa-del-habano-in-cozumel
Havana Bobs is on the other side of the block and has a larger selection because it is run by an enthusiast like us. He is from the states but has been in czm for ever and has a nice MX wife ( thus the reason he is able to have a business on island). Bob also orders from IEPT in MX city just like the lcdh does so no worries there...but what's cool is that he also brings special items back from Cuba as he makes a trip or two a month there. He has a whole dedicated humidor that is huge in the walk in with his custom rolls. Of course they always change blend and taste wise but they are well made and taste great...on the med to full side. Bobs is located inside of a courtyard area that also hosts one of the islands top margarita bars. Plenty of open air tables, cold drinks, and wonderful food to be had here.
I have been living part time on island since 05 and started going in 94. a lot has changed in that time, but one thing that won't is the plethora of fake cigars on every street, corner shop, and tienda. Some of them look great and unless you are like us would never know that they are fake. Most of them have I seen have easy tells ie glass boxes lol. When I ran the lcdh down there for a summer in 05 we had to take our empty boxes home to throw away because others on the island would dig through our trash to get the boxes to put their fake cigars into. It was crazy! I could go on and on with island stories but it's time for a coffee.
Visit cozumel. The people are friendly, seafood is great, and the 15 different shades of Caribbean blue water never gets old.
Here is an article I wrote for Cigar Weekly when they first opened. Like I said the seating is a bit different now everything else the same.
http://archive.cigarweekly.com/magazine/cigarticles/07-22-2010/new-la-casa-del-habano-in-cozumel
The Partagas may be real, the bands are pretty plain and easy to duplicate though and the cap doesnt look quite right. The Cohiba Maduros are unfortunately fakes. I have one in my hand that is from a reputable vendor. While the Maduros are not listed on the counterfiet gallery of bands the dead ringer is the white squares. Should be 5 full rows with 3 full rows above the Cohiba letters. Those have 4 and a half with 2 and a half above the letters.Mexico and Caribbean islands are the heaviest in counterfeits by far.
I was wondering if that was you when I saw it on the LCDH Cozumel site.