Expert: James Yee - 7/22/2011

Question
QUESTION: Hello, I just bought a box of Cohiba Piramides from a friend who recently went to Cuba.  There are no bands designating which Piramide these are, how do I know? I saw an answer to a question about authenticity, but these have the seal and all the little documents saying they are legit.  How do I know for sure?  Thanks for your time.

ANSWER: Hi Jade,

Cohiba Piramides were only offered as an "Edicion Limitada" (2001 & 2006) release and special edition releases.  They were also offered in some limited edition, commerative humidor sets and special edition boxes reserved for special events.

2001 Edicion Limitada Cohiba Piramides will have the older Cohiba band with the black lettering (in the word "COHIBA") and no embossing or raised lettering on the cigar band at all.  It will also have a black 2001 Edicion Limitada cigar band below the regular Cohiba cigar band.  The cigars are packaged in a semi-boite nature wood box similar to the Cohiba Esplendido cigar box. (The box is clear varnished, the lid has brass hinges and a brass, black enamel clasp closure.)  The box would also have a black "Edicion Limitada" sticker placed just below the Habanos chevron sticker on the outside of the box.

The 2006 Edicion Limitada version will have the new Cohiba cigar band with the gold foil embossed "COHIBA" lettering.  The band is also more glossy.  Below this new Cohiba band is the black Edicion Limitada band identical to the 2001 Edicion Limitada band but this band will have the year 2006 printed on it.  These cigars are packaged in an exquisite black boite nature cigar box.  (Black lacquered cigar box with gold lettering, brass hinges, brass and black enamel clasp closure with the word "Cohiba" on it.)  This black lacquered box will then have an outer, cardboard box (to protect it during shipping/storage) that has all the box's labels and seals on it.  Again, it will have the Edicion Limitada sticker applied just below the Habanos chevron sticker.

These are the only two Cohiba Piramides cigars that are packaged in traditional-style boxes.  The other Cohiba Piramides are packaged in limited edition humidors, ceramic jars and/or with other Cohiba cigars and these versions are much more rarer and expensive than the Edicion Limitada versions.

I hope this helps.  If you have any more questions, please feel free to just ask and I will be happy to help.

Regards,
James

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Those descriptions don't sound exactly like what I have. The piramides were only made 3 times? I have seen reviews for several others from other years. Finally, is it possible for a fake cigar to be given the certificate of authenticity and the little habano chevron when it crosses the borders? Thanks again for your time, I really appreciate it.

ANSWER: Hi Jade,

Despite the genuine labels, it's very possible that the cigars are counterfeit.  In recent years, Cuban cigar counterfeiters have become producing labels and bands that look extremely genuine and some counterfeiters will even steal or recycle genuine cigar boxes, bands and labels to make their cigars appear more genuine.  Counterfeiters will also steal whole boxes of genuine cigars and swap out the real cigars with cheap counterfeit cigars.  By doing this, they get to keep the real cigars for themselves and sell the box of fake cigars for a big profit.  Counterfeiting cigars in very common in Cuba because counterfeiters know tourists are looking for cheap cigars and may not have done their research on where to buy cigars while in Cuba.  Your best option to avoid counterfeit cigars is by shopping at a Habanos-approved store in Cuba such as a La Casa del Habanos shop.

The Cohiba Piramides is a special production cigar.  It has been released many times but as I mentioned, these versions are not regular production releases and are impossible to find now.  These special edition releases were part of limited edition humidors and one-time, special events. These releases are discontinued and are very expensive if you can find them now.

The Edicion Limitada releases are the most recent versions of the Cohiba Piramides that you may still be able to find in cigar stores but they would also be expensive because they're discontinued now.  They are also the only releases where the cigars are packaged in a traditional-style cigar box; 25 cigars per box.

Here is the complete Cohiba Piramide release list:

1994 - Box of 50 Piramides (only 10 boxes made for Habanos "Dinner of the Century")
1999 - Millenium Reserve (Packaged in a white ceramic jar; special cigar band reads "2000 Habanos, Millenium Reserve")
1999 - Siglo XXI Millenium Humidor (only 21 humidors made.  Packaged with 100 Cohiba cigars; 5 of them are Piramides)
2001 - 35th Anniversary Humidor (only 500 humidors made.  Contains 135 Cohiba cigars; 20 are Piramides. Special 35th Anniversary Cohiba band.)
2001 - Edicion Limitada (box packaged with 25 Piramides cigars)
2003 - Seleccion Reserva sampler (Piramide 5-pack with 5 different Cuban brand Piramides.  Includes 1 Cohiba Piramides.)
2003 - Seleccion Reserva Cohiba sampler (cigar box packaged with 30 Cohiba cigars; including 8 piramides.  Cigars have a second "Reserva" band.)
2006 - Edicion Limitada (second EL release; contains 25 Piramides cigars)
2007 - Guayasamin II Commemorative Humidor (Only 50 humidors made; contains 15 Cohiba Piramides)

I hope this helps.  As always, if you have any more questions, please feel free to just ask and I will be happy to help.

Regards,
James

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Ok, one last question for you. Since we've pretty much established the piramides are fake. Would the cigars I have in place be decent cigars? They're still hand rolled Cuban cigars, so where would they be from? Just a fake company? Thanks again!

Answer
Hi Jade,

The only way to find out whether or not the cigars you have are good is to smoke one. With counterfeit cigars, there's no way of knowing who made that specific box of cigars because counterfeiters do not want to reveal themselves and they never leave any markings on a box of cigars. The counterfeit cigar industry is very anonymous and fly-by-night... the objective of a cigar counterfeiter is to produce cigars as cheaply and quickly as possible and either sell the cigars themselves or supply them to a shop/street vendor for a low price and/or a percentage of the profits.

Counterfeit cigars are usually made by either an independent cigar roller/tobacco farmer or a black market underground business (it's usually the latter).  If the cigars were purchased in Cuba, the tobacco in the cigars is definitely Cuban tobacco but the quality and origin of the tobacco can greatly vary.  Because counterfeiters are always trying to produce their cigars quickly, the tobacco (grown on an independent farm) is usually of poorer quality compared to the tobacco in genuine Cuban cigars.  (ie: the counterfeit tobacco isn't aged/cured/fermented long enough, or it's of a poorer blend, or the cigar rollers used a younger leaf that produces a greener taste, etc.)

When you smoke the cigar, another way to determine the tobacco quality is by examining the cigar ash.  If the ash is solid, firm and holds up for 2 or 3 inches before naturally falling off on its own, it's long filler tobacco which means the tobacco came from long, old tobacco leaves (this indicates a better quality of tobacco).  If the ash is flaky, crumbly, has gaps/holes and is very loose, it's made from short filler tobacco which could mean that the tobacco leaves are short and immature.  It could also mean that the tobacco is scrap tobacco (taken from factories or leftover bits from rolling cigars.)

Just because a cigar is counterfeit, it doesn't necessarily mean that the cigar tastes bad.  I've actually smoked some fake-branded Cuban cigars that have tasted better than the real cigars.  With counterfeit cigars, the quality is always hit or miss.  Counterfeiters don't practice quality control so sometimes their cigars are really great, sometimes they're really bad, sometimes they're in the middle.

I hope this helps.  As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to just ask.  I'm happy to help.

Regards,
James