Hi guys,
I wish you would write an article about the "real" prices of cigars. I am of the opinion that Cubans are a bargain because of the prices available on the internet. Of course, taxes are key to this question. Tax rates are public knowledge as are the general prices of cigars anywhere in the world. Someone with a calculator and no other full-time job than reporting on cigars could go and figure out what the pre-tax price of cigars is so we could do comparisons. My personal big concern is with Cubans vs. Non-cubans as we all contemplate what will happen when the embargo ends. I think Cubans are a bargain as I can get a great cuban cigar for $7, but that may be a price affected by tax rates vs. what I pay in the US for non-Cubans. An article comparing wholesale prices would clear that up.

Appreciate you attention to this.

- John

What is the complaint about rising prices due to rising taxes. Based on the types os items that this magazine routinely reviews, including what for most people are illegal Cuban cigars, their target audience has enough money to not care what their cigars cost. This magazine is not targeted to the middle class smoker.

that is soo right,white collar all the way

I agree that many Cuban cigars can be a relative bargain, but so can many non Cubans. You mentioned $7 for a bargain Cuban price, and I can think of a lot of very good non Cuban cigars I can buy for less than $7, even with taxes.

NotSoRich, I'd like to disagree with you about your contention that we don't care about bargains. While our magazine does profile the very best things in life, sometimes those great things come at little cost. While we have profiled extravagant things such as private submarines or high-end watches, we have also celebrated the Cuban sandwich (about $5) and the joys of fantasy football (free in many cases.)

And take a look at our cigar ratings. Quite often inexpensive cigars score just as well as expensive ones, sometimes even better.

Everyone loves a bargain, especially when it's something of good quality. In each issue of Cigar Insider, we point out bargain buys, something we also do every year in our Top 25 coverage in the magazine.

Great Post David

I'm sure you guys get tired of this topic. What was nice about the last "top 25" is that a good portion of the smokes were under $10, one of them is under $3 (Oliva G). I agree with David that the ratings don't seem to be influenced by the price of the cigar.