My sister gave me these yesterday. She got them from a guest who had come from somewhere in the Caribbean.
They came in shrink wrapped cellophane.
That hole in the last pic is what you think it is.
I haven’t bothered counting how many things are wrong with the box and cigars.
The bands say Churchills but they are Hermoso No 4 size or so.
Two layers of 5 in the box.
Front of box
Bottom of box
Cigars
Do you think they might be fake?

too bad all of the fakes werent this easy to spot! Wow these are real peaches. could we get the source?

1. Cuban sticks don't come in cellephane.
2. Yes the R & J have been hit by beecha (bugs).
3. The Caribbean is a notorious source for fakes.

If I were you I would lose the cigars with obvious beecha damage and resurect the rest (separating them from any other sticks you have, just in case) smoke them when they're ready and hope that I was wrong.

Good luck.

quote:

could we get the source?

No idea I'm afraid. My sister runs a B&B. An American guest left them behind as a thank you gift.
Some gift.
She doesn't know from where in the Caribbean he had travelled.
I suppose he meant well. Goes to show what people will buy.

The only way to tell if they are fake is to smoke them one by one. Bands and appearance are only part of the determining factors.

quote:

Originally posted by Rick_Fortune:
1. Cuban sticks don't come in cellephane.
2. Yes the R & J have been hit by beecha (bugs).
3. The Caribbean is a notorious source for fakes.

If I were you I would lose the cigars with obvious beecha damage and resurect the rest (separating them from any other sticks you have, just in case) smoke them when they're ready and hope that I was wrong.

Good luck.

Thanks for the advice Rick. To be honest when I asked if they were fakes, it was a rhetorical question. After the pictures I wrapped the whole lot, box and all, in a couple of ziplock bags and put them in the bin outside, just in case anything was still living in there. If it was winter they'd be in the fire.
They didn't smell good, to put it mildly.
As the actress said to the bishop, that's not going anywhere near my mouth.

quote:

Originally posted by Steve Cohen:
The only way to tell if they are fake is to smoke them one by one. Bands and appearance are only part of the determining factors.

Steve,
Keep that phrase in your clipboard so you can always have it handy and paste it when needed. ;]

Don't listen to naysayers, AnRyan. These are sooo genuine.

The wrapper is genuine Vuelta Abajo grown onion peel.
The binder is genuine banana leaf.
The filler is genuine sawdust from genuine Cuban lumbermill.

So if all three components are genuine, what's your problem?

quote:

Originally posted by Ozz1113:

quote:

Originally posted by Steve Cohen:
The only way to tell if they are fake is to smoke them one by one. Bands and appearance are only part of the determining factors.

Steve,
Keep that phrase in your clipboard so you can always have it handy and paste it when needed. ;]

I always wanted to say that. Glad I got that out of my system. These are the nastiest dog rockets I have seen in a while. The only sticker missing from the box is a biohazard symbol.

Thanks for posting these classic pics AnRyan.

these have got to be some of the ugliest looking cigars I have ever seen..

I've seen peso cigars that look (and probably taste) better than these...

There is a strangely appealing/entertaining kitsch factor to egregious fakes. I saved all of mine, although people have stopped buying me cigars while on their vacations long ago. Thanks for posting.

Remember its like getting a bad tie from you wife or kids on your birthday or xmas. If you didn't ask, its the thought that counts. You smile and say thanks and tell them to buy you liqour next time. Then you toss them into the fire.

When someone asks if I need any cigars while they are on a trip I say don't bother I have plenty. Get me a funny tee instead.

Saves them money and the hassle.

Nice pics AnRyan, beetle infested and all. I think I would have a heart attack it they came in close proximity to my humidor.

CM

quote:

The only way to tell if they are fake is to smoke them one by one.

While that may be the ultimate test, there are a myriad of ways to tell if a cigar is counterfeit.

And just to correct something quite innocent, the lasioderma are "bichos" or "bugs" in Spanish...not 'beecha'. The damage is done by larvae that hatch and make their way through the tobacco eventually emerging as a beetle.

Don't need to toss them...put them in a ziplock, double bag it, and stick them in a freezer for at least 7 days. Residential freezers don't get cold enough to go by the advice that you ought to freeze your cigars for a couple of days...so you have to rely on a sustained cold so that the eggs crystallize and break when thawed. If you don't do it for a week, you'll just get some cold bichos who awake even more hungry!

Also...to thaw them out, some people recommend leaving them in the refrigerator for a couple of days. Not necessary. A few hours will allow the cigars to thaw, and from there, slowly get them back to room temperature.

After that, they should be good to go...you can use them to light REAL cigars, you can use them to light fireworks, or you can use them to light a campfire...!

quote:

Originally posted by V.O.:
Don't listen to naysayers, AnRyan. These are sooo genuine.

The wrapper is genuine Vuelta Abajo grown onion peel.
The binder is genuine banana leaf.
The filler is genuine sawdust from genuine Cuban lumbermill.

So if all three components are genuine, what's your problem?

dude those are genuine butthole!!

quote:

Originally posted by Rick_Fortune:
1. Cuban sticks don't come in cellephane

I disagree with this statement, I have seen boxes of small machine rolled short filler cuban cigars wrapped in cellophane.

quote:

Originally posted by ryj7x47:
After that, they should be good to go...you can use them to light REAL cigars, you can use them to light fireworks, or you can use them to light a campfire...!

Thats the spirit RJ. I knew you had some humor in you.

quote:

Originally posted by green day:
I have seen boxes of small machine rolled short filler cuban cigars wrapped in cellophane.

You're right, many machine mades came in cellophane until a few years ago, some hand made cigars too. Cohiba coronas come to mind.
However I don't think cuban boxes ever came in cellophane, though I may be wrong.
This one did.

quote:

Originally posted by Gregory Mottola:
There is a strangely appealing/entertaining kitsch factor to egregious fakes. I saved all of mine, although people have stopped buying me cigars while on their vacations long ago. Thanks for posting.

Totally agree. I love the astonishing chutzpah that is displayed with some of these knock-offs. It makes me chuckle and a wry smile to play across the corners of my well chiseled features.

Problem is...amidst the kitsch factor that abounds with egregious examples of fakes out in the marketplace, the VAST majority of us, even those of us who fancy ourselves and have become self-proclaimed experts all of a sudden, don't know the difference in many cases. So, it is ironic that much of the expertise about which we proclaim for ourselves is based on something the bonafides of which is not established. Someone who has bought a lot of Rolex watches on the streets in New York City for $25 each can hardly be said to have expertise on watches. And similarly, someone who spends $3,000 for the exact same fake watch can't turn around and purport to be an expert on the Rolex either. Whatever expertise there may be is based on a sham.

To many, then, a few cigars have a "kitsch" factor because they are fakes...they are a sham...charlatan. For me, it's the labyrinth of posters who fancy themselves experts...on what purports to be something that it isn't! And the many who follow those charlatans and who defend the myths that flow because they, too, just know. Now THAT is an entertaining thought. Doesn't do much for this website or for the hobby...but it IS funny once you know better and can see quacks, charlatans and frauds that abound for what they are, and that they become so defensive if someone dare suggest that what they say is off base.

LOL
x2
insert a variety of smiley faces
ROTFLMAO
Hysterical indeed.