Anyone who knows about cigars would know Cohibas; in fact one would be hard pressed to find anyone at all who has not heard about Cohibas.
The Cohibas are the flagship brand of Habanos. It was created in 1966 for President Fidel Castro when he accidentally discovered it when his chief security officer was smoking one. He enjoyed the taste and ordered more till they eventually became his personal cigar of choice.
This also meant that the cigars were ONLY rolled for Fidel Castro. No matter the amount of money one offered, you could only get Cohibas if Castro offered you one himself. The cigars were rolled at the then top secret but now world famous, El Laguito factory. The only way you would see Cohibas outside of Cuba would be if it was gifting to heads of states or diplomats.
In 1982, the Cohibas were made available to the open market but in very limited quantities. The demand supply gap of Cohibas since then has been increasingly large, especially since the tobacco leaves used for Cohibas are the best of the best selection from the 5 finest vegas de primera in San Juan Martinez and San Luis districts of Vuelta Abajo region. Now, no one knows the actual plantations that grow the tobacco leaves for the brand. A lot of farmers would claim that they grow tobacco for Cohibas but it’s really hard to know, unless you are employed by Habanos.
Incidentally the word Cohiba is a native Taino Indian word which means a bunch of rolled tobacco leaf. This also explains the Cohiba logo which has the head of a native Indian. Over the years the band of the brand has also changed and using technology to fight counterfeit cigars, the design has also developed and evolved, adding to the sophistication and allure of the brand.
The Cohibas have a unique fermentation process which includes an additional fermentation in barrels. This allows for a special aroma and flavour to develop which will only be found in Cohibas. Cohiba is the only brand that uses a fourth type of filler leaf called the Medio Tiempo which is extremely rare and is only found in the Linea Behikes.
Cohiba encompasses four different Lines or Lineas. These are:
1. Linea Clásica: The Classic line has formats like the Robustos, Esplendidos, piramides, mediosiglo, etc
2. Linea 1492: This line was launched in 1992 to commemorate 500th anniversary of Columbus’s arrival in Cuba and boasts the beautiful Siglo series
3. Linea Maduro 5 which has 3 formats and are wrapped in a delicious oily Maduro wrapper which has been specially aged for 5 years.
4. And the most special line, Linea Behike which uses the rare medio tiempo leaf and also remains to be one of the most sought after Lines in the world of cigars.
It is because of all of the above mentioned points and the brands constant innovation that Cohiba has held its position at the leading edge of the cigar world. They are the most expensive Cubans and there is no such thing as cheap Cohiba or discounted Cohiba. If you were to buy such it would be safe for us to assume that it’s a fake since Cohibas are most replicated cigars in the world.
These premium Cuban cigars are available on Cingari.
