The old vs. new Gurkha Shaggy... pretty big visual difference...

is the darker one the older one?

There's something that irks me about cigar makers that put more into the bands/boxes/packaging than they do the quality of the smoke. Gurkha is certainly the worst of the bunch.

yes, the darker one is the original... hard to tell in the pics, but the wrappers on the newer gurkha's are very dull looking... no oiliness to speak of...

^Same with the Black Dragons. Old ones, full of oil and cedar wrap. New ones, dull and no cedar wrap.

So, what you're basically saying is that they became crappier crap as time went on.

correct... a lesson I was too stubborn to learn earlier... you can age crappy cigars but you're just going to end up with older, crappier cigars...

glad to see you have become enlightened......................

If you put a Gurkha out in the sun they turn white then breakdown into a powder. :-"