KotC, I cant say that I know enough about the production of either to say why. I wouldn't ever make a blanket statement about whether Cuban or non-Cuban tobacco is superior. I do believe that many NC blends involve higher degrees of fermentation and that may play a role in how a cigar changes with age...and perhaps amplify the risk of pushing it out the door too soon. But I just have not experienced the marked improvement in 3+ year old NC cigars that you have. If anything, the NC cigars I like most generally tend to diminish after years, IMO.
Anyway, maybe gerbs, or another smart guy will explain production more. I suspect that quality NC filler and wrapper is typically aged longer than Cuban tobacco....and maybe that would explain what I think I've experienced.
dstieger wrote:
I don't think there are any absolutes, at least none that I have experienced. I've had NC cigars that are exactly as you describe and others that do improve. I've had Cuban cigars that improved, and Cuban cigars that lost their luster.
Aging tobacco is a big investment in product, storage and is still a gamble. Something could go wrong in the process, it could be ravaged by insects / rodents, the warehouse could burn down... How many barns of tobacco did Fuente lose last year to fire? 8 or 10? Huge ones too.
Not all tobacco is worth the investment. Some of the lower cost, lower margin cigars don't get much pre-aging on their tobacco. 6 months, maybe a year. 1-1/2 to 2 for the wrapper leaf. The cigar is rolled, stored for 60-90 days for the added extra moisture needed for the rolling process to dissipate, then it's banded, boxed/bundled, crated and shipped. Obviously cigars like that have the highest likelihood of changing.
Cuban cigars used to be that way, a few still are. Cuba has been moving more towards using aged tobacco in recent years. Most of the more famous / globally known marques are using it. Habanos is very secretive, they aren't saying how much age, I've heard 2-3 years, maybe a bit longer for Capa leaves. How accurate is that information I can't say, but I can say that I've had a lot of fresh stuff over the past few years that is all very smokeable.
Very few finished cigars are stored for long periods at the manufacturer, in any country. This is just sitting on potential revenue and risking loss. There are some, but it's a small percentage.
Something else to remember about NC cigars is that almost none use date codes, so it's hard to say how long that cigar has been sitting at the distributor / retailer. That NC cigar we think of as fresh because climate controlled warehouse storage is different than humidors, might actually have sat for 2-3 years. I've been able to knowingly experience this first hand a number of times with JR Ultimates as their boxes are hand dated in pencil when packed. I've gotten 3 year old boxes before, but, if that marking wasn't there, I wouldn't have known. Unlike an overseas order, where everything has a date on it.
So, maybe you have a situation where your cigar is made with 2-3 year old tobacco, then the box sits at the distributor for another 2 years. That's 5 years before you get it, this could possibly explain of what you, me and a few others have experienced with NC stuff not taking well to additional aging.
And, just like wine, some tobacco / blends doesn't age well. It peaks, some earlier than others. I think this is exists in every growing region in every country. No different than wine.
Don't know if that helps or makes it even more confusing, but it's what I typed.
Edited by user
7 years ago |
Reason: Not specified
