Since March 14, 1958 the Cuban Embargo has been in place preventing amongst other things the sale of Cuban cigars in the United States. Earlier this year, President Obama moved to remove Cuba from the list of countries that support terrorism and to normalize relations. As those relations return to a sense of normalcy both countries have begun establishing an embassy in each others homeland. Now a bill is about to be filed that would […]
Jack Torano has a long and distinguished career but it starts long before the cigar industry. You see, he use to live in Chicago where he was a jingle writer, and part of the team that created the Real Men of Genius campaign for Budweiser. In 2011, he moved to Miami and reconnected with his roots working alongside family at Torano Cigars before they were sold to General Cigars with pretty much no knowledge to […]
A couple of months back David Garofalo visited Cuba and what he saw was shocking to him. So much so that he shared it in a series of articles that just didn’t sit will with fans of Cuban cigars. Now Colin has gone back with another tour to Cuba and we ask him what everyone wants to know, is David allowed back to Cuba. We also ask what is different this time around compared to […]
Traveling to Cuba just got easier and is perhaps another step toward the lifting of the Helms-Burton act ending the Cuban embargo. Reports state that four companies have been approved to start the ferry service as soon as this summer to the island nation. The companies include, Havana Ferry Partners of Fort Lauderdale, Baja Ferries of Miami, United Caribbean Lines Florida of Greater Orlando, and Airline Brokers Co. of Miami and Fort Lauderdale. The ferry companies […]
Let’s face it we like to stir the pot, and this week is no different as we continue our discuss on Cuba. This time we look at what we think is next for Cuba and we weigh in on when we think the embargo will end and the future of Cuban Cigars…. Also next week is the TAA and David Garofalo gives us some insight on what to expect and maybe we will discuss some […]
Day 6 and “The Shocking Conclusion” We all packed our bags in the morning (included would be my $100 worth of legal Cuban Cigars and alcohol combined) had my last Cuban Coffee in Cuba and 2 more cigars before we got ready to Hurry-Up and Wait! This is what I hate most about traveling, especially out of the country and even more so to and from Cuba. They want you there 5 hours early and […]
Day 5 Today we will take a walk to Old Havana Square. We met in the Hotel lobby to start our day. As we approach the area I notice the streets are crowded with people dancing in the street. The streets are paved with what looks like bricks but a closer look shows they are not bricks but wood blocks stained with brick color. In the town square the road turns to a circle with […]
Day 4 We were up bright and early for a little Cuban Coffee and a Cuban Cigar before hitting the road back to Havana. The first stop was the El Laguito Factory, the birthplace of Cohiba which was in 1968. A palace of a building, looks kind of like an old Southern Mansion which was unquestionably the most impressive looking cigar factory from the outside thus far for sure. This is where Cohiba, Behike and […]
Trip to Cuba – Day 3 I got up in plenty of time for breakfast and decided not to go off on my own in this city. I took the opportunity to talk with the waitress a bit because she spoke better English than I did Spanish. She seemed happy and said so… she liked her life in Cuba and the closeness with her family and neighbors. Although she had never been to the United […]
Day 2 Monday March 9, 2015 I skipped breakfast (that almost never happens) and chose to walk around a little before meeting with the group. “American” and “Cohiba” the Cuban people asked me as apparently I stuck out like a sore thumb. They were not asking for a hand-out or begging for my money, they wanted to sell me something. They had cigars, what locals call “street cigars” made at their homes with either their […]