Cigars, Cigar Information and where to find Premium Cigars, Discounted Cigars and even Cheap Cigars - CUBAN REGISTERS RING FOR LIMITED EDITIONS

CUBAN REGISTERS RING FOR LIMITED EDITIONS

CUBAN REGISTERS RING FOR LIMITED EDITIONS

Loan officers ready to take applications for those wishing to buy limited-production gems

Los Angeles, June 2 – A note in the quarterly report of the French-Spanish tobacco giant Altadis for the first three months of 2005 caught our eye:

The strategy for Cuban cigars, which combines ultimate luxury (limited editions, special reserves) and affordable luxury (Mini Cubanos), confirmed its efficiency: sales increased by 13.3% in constant currency and by 10.3 % in euros to Euro 30 million (consolidation of the 50% holding in Corporacion Habanos).

As the half-owner of Habanos S.A., Altadis drives the market for Havana cigars worldwide and the 30 million Euros for its share of sales (about $33.66 million) projects to a yearly sales level of more than 240 million Euro (or $293.2 million), which would be one of the highest on record. Although Havanas are already quite expensive, one of the keys to the rise in sales value has been the introduction of the ultra-expensive Edicion Limitada, Coleccion Habanos and Seleccion Reserva lines.

How expensive? Let’s take a look through the lens of one of the most aggressively-priced Internet sellers of Havanas, Hong Kong’s FinestCubanCigars.com.

Consider three popular sizes of Havanas and the cost of regular-production cigars and those in the Edicion Limitadas, first introduced in 2000:

• Piramides: 6 1/8 inch by 52 ring torpedoes
The standard for this factory shape, of course, is the famed Montecristo No. 2. It’s been in production since the beginning of the brand, appearing in magazine advertisements from Alfred Dunhill of London for the Montecristo since its year of birth in 1935.

On the FinestCubanCigars.com website, a box of 25 of these beauties is available for $275 ($11 per stick). Connoisseurs sometimes opt for the other well-known regular-production brand in this size, the savory H. Upmann No. 2, offered when available for $265 for the box of 25.

Get ready to pay more for Edicion Limitadas in this size, however:

> Cohiba Piramides, from the 2001 Edicion Limitada line, go for $499 for the box of 25 if available, 81% more than the standard Montecristo No. 2s.

> Hoyo de Monterrey Piramides, from the 2003 Edicion Limitada line will set you back $374 for the box of 25, a 36% premium over the Montecristos and

> A box of Partagas Piramides from the 2000 Edicion Limitada line is “just” $317 for the box of 25, a 15% hike over the same size as the Monte 2.

• Coronas Gordas: 5 5/8 inches by 46 ring
This is a classic size and one of the best combinations of full flavor with a medium length. The standard-setters in this size includes the fabulous Juan Lopez Seleccion No. 1, which we ranked no. one in the medium-bodied category. FinestCubanCigars.com offers it at a sensational bargain of $220 for the slide-top cabinet of 25.

Devotees of this size always come back to the famed Punch Punch, which is priced at just $215 for the box of 25, and one of my favorites in this shape is the H. Upmann Magnum 46, at $260 for the cabinet of 25.

If you want one of the Edicion Limitadas in this size, however, get out your wallet:

> The Partagas Serie D no. 3 from the Edicion Limitada 2001 series is offered at $305 for 25, a healthy 42% mark-up over the Punch Punch.

> Even more expensive is the Montecristo “C” in the Coronas Gordas shape from the 2003 Edicion Limitada series at $430 for 25, a whopping 100% increase over the Punch Punch price.

Please remember that the FinestCubanCigars.com site is one of the most aggressive on price that we have seen.

• Robustos: 4 7/8 inches by 50 ring
Finally, the ever-popular Robusto, of which the standard-bearer is the much-respected Partagas Serie D No. 4, offered in boxes of 25 for the most reasonable price of $255. The less-popular but also admired Ramon Allones Specially Selected size is priced at $235 for the box of 25.

Want a Robusto from the Edicion Limitada series? Call your banker and get a loan:

> The Montecristo Robusto from the Edicion Limitada series released in 2000 is offered at a hefty $369 for a box of 25, a tangy 45% mark-up on the Partagas Serie D no. 4.

> How about the Romeo y Julieta Robusto that was released with the Edicion Limitada series in 2001? A mere pittance at $359 for the box of 25, only a 41% hike over the Partagas.

There are 21 Edicion Limitadas in the series including the to-be-introduced 2005 group of the H. Upmann Magnum (6 5/8 x 50), Montecristo “D” (6 5/8 x 43) and the Romeo y Julieta Petit Piramide (5 x 50). Add to these the two Seleccion Reserva editions and four varieties of the book-as-humidor styled Coleccion Habanos and you have a lot of opportunities to earn a lot more money than $10 a stick.

(If you’re interested in a complete list of the Edicion Limitadas and other special series, check out the new third edition of our Perelman’s Pocket Cyclopedia of Havana Cigars in our online store.)

It’s a clever way to make a limited amount of aged tobacco go further and Altadis and their Cuban cohorts at Habanos are to be congratulated on the quality, if not the value. The only question is what new form of aged or limited or specially-selected idea can they come up with to market even fewer cigars at even higher prices!

OK, here’s my idea: “Famosos.” A series to honor great smokers of Cuban cigars throughout history with each cigar in the collection patterned after the favorite brand or size of that smoker. Churchill . . . Freud . . . Hemingway . . . Castro?
~ Rich Perelman

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