El Presidente

This good people is 100% pride. Love the photo.

Millions around the world pondering the same question. So where do you put the moola? Equities? Key market overvalued possibly. Unlikely to be USD/currencies Property? Top of the market possibly. High costs of entry and exit. Crypto? no idea. I think you should put the money in Cuban Cigars. Current stock may all become Pre Revolution II shortly.

Scott and Byron respectively won the November and December Faces of Fabrica 5 competition. Our team got back from well earned vacations mid January and first cab (excuse the pun) off the rank was the rolling of the Half Wheel cigars (50) for Scott and Byron. They both chose the Desnudo Churchill. I love the photos. It's a beautiful thing

The Lizards pair the Aladino 85 Aniversario Reserva in Robusto with seven year aged Abuelo Rum from Panama. Klaas Kelner joins the Lizards to discuss the recently rated Kelner LE 80, the guys go back to their discussion on customer service, and, with some special guests, they finally complete Bam’s Fundadores Auction Transaction. PLUS: Voice Memo on Memorable Smoking Moments in 2025, Abuelo's Rich Panamanian History, Dunbarton's New Year of the Release, Bam's Big Check & Does Alcohol Impair the Formal Lizard Rating?

I think you raise an interesting point. "We" generally/automatically think in boxes. The average punter walking into a B&M does not. He is thinking in sticks and likely to be consuming one while on premises if permitted. I am guessing that box buyers distort the graph because they as a rule do not finish a box of cigars before the one year mark.

Now some of you purchase at B&M's far more often than others. I assume most of you would purchase the majority of your cigars online. However we all get to a B&M on occasion and I what we are looking for here is your average B&M buying habit. Give the poll a crack.

Do me a favour and shoot me

Under mounting US pressure, Pemex cancels scheduled oil shipment to Cuba MND Staff January 27, 2026 1 As the United States appears to actively seek regime change in Cuba, Mexico’s state oil company Pemex canceled plans to send a shipment of crude oil to the communist-run island this month, Bloomberg reported on Monday. On Tuesday morning, President Claudia Sheinbaum stressed that Mexico makes its own “sovereign” decisions regarding oil shipments to Cuba, but didn’t deny that Pemex halted a planned shipment to the island. Citing “documents” to which it had access, Bloomberg reported that Pemex was expected to send a shipment of oil to Cuba in January but “removed the cargo from its schedule.” “… The shipment was set to load in mid-January and would have arrived in Cuba before the end of the month under the original schedule,” the news agency wrote. https://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/mounting-us-pressure-pemex-oil-cuba/

I am adding 300 grams for the socks

Tough one for CC. From the hip, Cohiba/Upmann/Trinidad in that order.

During our Parallel Tasting review of the HDM Epi 2 and MOFOH Robusto Trinity yesterday (video up end of week), I had a conversation with Cliff (Glass Half Full) on the timing/consumption of cigars by the average punter/cigar smoker. I made the comment that I didn't think it was too different to wine. I made the comment that in Oz, the average bottle of wine is consumed within 90 minutes of purchase. It is a number I recall from a previous survey of wine drinkers in Australia. Now if you take restaurant and BBQ purchases into account it is probably correct. My thought process is one that I didn't think cigar purchases (globally) would be too different. Not everyone are FOH (or similar retail) buyers. How many cigars are consumed at the lounge (tasting/UK for example) or picked up on a Friday to be enjoyed over the weekend?. Our discussion on the video review was about how many people actually age (or at least rest) their cigars? We segued during the discussion as to the different thought processes between NC and CC buyers. So I took the question to ChatGPT/Gemini/Anthropic AI. Ageing by purchasers of wine/spirits/cigars. The results. The notes: “Based on aggregated industry scanner data, household panel surveys, excise replacement curves, distributor reorder behavior, and secondary-market holding patterns.” One insight worth underlining Wine and spirits are depleted. Cigars are accumulated. This single behavioral difference explains: Secondary market depth Aging premiums Brand myth-building Why cigar collectors behave more like art collectors than drinkers 🚬 Cigars This is where it gets interesting. Primary sources & proxies Importer & distributor reorder lag Humidor capacity vs annual consumption studies Auction house re-entry timing (how long before a cigar reappears on secondary markets) FOH-style community self-reporting Cuban export data vs global consumption lag Aging-premium analysis (price appreciation vs time held) What they consistently show Cigars are intentionally not consumed quickly Storage improves perceived value Large quantities are held years or decades A meaningful % are never smoked by the original buyer I found it interesting at least Let us know where you fit?

Thank you for the excellent review of one of my favourite Fab 5 cigars. It makes no sense to make this cigar. ROI is in the toilet Still, I love the format. I just wanted a cigar that was price reasonable and highly enjoyable in the half corona "range".

....so far your winning 🤣