Search the Community

I have never smoked a real Cohiba talisman but have smoked a BHK 52, 54 and 56 and I was put off by this as a Cohiba. Firstly it was a "gift", secondly - the first 3-4 draws were spicy almost peppery when I smoked it, which I have never sort of had in a Cohiba before. I found the ash and burn super uneven - I think it's fake but needless to say I couldn't smoke the last 3rd simply because it tasted spicy and maybe I am thinking things would love to have you guys weigh in who have smoked Cohiba Talismans before.

I recently received a box of Monte No. 2s from what I believe to be a trusted source. I know our host certainly trusts him very much. I am not completely certain regarding the authenticity of the cigars though. As you can see in the photos below the box Code is OPG AGO 14. The box and labels all appear to be legit. The serial number appears to check out on the Habanos SA website as well. It says: "The product is original from Habanos S.A. HSA: 10.9071.17.0190 Descripcion: MONTECRISTO MONTECRISTO No.2 CB-UW-C/L-12,13-n-25" Now for the doubt. No Gilding on the bands. I know that the Non Gilded Montecristo bands were discontinued in 2012. Yet my box is date AGO 14, UH OH. Add to that, some of the cigars look ROUGH. You can see in the pictures below, spotted/splotchy wrappers, barber polling (not intentional to my knowledge ) some rough feet and overall far inferior in appearance to any Monte No. 2 I've seen in the past. I compared the bands and cigars to two existing batches of No 2.s that are already in my possession and are are certainly authentic. One being from 2011 and the other from MAR 2015. As you can see below the authentic 2011 band and the new band from my 2014 box appear to match. The color, size, raised lettering and layout all appear to be the same. The two proven cigars have much richer and more even wrappers that show much more oily sheen as well. So, help me out here. Fake sticks in a real box? Did they find a couple boxes of the old bands sitting in a factory and decide to use them two years later on a low quality batch? I haven't smoked one yet and I would prefer to hear some feed back from you guys before I do.