XVII Festival del Habano A cigar aficionado's guide to Havana United Buddy Bears in Havana

71 Pages·2015·8.03 MB·English

In co-operation with
feb
2015
XVII Festival del Habano
(Feb 23 – 27, 2015)
A cigar aficionado’s guide
to Havana
United Buddy Bears in
Havana
THE CUBAN CIGAR ISSUE
HAVANA GUIDE RESTAURANTS — BARS & CLUBS — ACCOMMODATION
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With a Passion for Cuba
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The ultimate guide to Havana
with detailed reviews of where to
eat, drink, dance, shop, visit and
play.
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us. We welcome new contributors and would love hear from you if you have a Cuba-related
project. You can contact us at [email protected].
Photo by Yadira Montero, night time in Vedado, Havana
Cover picture by Alex Mene
EDITORIAL
Welcome to our Cuban cigar issue. Or Cuban tobacco issue, for there is no quick just in time
manufacturing system when it comes to getting the best leaf from Vuelta Abajo. It may be an
exaggeration to say that Cuban cigars are hand-rolled on a virgin’s thigh, but it is undeniable that
much love and attention goes into every step of the process. The result is what brings thousands
of cigar aficionados to the world’s most prestigious cigar festival in Havana. This year will be XVII
Festival del Habano, to be held from Feb 23-27, 2015. If you get a chance to get a ticket for the gala
dinner, don’t be put off by the formidable entry price—this is an event like no other in Cuba. Thanks
to Amir Saarony for his cigar aficionado’s guide to Havana. If you get a chance do try and get a copy
of his Partagás El Libro. This is the unparalleled look at the history of an icon.
The Havana World Music Festival features a superb line-up and is not to miss, Feb 6-7. Sticking with
music, take the chance if you can to see Scott Zoid play at Cuba Libro on Feb 11, (5pm).
For fans of boxing, or simply the curious, check out the Cuban Domadores—they have taken their
group by storm so far and will fight against the Chinese Dragons on Friday, February 6 and then the
British Lionhearts on February 20. The atmosphere in Ciudad Deportiva is electric and this is your
chance to see Cuba’s storied Olympic athletes at their prime. Pity anyone who has to go up against
the incomparable Erislandy Savón Cotilla. His last Russian opponent barely lasted 30 seconds before
being destroyed. Brits in Havana, your team needs your support. Bring a flag!
My favorite exhibition in years, the United Buddy Bears, are still around for the first couple of weeks
in Plaza de San Francisco. If you haven’t seen them yet, make it your mission to do so. They are
fabulous. And whatever you do, don’t forget Valentine’s Day on February 14. Nothing like a Cuban
woman forgotten on the day of amor!
February 2015 Highlights (Havana, unless stated)
* Feb 6-7: Havana World Music Festival
* Feb 11: Scot Zoid at Cuba Libro (5pm)
* Feb 13 – Mar 9: International Book Fair
* Feb 14: Valentine’s Day
* Feb 20: Cuba Domadores va England Lionhearts World Series of Boxing
* Feb 23 – 27: XVII Festival del Habano:
Thanks to all of our contributors, sponsors, partners and readers. Do please keep providing us with
your feedback, comments and suggestions. All enquiries should be directed to Sophia Beckman at
[email protected]. All the best. Viva Cuba!
Photo by Yadria Montero –
Malecon at night – Hotel Nacional
in the center
FEBRUARY 2015
Alejandro Robaina – Cuba’s most famous cigar maker p6
CUBAN CIGARS
A cigar aficionado’s guide to Havana p8
Holy Smoke- Heavenly Havanas p10
Simon Chase – in his own words p13
The Best Cigar I ever smoked p15
With Sir Terence Conran at the Festival del Habano p18
The undeniable magic of tobacco p20
Under the spell of tobacco p23
Visual Arts p25 — Photography p28 — Dance p29 —Music
HAVANA LISTINGS
p30 — Theatre p40 — For Kids p42
HISTORY &
United Buddy Bears in Havana p45
CULTURE The Feria Internacional del Libro p48
TRAVEL Opera Restaurant p52
Hostal Bohemia p54
Features - Restaurants - Bars & Clubs - Live Music -
HAVANA GUIDE
Hotels - Private Accommodation p56
Alejandro Robaina
C ’
uba s most famous Cigar maker
BY JUAN JOSE GONZÀLEZ
The fame and legend of Alejandro Robaina were not He began to work the land with his father when
gratuitous. This guajiro (farmer) of natural wisdom he was nine, and at that time, when he didn’t even
and lapidary wit was the genuine king of Cuban have a pair of shoes to wear, he had his first smoke.
tobacco. He passed away on 17 April 2010 at the He only quit smoking shortly before he died. He
age of 91 on the same red and fertile land of Vuelta would smoke four or five cigars daily, always hand-
Abajo in San Luis, Pinar del Río province, where rolled by himself.
his grandfather had settled in the mid 1800s upon
arriving from the Canary Islands. Here, Robaina He would frequently say that tobacco was a family
learned the secrets of the land where he set up thing. He knew each and every plant of his shade
his own vega, or tobacco fields. For quite a while grown tobacco fields and each leaf in every plant,
now, his 16-hectare vega, located in Cuchillas de and every bug on each leaf. “You have to love
Barbacoa, has produced the best wrapper leaves the land and care for the plants like you care for
in the region, enough to wrap an average amount a child. This is why this is a family crop,” he used
of eight million Habanos per year. Quite a record to tell visitors, which included royalty, rock stars,
considering that the total production of Premium ambassadors, Nobel prize-winners, movie stars,
Habanos in Cuba is approx 150 million per year, and many more.
depending on weather conditions and harvest ups
and downs. Fidel once tried to convince him to join a
cooperative. “He wanted individual family-
He rubbed shoulders with Nobel prize-winners owned tobacco fields to become large tobacco
and famous musicians. Sting asked him for his plantations, or cooperatives, and me to become
autograph. Although this last single piece of the president of one of them. But tobacco has to be
information makes it very obvious that he was family-grown. We discussed the matter for about
famous, it actually tells little of the only living 30 minutes. The last thing he said was, ‘Boy, what
Cuban tobacco grower who managed to have a a stubborn little old man!’” he would recall during
brand of his own and six different Habano vitolas an interview in 2009.
with his name burnt into the wood of cigar boxes,
and who scientists, presidents and millionaires
wanted to sit next to.
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Robaina was an old-fashioned guajiro, but an
innate scientist too. This is why he was always
open to new advances and to experimenting with
new types of seeds. He was naturally wise. He
would always say that the San Luis and San Juan y
Martínez areas in the Vuelta Abajo region had the
best soil in the world for growing tobacco, which
is why the leaves there taste different and are
matchless.
As was the case with the incomparable musician
Compay Segundo of Buenavista Social Club fame,
celebrity would come a bit late in his life, but he
enjoyed it to the full. In the latter years of his life,
he travelled all over the world as ambassador to
the Habano. He drank toasts with actors and
monarchs. Once, in a social event in Spain, he
was having a chat with King Juan Carlos when
the musician Sting came to his table and asked
him for his autograph. He also kept in his home
newspaper clippings of interviews made by The
New York Times. But for him, the important thing
was defending his plants from mould and growing
the best wrapper leaves in the world.
Once, in Switzerland, a reporter asked him in
a mocking tone why bugs didn’t feed on Tuscan
tobacco but did feed on Cuban tobacco leaves. His
instant reply was memorable: “Bugs don’t eat shit.”
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A CIGAR AFICIONADO’S
GUIDE TO HAVANA
BY AMIR SAARONY
Gardens of Hotel Nacional
Photos by Yadira Montero
La Casa del Habano, Partagás cigar factory
Industria #520 e/ Dragones y Barcelona, behind the Capitolio
While Partagás produced cigars on this street from
1848 to 2012, the factory has now been closed and
relocated. La Casa del Habano, however, remains
open and is a major destination for cigar smokers
from the world over. This store is a historical
marker in the story of Cuban cigars. Its manager
is Grecia Quiñones Marrero and her extremely
knowledgeable staff is led by Hamlet. Yes, that is
his real name. And yes, he is the very same Hamlet
who has gained worldwide recognition as a master
cigar roller from the store at the old Romeo y
Julieta factory.
Casa del Habano, Hostal Conde de Villanueva
Mercaderes #202, e/ Lamparilla y Amargura, Habana Vieja
This building was built as the mansion of Claudio
Martínez de Pinillos, Count of Villanueva, but it has
been given a new life as a nine-room hotel. Every
room and suite is named after a brand of cigars, but
that is not what makes it a haven for smokers. As
you enter the airy courtyard, on your right you will
see a flight of stairs to the old servant quarters on
the mezzanine; at the top of the stairs is a hidden
gem: a Casa del Habano. This hidden wonder is
managed by Antonio Hevia and staffed by one of
the most sought after in-store rollers in the city,
Reynaldo González.
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La Casa del Habano, La Quinta
Ave. 5ta #1407 e/ 14 y 16, Miramar
This was the first high-end cigar store in Cuba
when its doors opened in 1990. It is a smoker’s
store. Outside of the regular tourist environment,
it is quieter, but it is still a worthy destination in its
own right. This is the place to take your time and
truly take advantage of the expertise of the staff.
The selection is large and the suburban setting
allows you to slow down after the hectic pace of
the city. Order a coffee or a drink from the bar,
or even lunch from the adjoining restaurant, then
relax in a wicker chair and enjoy a larger, longer
smoke.
La Casa del Habano, Club Habana
Ave. 5ta e/ 188 y 192, reparto Flores
This was the exclusive Biltmore Club pre-
revolution and, although it boasts tennis courts,
gym, fine dining and a private beach, the real draw
for cigar smokers is La Casa del Habano that was
run by Enrique Mons. One of the living icons of
the cigar world, Mons was in charge of quality
for Cubatabaco (predecessor of Habanos S.A.)
for almost 20 years. Mons was the manager who
opened La Quinta when it was the first modern
cigar store opened in Cuba. I doubt there has been
a cigar produced in Cuba in the last 35 years that
Mons doesn’t have an opinion on. Now that he has
retired, the staff works hard to maintain the level
of excellence that he demanded.
La Casa de Habano, Hotel Habana Libre
Calle L e/ 23 y 25, El Vedado
This may very well be both the newest and the
biggest LCDH in Havana. It is large, airy and well
located in the lobby of the Hotel Habana Libre. The
inventory is large and the staff, led by Elina Perez,
is well trained. This space is large enough to have
a fountain and fishpond in the store. Ironically,
the bar and sitting area does not accommodate
as many people as hoped. In all fairness, it may
be more comfortable to grab your cigar here and
venture out into the Hotel Lobby to enjoy your
cigar and a surprisingly good mojito or gin and
tonic, or better yet, stroll across the street and
treat yourself to a Coppelia ice cream.
Other
There are also wonderful La Casa del Habano in
the Meliá Cohíba and the Meliá Habana hotels that
offer wonderful smoking environments.
The La Casa del Habano in the Hotel Nacional does
not have a smoking lounge per se but, of course,
the back patio of the Hotel Nacional is the prime
oasis for cigar smoking in Havana at any time.
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H S :
oly moke
H H
eavenly avanas
by Juliet Barclay
Photos by Roberto Adonna
“Smoking a cigarette is like having sex;
smoking a cigar is like making love.”
Jeremy Irons
Perhaps, what is true is that the unique
contemplative pleasure of smoking a Havana
cigar should never be taken lightly. Juliet Barclay
takes us down memory lane and explains why
cigar smoking in Cuba has become increasingly
a male preserve.
The unique contemplative pleasure of smoking a When Columbus came to Cuba in 1492 he
Havana cigar should never be taken lightly. Whilst encountered enlightened Indians smoking what
the lucky few indulge in this luxury on an enviably he described as ‘perfumed herbs’. Their name
regular basis, they never allow familiarity to breed for cigars was cohíbas, and they rolled them in
contempt. However many cigars one smokes, much the same manner as the superb cigars of
one never tires of the gentlemanly—or ladylike— that name are currently produced in Cuba. To the
anticipation of extracting one’s chosen cigar from untrained eye there seems hardly any difference
the humidor. Gently, one tests it between one’s in colour and texture between the different leaves
fingers and catches the first whiff of that splendid that are used in the process, but cigar rollers
scent, before tenderly decapitating it and setting swiftly and expertly select the necessary colour
it smoldering on its aromatic way with a satisfying and texture for each part of the cigar, whether it
punch of flavour while a pale blue, gently undulating be filler or wrapper, knowing exactly how far they
swirl of smoke rises from it when in repose. can compress or stretch a leaf to achieve the final,
glorious result.
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