February Syndrome. X Festival Del Habano

The last week of February is a sacred time for lovers of Cuban cigars. Time to pack the shorts, T-shirts, and tuxedos into suitcases and head for places that are closer to the equator, to the warm and sunny Island of Freedom. The International Cuban Cigar Festival takes place in Havana at this time every year. This one was the tenth anniversary festival and probably that is why it brought together a record number of participants: about 1800 people from 75 countries.

Novelties

Each year the Cubans try to present something new at the festival, something outstanding. As a rule, they make it happen. The launch of an aged Cohiba Maduro 5 is a case in point! There were two novelties at this festival: H.Upmann had a new Magnum 50 cigar, and Hoyo de Monterrey came up with an Epicur Especial. However, the changes aren't limited to novelties. The Cubans have not just introduced two new vitolas, they have created new product lines. 

The previously existing Epicur Nо.1 and Epicur Nо. 2, as well as the new Epicur Especial, are now positioned as the Epicur line. The two Magnum formats (46 and 50) are positioned as the Magnum line. The cigars have two rings now, and H.Upmann has even changed the basic one.

The Habanos marketing policy is clear: to breathe new life into slightly forgotten great brands. Current novelties live up to their names both in terms of taste and presentation. The new rings and new aluminum tubes alone deserve a mention. More novelties. First, are the 2008 limited series cigars, such as Cuaba Piramides (156×20.6 mm), Partagas Serie D No. 5 (110×19.9 mm), and Sublimes Montecristo (164×21.4 mm). Secondly, 250 Romeo y Julieta humidors made to preserve similarity to the early 20th century humidors, each of which contains 50 Romeo cigars (153×21 mm) specifically made for the occasion. Thirdly, seven hundred humidors from the "Collection Habanos" series made in the form of a book under the Cohiba trade mark. Each one will contain twenty Sublimes Extra (184×21.4 mm) cigars not present in the regular line of the brand. Besides, the cigar world is in for the regional releases of 15 Habanas (see the table). They say, next year they will make a cigar specifically for the Russian market. Godspeed, and hopefully they won't forget to do so.

Female victory

One of the key events at the festival is the competition of the cigar sommeliers. Only the winners of the national championships can take part; in other words, a third-party person cannot apply. This year there were eight participants from Cuba, Spain, France, Israel, Japan, Belgium, Brazil, and the Arab Emirates. 

As usual, there were three finalists: Spaniard Carlos Echapresto, Cuban Sudlaj Napoles, and Felix Hartmann representing the Arab Emirates. The suspense didn't last long and a woman became the winner in the competition for the second time in the history of the contest. Two years ago Manuele Romeralo from Spain managed to come first, and this time Cuban Sudlaj Napoles, sommelier from the El Floridita restaurant in Havana, became the best. By the way, this is the second time that she has participated in the competition: two years ago she came second. The representative of the Arab Emirates took second place, and the Spanish sommelier finished third.

Cigar Tasting

Another invariable part of the festival program includes all kinds of Habana tasting with various alcoholic beverages. Armagnac is by far the most popular. This current tasting is the third series. This year 12 armagnac houses offered their products for tasting, of which six presented the millesime armagnac, and another six presented blended ones. As a result of numerous and rather tiresome tasting sessions, not all tasters managed to finish, but two armagnacs were certainly victorious: millesime Domaine de Joy, recognized as the best in pair with the Partagas Sobresalientes cigar (the special limited release of 2007; not to be confused with the series Edicion Limitada), and the Veuve Lanfontan/Cohiba Siglo VI assemblage.

Auction

Such success has not been seen for some time. Last time the auction proceeds hit almost one million euros was six years ago, when Fidel Castro honored the festival with his presence. Since then the proceeds never exceeded 500–600,000 euros. And finally, this year brought the breakthrough. The proceeds of the current auction amounted to 945,000 euros. The most expensive lot was a humidor that sold for 260,000 euros. According to the established tradition, the money will be sent to the Cuban system of public health services.