invest in smoke

Cigar collecting is all about having money to burn.

A collector seeks out the rarest smokes, keeps them judiciously humidified, perhaps for years, and then — most likely on a whim — lights up that prized panatela or cherished Churchill and savors every puff as it is gradually reduced to ashes.

Indeed, there are few other hobbies in which collectors destroy their prized possessions for the sheer pleasure of it.

But lately that perspective has been shifting toward that of the wine aficionados who curate their cellars based not only on the pleasure principle but also on their ever-increasing values.

A growing interest in cigars as collectibles has helped drive pre-embargo Cubans to staggering prices that held through the Great Recession.

And some of the more coveted current releases, Cuban and otherwise, are being quickly snapped up and stored by the purchasers, who wait for enough demand to warrant selling to eager private parties or at auction.

Small wonder, then, that counterfeiting has assumed epidemic proportions and that cigars, once a symbol of luxuriant relaxation, are now perceived by many as an investment.

"Interest and prices in good-quality pre-embargo Havana cigars are now at an all-time high," says Mitchell Orchant of C.Gars Ltd., a prominent U.K. cigar merchant and cigar auction house. "This is where we predicted the market would go, five years ago. Early buyers have seen substantial increases in values."

Cigar collecting has existed for more than a century, as evidenced at James J. Fox cigar merchants in London, where families have stored boxes of Havanas for generations. But only since the late 1990s have auction houses such as Butterfield & Butterfield (now Bonhams) in the United States and Christie’s and C.Gars in London sold cigars, often at the end of a wine and spirits auction.

Cuba began holding charity auctions of limited-edition Havanas in the 1990s, most notably during the Festival del Habano each February. Collectors, particularly those in the United States, are more likely to seek a tobacconist that specializes in ultra-premium cigars, since many have direct contact with the distributors and the factories.Havanas are the most universally collectible cigars today, with current offerings like the Cohiba Behike 56 bringing $53 each and past releases like the no-longer-produced Cuban Davidoff Dom Pérignon fetching $550 apiece or more.

The rarest category of collectible Cuban cigars was produced before February 3, 1962, the date President John F. Kennedy signed Proclamation 3447, which banned all U.S. trade with Cuba.

Pre-embargo Havanas are the only Cuban cigars that Americans can legally possess, provided there is documentation — such as a tax stamp or a sales receipt — proving that the cigars were purchased before the embargo. These cigars command premium prices if they have been stored correctly, not only because they can be legally bought and sold in the United States but also because many of them have mellowed and matured, like a fine vintage port.

A pre-embargo Montecristo No. 2 is worth $350 or more today; by comparison, a newly released Cuban Montecristo is about $17.50 in Europe. The prices at cigar lounges and restaurants can be even more staggering. At the Wellesley in London, a 40th Anniversary Cohiba Behike from 2005 is about $7,200. The French Laundry in California’s Napa Valley recently added a rare-cigar list that includes a 1961 Romeo y Julieta 5 × 40 Belvedere Corona for $350.

In many ways, the embargo was the best thing to happen for cigar collecting, because it resulted in Cuban cigar makers and tobacco growers migrating to the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Nicaragua, which are now the three most prolific cigar-producing countries outside of Cuba. Consequently, not all collectible cigars come from Havana anymore.

This shift started in the early 1980s, when Macanudo — which was manufacturing in Jamaica as well as the Dominican Republic — began releasing a series of vintage-dated cigars. Then in 1986, Dunhill began producing a Dominican Republic — made vintage-dated tubed cigar. In 1995, General Cigar Co. brought out a Partagas 150 Signature Series made in the Dominican Republic with an 18-year-old Cameroon wrapper.

That same year, the Fuente Fuente OpusX was introduced. This was the first commercially successful Dominican Republic puro, a cigar in which the wrapper, binder, and filler all come from the same country. Due to a continued combination of limited availability, extra-long aging, and word-of-mouth reputation, the OpusX has become one of the most collectible cigars in the world. 

"Pre-embargo handmade cigars from Cuba remain important to most collectors," says Alex Svenson, chief merchant at Cigar.com." 

This online source of collectible cigars includes what are probably the oldest cigars for sale anywhere: a box of West End 5 × 40 Cheroot perfectos made with Cuban tobacco by D.G. Weaver in Springfield, Ohio, in 1868, and listed at $450 each.

"But there are also some exciting products out there with real history that were made after the embargo," says Svenson. "Last year we brought in a box of Partagas that were rolled in Jamaica. Most people don’t realize that when Ramón Cifuentes left Cuba with the U.S. rights to Partagas, he first made the brand in Jamaica before shifting production to the Dominican Republic."

Getty Images/Joe RaedleA collectible cigar should be a top quality brand and have an excellent provenance.

Other interesting post-embargo lots at Cigar.com may soon include Joya de Nicaraguas from 1969, one of the first years of production for Nicaragua’s oldest cigar brand and older Macanudo Vintages, which Svenson says are heating up in value. "I haven’t seen a box of Vintage 1979 in almost five years, and certain clients have offered $30,000 for a box of 10 if I could track one down in good condition."

Edward Sahakian and his son Eddie, owners of Davidoff of London and a cigar lounge at the Bulgari Hotel in Knightsbridge, see increased collector interest in Dunhill and Davidoff cigars made in Cuba before the two companies transferred their factories to the Dominican Republic.

Edward also offers guidelines for collectors: "A collectible cigar from today’s perspective, with potential to become significantly more valuable in the future, would ideally have the following qualities: It will be a top-quality and desirable brand; it will be in a size that is in demand — for example, a robusto is better than a Lonsdale; it will originally be a limited edition; and it will have excellent provenance."

By provenance, Sahakian means the cigar will have been stored professionally and sourced from a reliable vendor. A merchant should be willing to discuss how its cigars are stored and aged, and where the stock was sourced.

Cigars need proper storage, at an average temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit with 70 percent humidity, although vintage examples should be stored colder and drier. Improperly stored cigars can dry out, although they might be rehumidified if oils remain in the leaves. But if a wrapper cracks, the cigar has lost value and may be unsmokable, depending on the severity and location of the flaw. That is one reason it is important to examine a box of rare cigars before purchasing it.