Posted on 10/25/2018 8:44:26 AM PDT by Olog-hai
Sugar: its so quintessentially Cuban that even a young, machete-wielding Fidel Castro used to hack away at the cane stalks vital to the Caribbean islands economy.
Now, the long-time world leader in sugar production is importing the stuff for the first time, and in large amounts, from France after another bad harvest.
Sugar used to account for the vast majority of Cubas exports. But the fall of its big brother, the Soviet Union a key, hungry customer changed everything, as did a lack of investment in seeds, fertilizer and pesticides.
To wit: in the early 1990s, Cuba produced about eight million tons of sugar a year. A decade later, it stopped reaching two million a year.
Back then, sugar accounted for almost 75 percent of Cuban exports. In 2015, it was only 13 percent, with other products like nickel and tobacco making up some of the difference.
The 2017-2018 harvest suffered badly after Hurricane Irma ravaged the country, followed by a long rainy season.
So Cuba is importing sugar from France.
(Excerpt) Read more at afp.com ...
Are there any commie countries - now or in the past - that ‘worked’ or were ‘pleasant’ or just weren’t ‘totalitarian hellholes’?
I did not say it was better, just being honest about what I believe would have happened as a result. I could be wrong, but I doubt it.
The blood of Fidel’s victims is solely on Fidel and his acolytes. I won’t be guilted by them.
Been working all day.
What was the question?
I smoke any Dupont, Puro Presidente: Padrón 1964 Anniversary , My Father La Opulencia and Benson Hedge 100 menthol....LoL
I’d have to look in my humidor for whatever I smoke.
Now I’ll read your post...
I think I understand now.
Yes the seeds have been transplanted but, the tobacco is distinguished by more than a seedling and things like earth, altitude, climate, amount of water received, is it in a valley near the sea, in the foothills and the influence of other plants also distinguish the tobacco
And eff no, I don’t smoke Cubans. Unless their name is Tony Montana and he is pointing a weapon at me.
Cuban cigars don’t really distinguish themselves with a variety of flavors that are subtle and grow as the bore is smoked down.
There are just better cigars out there IMO and such a wide variety.
The world has matured and moved past Cuba’s glory days of the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s...
I only have them for the fun and myth and also no problem if a friend expresses distaste in one and prefers to grab something else, tossing the Cuban in the trash...
I’m going to Berkeley tomorrow and pick up some cigars.
Dunno whut but, this cigar place let’s you roam freely and gives pointers
I’ll try to post what I got
Real story: my Dad and I happened to be in Vietnam at nearly the same time; he was a Colonel, I was a Lt flying Hueys. Dad knew an influential Vietnamese who introduced me to H. Upmann cigars in the aluminum case. Unlike anything I smoked until I quit smoking altogether.
Anyway, hope the Cuban commies go broke trying to compete with cigars made in free territories.
Like when the USA started selling wheat to the Russians.
Are you talking about ‘The Great American Grain Robbery’ of ‘72?
Thank you.
Not a cigar aficionado so I know little.
From my understanding the Cubans really gave the rest of the worlds tobacco growers a break by completely mismanaging their fields after Castro took over.
As I understood it they simply kept planting their fields over and over, over fertilising to force the ground to grow tobacco.
The condition of the land affects leaf appearance and flavor.
Tobacco is very hard on land and needs proper management.
We used to rotate the tobacco fields so that a field had three years of rest between tobacco plantings.
Tobacco For one year potatoes for 3 years
LOL
And I just drove by Berkeley and don’t have time to turn around to pick up those cigars
Next week!
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