I am a casual cigar smoker (3-5 per week), and over the last 10 years have tried a wide variety of smokes. IMO there are very few non-cuban cigars that match up with Cuban smokes. Of course, it is all about taste and preference but as a die hard Churchhill size smoker, my faves are Cohiba Lanceros 38 ring size (2001) and Romeo y Julieta Churchill Tubos ring size 47 (also 2001). These are creamy smokes (like spritzing boiling water through heavy cream to make a latte and inhaling the result) that are toasty, with highlights of pepper, spice with a distinct sweet flavor. The burn rate is even from beginning to end resulting in a beautiful ash and I can usually smoke to the last half inch without a loss of flavor (or skin
). Beware of counterfeits. 95% of all Cubans sold are fakes. There is no such thing as a discount, IMO, on Cubans of any sort, or factory seconds, etc.