🇨🇺 cuban handmade cigar sun grown tobacco farm with cigar master blender in vinales

Sun grown tobacco for Cuban cigar master blender #whereintheworldisnadia #cubancigars The art of cultivating tobacco is a thread intricately woven into the fabric of Cuba. When Christopher Columbus arrived on the island he observed the Taíno native population rolling dried tobacco leaves in saltwater-dipped palm or plantain leaves. The use of tobacco spread rapidly among colonists and despite early criticism, the practice of smoking grabbed hold of Europe. Its popularity crossed all borders and socio-economic lines, creating a booming global industry.

Monday May 6th

Up early ate breakfast. Taxi Driver Luis drove us to Vinales. 3 hours away. One rest stop took photos of Belly palm made by Evan. We had machete’s it was Hilarious! The chair maker was making kitty sounds. On our way again. Stopped at Restaurant El Campesino Bar-restaurant for lunch. Booked horseback ride of Tabaco factory. Willfredo picked us up in a horse drawn cart with a cover. Very bumpy road!!!!! Arrived on farm tabaco already picked. Hanging on wood dolls 8 rows up and 15 rows across large barn! After our talk which I videotaped. We watched him roll a cigar. I thought we were going to roll one :/ oh well. His name was Gao Gamez Martin he was a master blender. He gave us a cigar to smoke dipped in Honey first then he lit it up. Yuk did not inhale. Next I met my horse Ploama. A grey very docile. Photos with cigar and bottle of rum. Willfredo said a man only needs three things a cigar bottle of rum and a woman! HA HA HA. Next Nadia and Martina road in the horse drawn cart and I followed. We went down a two lane road with house’s next to the road. We got to the turn off, on a dirt road to the coffee plantation. There we got a tour from Edianis very pretty tour guide. She told us about the coffee beans which are arabica beans. That is the only region that grows that particular kind of coffee bean. The rum is made from the guava fruit. Which are very small guavas that they put in the bottle. It is a small factory bottle by hand. The honey is made by black bees that don’t sting only bite no stingers. They have nests under-ground under the roots of the coffee plant and build up the nest 1-2 meters above ground. The bees get the nectar from coffee flowers, mostly the white ones. The honey has a high content of propolis which is very healthy. They use it for any symptoms of illness and put it in the coffee. SOOOO we again bought honey rum and coffee. LOL everyone wants to sell us something. Drive home long. Driver stopped at road-side fruit stand. Then to get ham that is only sold on Monday.