Mystical Cuba

An original lecture by club chairman Dmitry Gribov revealed Cuba’s mystical side — from the Regla district to the secret Abakuá brotherhood.

The third meeting was led by Dmitry Gribov — club chairman, editor-in-chief of CigarTime.ru and 2024 Habanos Ambassador. His original lecture explored hidden layers of Cuban history and the spiritual traditions that emerged in Havana’s Regla district.

The cigar of the evening was Orishas from the Russian Taino factory, named after the Cuban pantheon of deities. Among the guests were brand owner Anton Reyes, winner of the 2024 Aficionado of the Year award in the Cigar Producer category, and Denis Kibisov, director of the FUMELIER school and one of the club’s initiators, who came from Saint Petersburg.

Dmitry examined three strands of Cuba’s syncretic spirituality: Santería, Palo Monte and the closed male Abakuá brotherhood. The latter has existed in Havana for almost 190 years and is sometimes described by researchers as ‘Cuban Freemasonry’.

Within this story, the cigar appeared not simply as part of everyday culture, but as an essential attribute of certain rituals — an object through which the symbolic language of Cuban beliefs is revealed.

The culmination was an exclusive short film shot in parts of Havana usually hidden from tourists. It offered a glimpse of the setting in which cigar smoke acquires sacred meaning.

Guests continued discussing the lecture long after its formal conclusion. The club thanked Cigar Noir, Andrey Yumatov and Elina Yumatova for helping to host the evening.