Cigars 101

Cigar Knowledge

Preface

    I enjoy smoking cigars, if you do not smoke cigars, this is not me advocating nor pressuring you to smoke cigars. Whether you are a new smoker, or not a smoker, I think that in most cases, learning is edifying. I encourage you to stick around and browse the article, hopefully you'll learn something new and be better for it. 

A Brief History

    A cigar is a cylinder of tobacco that has been aged and seasoned to bring out unique characteristics held within the tobacco's leaves. Primitive cigars were originally smoked by the ancient Mayan people, who would roll tobacco in palm or plantain leaves before smoking it. Cigars and tobacco reached the Old World when Christopher Columbus brought tobacco back from the New World to Spain. The use of tobacco was quickly and widely adopted by Spain and Portugal. When the French Ambassador to Portugal, Jean Nicot, brought tobacco with him to France, the French quickly adopted the habit as well. At this time, the demand for tobacco increased significantly and Cuba began to grow and export tobacco to Europe and then eventually Asia.

Parts of a Cigar

    There are 3 components of a cigar: the wrapper, the filler and the binder. The strength and much of the flavor of a cigar comes from the cigar's filler. The filler is the innermost section of a cigar and is named by the country of its origin. The filler of a cigar consists of a combination of the Volado, Seco, Viso, and Ligero portions of the tobacco plant. Cigars are measured by length and ring gauge. Ring gauge is measured in 64th of an inch. This means that a 5 x 50 cigar is 5 inches long and 50/64th inches in diameter. A cigar that is thicker (closer to a 64 in ring gauge) has more internal room which allows for different types of filler to be rolled into a cigar. In practice, that means that the thicker a cigar, the more complex it can be. Cigar fillers can be long or short filled. Short filled cigars, use chopped up tobacco leaves and are generally lower in quality and machine made. Higher quality cigars are long filled. This means that the filler of the cigar is a whole tobacco leaf and was most likely hand rolled. 

    The binder of a cigar has little flavor and is used to maintain the structural integrity of the cigar. Cigars that have loose binder, tend to burn quickly and unevenly, while cigars that have a too tight binder, are hard to draw from and may need constant maintenance. 

    The last portion of a cigar is the wrapper. The wrapper is made from the highest quality leaf and affects the structure, the burn, and the flavor of the cigar. Because the wrapper touches your lips when smoked, the flavor of the cigar is heavily dependent on the cigar's wrapper. Cigars that are smaller in diameter, have less filler, in practice this means that the flavor of the cigar will be more dependent on the cigar's wrapper. Needless to say, the thicker a cigar, the less the wrapper will influence the flavor, and the more the cigar's filler will contribute to the overall taste. For this reason, the same cigar will taste slightly different across its available ring gauges.

Cigar Anatomy

    The entirety of a cigar is called the barrel and can generally be broken down into the head, the body and the foot of the cigar. The foot is the end of the cigar. For most cigars, the foot is already pre-cut. The exposed filler of the cigar is sometimes called the tuck (especially by European smokers) however, most individuals colloquially still call this section the foot. When smoking the cigar, the foot (tuck) will be toasted in preparation for smoking and then fully lit.  The body of the cigar spans the majority of the cigars length and consists of the area between the foot (tuck) and the cigars band. Likewise, the head of the cigar usually references the area directly before the end of the uncut cigar and the cigar's band. The band of the cigar is the paper that wraps around the cigar and houses the cigars information. The head of the cigar consists of two sections, the cap and the shoulder. The cap of a cigar is a separate piece of wrapper that is meant to be cut off or pierced so that the cigar can be smoked. The shoulder of a cigar is the section of the cigar that begins to curve towards the body. If the cigar is cut past the shoulder a cigar will begin to unravel.

Cigar Classifications

    There are many ways to classify a cigar. For ease of reading, I have all of the classification listed in bullet format.

• By Origin
• Puros: Cigars whose wrapper, binder, and filler all come from the same country.
• Blends or Blended Cigars: Cigars whose wrapper, binder and filler are from different countries. (Most fall into this category)
• By Shape
• Parejos: Cigars who are straight sided, and have a uniform diameter across their body
• Parejos are generally, cut on one side and have a rounded head.
• Parejos can come round or box pressed
• Corona: the standard Parejo measuring 5-5½-6 x 42-44
• Petite Corona: ~4½ x 40-42
• Churchill: 7½  x 47
• Robusto: 4¾-5½ x 48-52 (very popular in the US)
• Toro: aka Corona Gorda 5 5/8 x 46 or 6 x 50
• Double Corona: 7½-8½ x 49-52
• Panetela: 5-7½ x 34-38
• Lonsdale: 6½ x 42
• Grande: 4¾-7 x 60-80
• Figurados: any cigar that is not a straight sided cylinder with a rounded head.
• Pyramid: a cigar with a cut foot, but a tapered head. 6-7 x 40 at head to 52-54 at foot
• Belicoso: a pyramid with a slightly rounded tapered head 5-5½ - 50
• Torpedo:  a pyramid with a very sharp pointed head
• Perfecto: a tapered head and tapered foot
• Diadema: a larger perfecto (around 8 inches in length)
• By Wrapper
• Cigar wrappers get their flavor from the strain and location from which they originate from as well as how long they have been fermented and aged.
• Connecticut: a very light wrapper grown in the Northeastern United States. Usually Mild in flavor and low in nicotine
• flavor: light, woody and spicy
• Corojo: a darker shade of wrapper typically grown in Honduras
• flavor: peppery and spicy
• Habano a darker shade of wrapper typically grown in Nicaragua, has a higher nicotine content.
• flavor; dark, heavily spicy and peppery
• Maduro: Dark and heavily aged
• flavor; dark, bittersweet and spicy
• Oscuro: very dark in color, sometimes known as a double Maduro due to the longer fermentation time needed to create its distinct color.
• Sumatra: dark in color, grown in Indonesian
• flavor; cinnamon, mild, and sweet
• Cameroon: brown in color. grown in Central Africa
• flavor: rich, full and savory

How Cigars are Made

    The production of cigars begins long before tobacco is planted. Before the growing season begins, a tobacco farmer will inspect the soil for the correct amount of nutrients. Once the quality of the ground has been ensured, the tobacco's seeds are either planted in direct sunlight or underneath a cheesecloth. Tobacco that is grown in direct sunlight are called "Sun Grown" and will generally reach 5 ft in height. These tobacco plants will eventually be processed and form the wrappers, binders and fillers of cigars. Tobacco plants grown underneath a cheesecloth are called "Shade Grown" tobacco; they will usually grow to 8 or 9 ft in height and are almost exclusively used to make wrappers. As the tobacco plant is grown it is monitored regularly for quality, size, health, and maturity. 

    Once the tobacco plant has matured, it will be harvested in sections. The classification for each section of the tobacco plant is dependent on the size and area from which the leaf was harvested. Volado is the largest of the tobacco leaves and it is found on the bottom of the plant. The Volado portion of the tobacco plant generally contains the lowest amount of nicotine. Seco, is the bottom middle of the tobacco plant and has a moderately sized leaf with a moderate amount of nicotine. Viso is the middle top portion of the tobacco plant and has a moderate leaf size with higher levels of nicotine than the Seco portion. Ligero, the top of the tobacco plant, has the smallest leaves and contains the highest amount of nicotine.

    After the leaves of the tobacco plant have been picked and separated, the bundles of leaves are bunched together and hung in a curing barn. As the tobacco dries and is cured, the leaves will turn yellow and then brown, it is during this time that the midrib (the vein dividing each leaf in two halves) shrinks. The tobacco plant is fully cured and ready to be sorted when the tobacco leaf is evenly browned.

    Once the tobacco leaves have been properly cured, they will be sorted according to quality into: fillers, binders and wrappers. In most cases, the best quality leaves are selected to be wrappers while the lower quality leaves become binders or fillers. After sortation occurs, the leaves are rehydrated and stacked into 1-ton groups called pilons. The immense weight causes pressure and heat to form in the pilons. Each pilon reaches an internal temperature of around 120 degrees allowing fermentation to occur. The fermentation of each pilon removes unwanted nutrients from the leaves, leaving only the taste of tobacco. To ensure proper fermentation in each pilon, the bottom, middle and top sections of the pilon are rotated and flipped approximately every week for several months to a year.

    After fermentation has been completed, pilons are disassembled and the hand rolling of each cigar can begin. The filler of a cigar is bunched together within a binder leaf. Once the filler and binder are adhered together, the whole unit is draw tested by a machine. If the binder and filler pass the draw test, a roller will apply the wrapper and create a cigar. Once the cigar is fully formed, it will undergo a quality inspection to ensure the ring gauge, appearance, color, and draw, adhere to the standards set by the manufacturer. All passing cigars are put into an aging room, where they will rest as the parts of the cigar adhere together. After a cigar has been aged properly, it will be inspected for quality a second time and then be optionally box pressed, then banded and boxed for sale. Since growing, curing, fermenting, and aging are all time intensive steps, a cigar may take 5 years or more before it is finished and ready to sell.

How To Smoke

The Prep

    The process of smoking a cigar begins long before a cigar is cut and lit. To enjoy a cigar to the fullest first select your preferred cigar from the humidor. Before purchasing the cigar, examine the foot, the wrapper, the head and the cap of the cigar. Inspect the cigar's filler through the foot. Most cigars in the US are long filled, this means in practice that the density and quality within the entirety of the cigar's body can be examined, for the most part, through the foot. If the foot of the cigar is adequately packed and dense, examine the wrapper for tearing, cuts or the binder of the cigar showing through a rip in the wrapper. A ripped wrapper can usually indicate a rip in the binder. This will affect the overall quality of your draw, how evenly your cigar will burn, and how well the ember will be insulated and maintained. If the wrapper is intact. Examine the body of the cigar as a whole for deformities. If the cigar is uniform in its body, press gently on the cigar. The cigar should give a little under the pressure of your fingers, but should be able to return to its original form. This will help indicate if a cigar has been properly humidified. A dry cigar will be hard, and the body of the cigar will not return to its original form. This does not mean that you should try and squish a cigar. DO NOT DAMAGE A CIGAR YOU HAVE NOT PURCHASED. As with all things, if you break something, you have the obligation to pay for it. Once the wrapper, the foot and the body of the cigar have been examined, move onto the head and the cap of the cigar. Make sure the head and the cap of the cigar are firmly in place and there is no damage or pinching of the cap. Check the shoulder of the cigar for fraying. If the shoulder is fraying or peeling that means that you risk unraveling a portion of the wrapper or binder when you cut the cigar. If all of the parts of the cigar are in good condition, politely exit the humidor, purchase the cigar, and get ready to cut.

The Cut

    There are multiple ways to cut a cigar. The V-cut, rose cut, and the straight cut all use the same basic mechanics. The only exception to this is the punch cut and non-handheld cutters.

    To use a handheld cutter, open the cutter and place the cigar inside, with the cigar's cap, in the center of the cutter. The cigar should not be extended past the shoulder. If the cigar is cut past the shoulder, the cigar's wrapper will most likely come loose. Grip the cutter firmly and in a single swift motion close the cutter around the cap and firmly sever the end of the cigar. A good cut will be swift, clean, even, and lack any appearance of tearing. To use a punch cutter, prime the cutter and line the punch portion with the center of the cigar's cap. Firmly press and lightly twist the punch into the cigar. Once the cigar is properly punched, remove the punch and press the button to remove the debris from the inside of the punch.

    If you notice that your cutter is squeezing your cigar before the bite cuts into the cigar, or if you notice that your cut is jagged and not even, then your cutter is dull and needs to be resharpened or replaced. I find that if I have a poor cutter and I must make do, placing the cigar in my mouth and having a small amount of saliva soften the cap allows a proper cut even from a poorly maintained cutter. If you are using a house cutter, (a cutter that belongs to the cigar lounge), it is improper etiquette to put the cigar in your mouth before cutting. If you need to soften the cap of the cigar and you are using a house cutter, quickly dip the cap of your cigar in whatever whiskey you are drinking and proceed to cut the cigar accordingly.

    How the cigar is cut affects the draw of the cigar. Punched cigars, remove the smallest area from the cap. This allows the cigar to maintain its structural integrity at the risk of a poor draw. V cuts and rose cuts have a moderate draw and are less risky towards the structure of the cigar than the straight cut. The straight cut provides the best draw but can ruin the structural integrity of the cigar if the cigar is cut past the shoulder.

Light and Draw

    To properly smoke a cigar first you must toast the foot. Toasting the foot of the cigar ensures that when the cigar is actually lit, it will maintain an even burn and form a proper ember. To toast the foot of the cigar, light the cigar torch and slowly bring the center of the cigar's foot towards the edge of the blue of the flame. Once the cigar starts to smoke slightly, start to slowly make an outward spiral with the torch, until the full foot of the cigar is blackened. Avoid overly charring the outer edge of the cigar. A cigar's foot will be properly charred when the filler in the cigars foot is fully blackened.

    To properly smoke a cigar, a proper seal when drawing is imperative. In order to properly draw from the cigar, you must first gently bite the head of the cigar, and then make an O-ring seal around the cigar using your lips. Relight the cigar torch and focus the flame on the foot of the cigar. and the ember forms, draw air through the cigar like you are sucking through a straw. Draw fully and deeply and release the smoke by breaking the O-ring seal and pushing the smoke out of your mouth. This action will be almost exactly like drinking and releasing water from a straw. Draw deeply and release the smoke until the smoke that escapes your mouth is thick and full, once the smoke is proper in volume, then the cigar is fully lit.

Cigar Maintenance

    When smoking a cigar, ensure that you take regular and deep draws so that the cigar will stay lit. Once a cigar has been smoked for a while the ash will collect on the end of the cigar. This pile of ash is called the ash stack. It can be removed by gently but firmly taping the body of the cigar parallel to the ashtray, with your index finger on the back of the cigar body. Over time the wrapper of the cigar should burn evenly around the circumference of the cigar, if one side of the cigar begins to light quicker and the cigar is not burning evenly, this can be fixed in two ways. The first method for correcting an uneven burn is to wet the end of your finger by either licking it or dipping it in a drink, and rubbing a horizontal line underneath the side of the cigar that is burning too quickly. The second method for evening the cigar's burn is to take a torch at a 45 angle and gently light the side of the cigar that is not burning well. Both methods will work well together if a cigar is burning unevenly.

Personal Recommendations

    For individuals new to smoking I recommend smoking Connecticut cigars. Connecticuts are easier on the palate and typically contain less nicotine than stronger cigars, this will allow you as a beginner to enjoy the cigar more and avoid the nausea associated with high levels of nicotine in the bloodstream. My personal list of favorite cigars for beginners is as follows:

• Aladino Connecticut
• Perdomo Habano Connecticut
• Macanudo Inspirado White
• Macanudo Cafe (Hampton Court)
• Carillo New Wave Classics Connecticut
• Blind Man's Bluff Connecticut
• Rocky Patel White Label
• Black Works Trading Co's Rorschach

Lounge and Smoking Etiquette

Like with all of society there are rules and etiquette that must be observed while smoking at a cigar lounge. It is imperative that you follow these spoken and unspoken rules so that you can enjoy your cigar, appear competent, and form a proper image among fellow men. The rules and etiquette of smoking are as follows:

Rules and Etiquette:

• Hold your cigar between your index and middle finger, in the space before the first joint. The ring finger should be straight with the index finger wrapping around the cigar.
• Tap the ash stack firmly against the ashtray when the ash stack gets long.
• Do not spill ash outside of the ashtray (if you do spill ash, clean it up).
• Do not blow smoke at anyone.
• Be cordial
• Draws should be long and deep. Short and quick puffs are not suitable for properly tasting a cigar.
• Do not correct anyone on the way they smoke.
• Do not interrupt or interject into conversations.
• When offered a drink, say yes. (unless absolutely inebriated).
• Do not be loud unless others are loud.
• Do not be offended easily.
• Be honest about your smoking knowledge and experience. It is okay and especially welcome to be a beginner.
• Do not smoke a cigar purchased from a different lounge, unless you first purchase a cigar from the lounge that you are at.
• Do not damage or put a cigar near your nose or mouth unless you have purchased that cigar.
• Offer your lighter and cutter if someone has an unlit/uncut cigar.
• Greet others upon entering and exiting a lounge.
• Do not play music or media out loud.
• Dispose of the cigar by dropping it into an ashtray. Do not squish or rub the ember out of the cigar like a cigarette.
• Take calls outside of the lounge away from other people.
• Be a good guy.

References

• https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/cigar-shapes-sizes-and-colors-8094
• https://www.jrcigars.com/blending-room/university/cigars-101/wrappers/
• https://totalleafsupply.com/grades-of-tobacco-leaf/
• https://www.holts.com/clubhouse/cigar-101/cigar-fillers
• https://www.cigarsinternational.com/cigar-101/cigar-basics
• https://www.rockypatel.com/cigar-factories/how-a-cigar-is-made/