Tobacco

CIGAR

All the main cultured varieties of tobacco belong to the Nicotina Tabacum family. The tobacco plants are annuals. Time between sowing and picking the ripe leaves takes no more than 5 months.

Picking is normally done by hand and in three steps. The bottom leaves are the first to show discoloration (time to harvest them) then the middle ones and finally the top leaves.

After the leaves are picked, they are hung up to dry for about three weeks. The next stage is fermenting the leaves. This fermentation changes the tobacco characteristics; the colour of the leaves is much more uniform and the final aromas have been created.

The final step in the process is grading the leaves by color and by size. Afterwards they are pressed into bales. These bales are shipped to the auctions where our master blenders buy their tobaccos.

Types of cigars

In general cigars can be divided into two types:

Long filler cigars (wet cigars)

The filler consists of whole leaves, laid parallel to each other and wrapped with a tobacco leaf. This type of cigar is normally hand-made, big and very expensive. They originate mainly form the Caribbean area: Cuba, The Dominican Republic and the U.S.A.
The Cuban Cigar is a product from a warm and very humid country, so it should be kept and smoked moist. As far as taste and aroma are concerned these products are completely different from the Dutch cigars.

Short filler cigars (dry cigars)

The filler consists of a large variety of threshed tobacco particles. Virtually all the European cigars are short filler. A great advantage of short filler is that they allow the manufacturer to use more tobaccos to compose a blend. As a consequence there can be greater variations in flavour.
Additionally the small particles provide a consistent, easy draw when smoked. Short fillers are dry cigars with a low degree of humidity (about 12%) and they can only be fully enjoyed in a really dry condition.

Cigars consists of three important parts

Filler: The filler tobacco is a blend of up to 20 different types of tobacco. This tobacco must be free of stems and veins and is carefully selected according to pre-determined quality requirements. Filler tobaccos must be aromatic and tasteful.

Binder: This is the tobacco leaf, which surrounds the filler tobacco and keeps it together. Filler and binder together are called a "bunch" and this is the name used for the unfinished cigar before wrapper is added.

Wrapper: That is the outside leaf, which is visible on every cigar and must be of natural tobacco. It is possible to make a cigar without a binder, but never without a wrapper. The wrapper is an important element for the flavour of the cigar and also for its burning qualities.

How to Store Your Cigars

Temperature
The recommended temperature is 18-20°C with extremes of 12-35°C. Severe cold, excessive heat and sudden changes in temperature should be avoided. In general, cigars should be kept away from places where the temperature is higher or lower than the normal room temperature throughout the year, such as the floor, against outside walls or near sources of heat.

Shelf life
Given lack of humidity, mould or staleness will never threaten the quality of cigars. Therefore, shelf life is practically unlimited under normal climatic and handling conditions.
Several years of storage do not affect the quality of the cigars in the least, provided they are not humidified and not moved about frequently. On the contrary, years of storage will improve their flavour. Like some good wines, cigars like to age to bring the integration of the blend to perfection. cigars are kept in humidor

Shapes

Although there are many variations, there are two basic cigar shapes:

Parejos: cigars with straight sides. Parejos are again divided in to three sub categories – Coronas, Panatelas, and Lonsdale.

Figurados: Cigars of irregular shapes. The figurados are the most difficult shapes to roll and made by the most experienced rollers. Figurados are further divided into four sub categories. Belicosos, Pyramids, Perfectos, and Diademas.

Sizes

Belvedere, Ascot, Demitasse: 3 to 5 inches long.

Petite Corona: 4 ½ to 5 inches long.

Robusto or Rothschild: 4 ½ inches

Corona: 5 ½ inches long

Corona extra or Corona Royal: 5 ¾ inches long

Panatela: 6 to 6 ½ inches long

Lonsdale: 6 inches long

Corona Grandes: 6 to 6 ½ inches long

Churchill: 7 inches long

Double Corona, Long Panatela: 7 ½ - 8 inches long

Gigante, President or Immensa: 8 ½ inches long

Glossary

Aroma: The odor of a smoke of a burning cigar. Premium cigar should have a pleasant aroma, if it does not; then it is the result of inferior tobacco or improper storage.

Belicosos: General term used to describe cigars that share the common characteristics of being both of a large ring gauge and having a pointed tip. This term can be applied to the petite Belicoso, Torpedo, Pyramid, Perfecto, and Diadamas.

Bloom or Plume: In rare instances bloom appears as a fine white powder on the wrapper of high quality cigars. It is remarkable because it indicates an extremely high quality wrapper leaf that was perfectly fermented and subsequently stored under optimal

conditions, and has been maintained in that condition ever since. It is harmless and can be brushed off. It is sometimes confused with mold, but mold is usually seen with blue-green in color.

Bouquet: The aroma of a fine cigar before it has been lit. If a cigar has been properly stored, the cigar should have a mild, pleasant nose to it.

Box pressed (Cuban): Old tradition originated in Cuba.  Flat sided cigar with a rectangular shape.

Ciggarro: Spanish term for cigar.

Claro:  A pale green to light sometimes yellowish wrapper, usually grown under a shade.

Colorado Claro: A darker wrapper than the standard claro.

Colorado Maduro: A medium brown wrapper.

Colorado: A medium brown to brownish red tobacco used as a wrapper leaf.

Coronas: A sub category of straight-sided cigars.

Curing:  Immediately after harvesting, the tobacco is dried to remove all of the natural sap from leafs so that it can be further processed and/or manufactured. There are four primary methods of curing – air curing, flue curing, fire curing, and sun curing.

Diadamas: A large belicoso cigar that is approximately 8 inches in length.

Hogshead:  A round wooden container used to hold tobacco while it is transported, stored, or aged.

Humidor:  A room, or box of varying size, designed to preserve or promote the proper aging of cigars by maintaining a humidity level of 70% - 80% and a temperature of approximately 65 – 75°F.

Lonsdales: A sub category of Parejos that are in-between coronas and panatelas in length and thickness.

Maduro:  A dark reddish to almost black shade of wrapper. The word means “ripe” in Spanish.

Mold: A potentially damaging fungus that forms on a cigar when it is stored at too high a temperature and/or humidity.

Naked: An industry term used to describe a cigar that is not covered by cellophane or a tube.

Panatelas:  A sub category of Parejos cigars that is usually longer and thinner than coronas.

Perfecto: A type of cigar with a unique characteristic of having a bulge in the middle and closed at both ends.

Petite coronas: A small corona of 5 – 5 ¼ inches.

Pyramid:  A pyramid is a figurado typically of 6 ½ to 7 inches in length with a taper that comes to a point. The term is commonly used as interchangeably with torpedo, also a figurado, and the difference being the angle used.

Torpedo: An uncommon shape and size. Varies in length and ring gauge, has a pointed cone shaped head, bulge in the body, and relatively flat foot. About 6 –7 inches long.

Ziggare: German term for cigar.