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The best
tobacco in the world is
grown on
the Caribbean island of
Cuba, on
plantations (Vegas) in the
region known as Vuelta Abajo.
After the
harvest, the tobacco
leaves are air-cured, as opposed
to being dried in the sun
(sun-cured). The fermentation
which follows occurs in
so-called Burros, which are
piles of tobacco in which the
tobacco gradually ripens.
Handmade cigars consist of a
filler (Spanisch: Tripa), a
binder leaf (Capote) and an
outer wrapper (Capa). The
wrappers come in dozens of
colors (approx. 60), such as
Claro, Colorado, Maduro, Oscuro
and many more. The particularly
light wrappers are also known as
AMS or American Market
Selection. In contrast, the EMS,
or English Market Selection,
features dark wrappers. Often
the outer wrappers originate
from the State of Connecticut in
the USA. In
Cuba, the wrappers,
as a rule, come from Corojo
tobacco leaves – a special kind
of wrapper is called Candela.
The filler
strongly determines the taste of
the cigar, which is why the
blend is of the greatest
importance.
Cuban cigars, also
known as Habanos, are always
Puros, which mean they are
comprised of 100% Cuban tobacco.
A few of the tobacco varieties
that are found in long-filler
cigars are Criollo and Piloto
Cubano. At the top of the
tobacco plant grow the most
sun-pampered and strongest
leaves, the Ligero leaves, at
the bottom the Volado leaves can
be found.
Hand-made
cigars, or in Spanish “hecho a
mano”, are called English Long
Fillers (spanish: Tripa Larga).
There are various
formats
available. The first distinction
can be made between Parejos
(straight) and Figurados (those
with an odd form), variations of
which are the Perfecto, e.g. the
Perfectos of
Cuaba, the popular
Robusto, e.g. the
Cohiba
Robusto, the Corona, the
Petit
Corona, the Belicoso, the
Double
Corona, the
Lanceros, e.g. the
Trinidad Lanceros, to name a
few. The diameter of a cigar is
called the ring, in Spanish
often Vitola. The Chaveta (hand
knife) plays an important role
in the production of a cigar,
with which the Torcedor (cigar
roller) cuts the tobacco leaves
into the proper shape for
rolling. The scraps from the
tobacco leaves which are left
over, called Picadura, are used
in the manufacturing of
partially machine-made cigars
(so-called Short Fillers – in
Spanish: Tripa Corta). To
finish, a cigar band is attached
to complete the cigar.
A Premium
cigar is optimally stored in a
Humidor. By the way, the fine
white dust which can occur
during storage is a result of
the
natural fermentation process
and is just a harmless
mineral-salt residue, also
called a bloom, which can simply
be removed with a brush. Before
a cigar can be enjoyed, however,
it first must be cut at the foot
end. The head, or cap, is the
end which is placed in the
smoker’s mouth. Cigars which
have not been pre-cut at the
factory have a closed cap and
approximately 2 mm must be cut
off the end preferably with a
Guillotine cutter before
enjoyment. A bullet style
cutter is also a satisfactory
alternative, which punches a
small round piece of tobacco out
of the mouth end.
In no case
should a cigar be inhaled, but
rather the smoke should be drawn
slowly into the mouth, and it’s
flavors thoroughly enjoyed
before being leisurely released,
whereby one’s nose should be
included in appreciating the
luxurious cloud of smoke.
A few words
to the types of packaging
available: there are many
varieties, one of them the
so-called 8-9-8, i.e. the
Partagas 8-9-8 (a box of 25
cigars in three layers of eight,
nine and eight cigars,
respectively), another is called
a cabinet, such as the
Bolivar
Belicosos Finos Cabinet (a
glossy wood box with a sliding
cover, English: Slide Lid Box),
and then of course there is the
common flat, multicolored
25-piece box, decorated with
coats of arms and symbols, e.g.
the
Montecristo No. 4.
Copyright © by DonCigarro,
CH-8702 Zollikon
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