Cigars 101

What makes a cigar premium, the parts of a cigar from cap to foot, and the three leaves inside it.

What the wrapper, binder, and filler each do, and how filler leaves from different parts of the plant are blended.

An overview of how a cigar is made, from planting the seed to packing the finished cigars in a box.

How cigar tobacco is grown, from seedbeds to the field, and why wrapper leaf is often grown under shade cloth.

How cured tobacco is fermented in piles called pilones, why the piles are turned, and why ligero and maduro leaf ferment longer.

How a blender chooses the tobaccos for a cigar, tests them with trial cigars and tasting panels, and keeps the blend consistent from one crop to the next.

How a buncher and a roller make a cigar by hand, from bunching the filler to putting on the cap.

How cigar factories check their work, from draw-testing machines to inspection and tasting, and how to judge a cigar's construction yourself.

How machine-made cigars are produced, how they differ from handmade cigars, and how to tell them apart.

The main wrapper colors, from claro to oscuro, and common wrapper types such as Connecticut, Habano, and Cameroon.

How Cuban cigars differ from cigars made in other countries, and how the non-Cuban industry grew after the U.S. embargo.

How cigar length and ring gauge are measured, with the usual ranges for common sizes.

The usual size of a robusto and why it is one of the most common sizes today.

The corona, petit corona, and corona gorda: their usual sizes and how they differ.

The Churchill size, how it got its name, and its shorter and thicker variants.

The long, thin lancero: its usual size, its pigtail cap, and why it is a specialty size.

Cigars with a pointed head, such as the torpedo, belicoso, and pyramid, and how to cut them.

Perfectos and other figurados, the cigars with a closed or tapered foot or a bulging body.

What strength, body, and flavor mean for a cigar, and why a bigger cigar is not always a stronger one.

How to choose a first premium cigar by size and strength.

How to cut the cap without damaging the cigar, and how to toast and light the foot evenly.

How to smoke a cigar: not inhaling, how often to puff, what to do with the ash, relighting, and when to stop.

How to store cigars in a humidor, including Spanish cedar, seasoning, and the humidity ranges most often recommended.

The order of steps for a first humidor: buy it, season it, add humidity control, then add cigars.

What to look for when you buy a humidor: a good seal, Spanish cedar, the right size, a hygrometer, and humidity control.

Step-by-step instructions for seasoning a new Spanish cedar humidor before you put cigars in it.

Why Spanish cedar is used to line humidors and cigar boxes, and which other woods are sometimes used.

How humidity packs, beads, foam humidifiers, and electronic units keep a humidor steady, how to calibrate a hygrometer with a salt test, and how to bring dry cigars back slowly.

How guillotine, V-cut, and punch cutters work, and what each one does to the cap and the draw.

Torch lighters compared with soft-flame lighters and matches, including control, wind, fuel, and toasting.

Cases, tubes, and travel humidors that keep cigars in good condition while you travel.

A short history of the cigar, from its Caribbean origins and Cuba to the embargo and the cigar industry outside Cuba.

Winston Churchill's cigar habit, the Cuban cigars he smoked, and the cigar size named after him.

A short directory of well-known cigar lounges in major cities around the world, with addresses and contact details, plus tips for a first visit.

The main cigar regions of Nicaragua, how the country became a leading producer, and profiles of the brands made there.

Brand profiles: Padrón, Oliva, Perdomo, Rocky Patel (also Honduras), My Father, Drew Estate, AJ Fernandez, Joya de Nicaragua, Plasencia (also Honduras), Montecristo (Dominican) (also Dominican Republic), Alec Bradley (also Honduras), CAO (also Honduras)

Also: José Orlando Padrón, Padrón in Estelí

The cigar industry around Santiago and the Cibao valley, how Cuban exiles helped build it, and profiles of the brands made there.

Brand profiles: Arturo Fuente, Ashton, Gurkha, Cohiba (Dominican), Partagás (Dominican), Montecristo (Dominican) (also Nicaragua), Macanudo, Davidoff, La Flor Dominicana

Also: Carlos Fuente, Tabacalera A. Fuente

The cigar industry around Danlí and the Jamastrán valley, and profiles of the brands made there, including U.S.-market versions of old Cuban brands.

Brand profiles: Alec Bradley (also Nicaragua), CAO (also Nicaragua), Rocky Patel (also Nicaragua), Punch (Honduran), Hoyo de Monterrey (Honduran), Camacho, CLE (Christian Eiroa), Gran Habano, Plasencia (also Nicaragua)

How Cuba's state cigar industry has worked since 1959, why many Cuban brand names also exist as separate non-Cuban brands, and profiles of the Cuban brands.

Brand profiles: Cohiba, Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta, Partagás, H. Upmann, Hoyo de Monterrey, Bolívar, Punch, Trinidad, Ramón Allones, Cuaba, Vegas Robaina, San Cristóbal de La Habana, Quai d'Orsay, Diplomáticos

The history of the Cuban and U.S.-market Cohiba names, the trademark case since 1997, where the appeal stands, and how to tell the two cigars apart.

Short definitions of cigar terms for leaf, sizes, construction, storage, and tasting, from A to Z.