A vitola is a size. In a Cuban factory the word is exact: this mold, this length, this ring gauge, this shape. In American shops it is looser — robusto, toro, Churchill — names that drift a few millimeters depending on the house.
Two families of silhouette: parejo (straight sides, round or box-pressed) and figurado (torpedo, perfecto, belicoso, and other shaped cigars). The name on the box is a tradition, not a law. One maker’s “toro” is another maker’s “corona gorda.”
Vitola changes time in the ashtray and the ratio of wrapper to filler. It does not change the country of origin. For how size meets blend, see how cigars are made.