A Churchill is a long parejo (straight-sided cigar). The Cuban factory size most often cited is seven inches long with a forty-seven ring gauge, known in Cuban factories as the Julieta No. 2. Magazines and New World companies also use the name for cigars of similar sizes. In practical terms, a Churchill takes an hour or more to smoke if you take your time.
Glossary entry: churchill. The size is named after Winston Churchill. For the measurements of other sizes, see the ring gauge and length cheat-sheet.
Name, mold, and shop variants
Winston Churchill smoked Cuban cigars in public for most of his long life and is well known for his connection to Romeo y Julieta. The long parejo existed as a factory size regardless of his visits to Havana. The English name gave shops an easy word for a long cigar, instead of a factory mold number.
Public records do not agree on when “Churchill” first appeared on a band, so this book does not give a year.
Shops later added the petit Churchill (shorter) and the wide Churchill (thicker). These sizes use the famous name more than they follow the original Julieta shape. If a band says Churchill and the cigar measures 6 × 50, it is a marketing variation, not the classic size. That 6 x 50 would typically go by the name “Toro”, so as you see there is a lot of leeway given when it comes to naming cigars!
How it compares with other parejos
- Compared with a robusto: longer, and often slightly thinner than a modern fifty-ring robusto. It takes longer to smoke.
- Compared with a toro: a toro is usually a thick modern size of about 6 × 50–54. A classic Churchill is longer and a little thinner.
- Compared with a corona or lonsdale: those sizes are shorter, or similarly slim, and do not take as long to smoke.
A Churchill is a parejo, with an open foot, a capped head, and straight sides, unless a maker gives it a special shape. In that case, go by what the cigar actually looks like.
What length changes in the blend
A longer cigar burns for longer, and the heat builds up over a greater distance. The same blend won’t smoke exactly the same way in a robusto and in a Churchill, because the shape of the bunch is different. This is a matter of physics, not a tasting note. Blenders know this, which is why a brand’s Churchill size isn’t simply a longer copy of its robusto.
You cut and light a Churchill like any other parejo: use a guillotine cutter or a sharp punch on the round cap, and toast the foot evenly. Cigars with pointed heads need a different cut; see torpedo and belicoso.
On this site
Company histories: brands hub. Reviews of individual cigars: Reviews. Packaging and bands: museum. If you buy more cigars than you smoke in a week, read the humidor guide and see our humidors. Cutters and lighters: cutters, lighters. Smoke Rings does not sell tobacco; for the cigars themselves, our sponsor AbsoluteCigars.com is your best source.
Related guides: robusto, corona, lancero.
Sources: Cuban Julieta No. 2 / Churchill association (7 × 47) as commonly cited; public Winston Churchill cigar association; New World shop variants (petit/wide) as labeling, not mold law.