BACK TO BASICS
The popularity of the Cigar of the Month Club as a gift always means that we get an influx of new members in December. Welcome! So this month, as a primer for some that might be new to cigars - and as a refresher for us old-timers - we thought an article that included some basic, general cigar information would be in order.
Generally speaking, cigars are more or less the same in appearance, long and cylindrical. This shape is generally referred to as a "parejo," meaning parallel in Spanish. Although many popular figurado shapes (such as Torpedos, Perfectos, etc.) are available today, the vast majority of premium cigars sold today are still parejos. Properly described, the shape of a cigar is measured according to length and width or diameter. The length of a cigar is measured in inches but the width is measured according to its ring gauge. Ring gauge is a unit of measurement divisible by 64. Most cigars have a ring gauge of 64 or less. There's no real trick to this - the ring gauge system may appear confusing at first, but it is simply an antiquated system that measures the diameter of a cigar in units of 64 (64 is equal to 1 inch). Therefore, a ring gauge of 48 would be a 3/4" inch thick cigar (48/64).
The parts of a cigar are divided into four basics: the cap (or tip); the head; the body and the foot. The foot is the part you light and the tip is the part you cut off. A cigar is made up of three components: the filler; the binder and the wrapper. The filler is the "stuffing." There are two kinds of filler. Lower end cigars contain bits of tobacco leaf, known as short-filler, which are crammed together and shaped to fit a specific cigar size. The process is a lot like making hotdogs and in the same way a hotdog is made up of the bits left over, short-filler cigars are made from scraps of premium filler or inferior leaf.
Higher end or premium cigar filler is made up of whole leaves rolled into a tube. The ends are then cut to match the cigar size required. All premium cigar filer is made this way and will be labeled hecho a mano which means "made by hand." Different filler leaves are often blended together by cigar makers to create unique tastes and flavors, much the same way a brewer or winemaker would. The binder leaf is a coarser leaf and is found at the bottom of the tobacco plant where the leaves are generally larger. The binder is used to hold the filler together. Finally, the wrapper is what you see on the outside of the cigar. The wrapper is the most important element of the cigar, as it gives a cigar not only its appearance and smell, but provides much of the taste as well. When you look at a cigar and run it under your nose, the wrapper is what you're appreciating. A well made cigar is one that's firm but not tight and allows you to draw the smoke easily and consistently. While there are many factors that go into selecting a cigar - the construction, the filler blend, the wrapper, the country of origin, the reputation of the cigar maker - it's a subjective choice, and all contribute to the unique taste of a given cigar.
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