Flight to Quality: Recent Trends in the Cigar Industry
Every industry has to constantly evolve to attract, retain and excite customers, and the cigar industry is no different. As new lines, sizes, and blends are introduced, some others fall by the wayside, while others adapt or remain strong as is. The upside of the "cigar boom" of the mid-1990s is that many new enthusiasts entered the market. As many of these new consumers have moved beyond the light and mild, some are now thirsting for more unique or extreme tastes, shapes and sizes. The larger base of consumers has made it economically viable for manufacturers now to bring new and heretofore unusual products to market and invest in developing new brands and improving existing brands. As many of us who have been enjoying cigars long before the "boom" will attest to, now is a very good time to be a consumer. As consumers have yearned for new, better, and more interesting sizes, shapes, flavors and packaging, manufacturers have responded. While these new trends may not be everyone's cup of tea, it has been reflective of a tremendous turn-around in the market from just 10 years ago. Today, the consumer is firmly in the driver's seat - quality has consistently increased while prices have come down or at the least remained stable.
Corojo Leaf: Cigar manufacturers outside of Cuba have tried for more than four decades to reproduce the powerful, distinct flavor of the Cuban cigar. Attempts within the last few years to replicate Cuban flavor involve the Corojo leaf tobacco as a wrapper, or filler, and sometimes both. The Corojo plant is named for El Corojo Vega - the Cuban plantation where it was developed in the 1930s to produce just one type of leaf, the wrapper for Cuban-made cigars. Ironically, as this leaf has gained popularity outside of Cuba, Cuba has stopped growing the leaf due to its susceptibility to disease. In Cuba, Corojo has been replaced with Habana 2000, Criollo Especial, and other varieties of wrapper. Its popularity outside of Cuba began in the mid-90s and it's is now grown on tobacco farms in Nicaragua, Honduras, Ecuador and the Dominican Republic. One cigar that makes use of this leaf in copious quantities is the CI Corojo, one of the few on the market that uses the leaf as both wrapper and filler. Perhaps the best-known and highly-touted Camacho Corojo, made in Honduras, is known for its knee-knocking strength and flavor. Although not suited for everyone, cigars utilizing the Corojo leaf appeal mainly to those who prefer the robust and full-bodied.
Criollo Leaf: Another darling of recent years is the Criollo leaf; most often used as a wrapper to give a cigar a spicy, full-bodied flavor. The name comes from the 17th century when Spain colonized Cuba. Cuban colonial society was divided among color and class lines. Whites of Spanish descent were either criollos (Cuban-born) or peninsulares (Spanish-born), and there was great friction between the two. The name Criollo (pronounced creee-yo-yo) later became associated with a strain of tobacco that is grown in direct sunlight, unlike the Corojo leaf which is grown under muslin covers to ensure pliable leaves. This exposure to sunlight produces plants with a wide variety and the greatest intensity of flavors for various blends. Its rich, reddish-brown wrapper leaf is thick, like most Cuban tobacco, with an unusually opulent oily sheen. Wrapper tobacco contributes much to a cigar's overall taste, and this Criollo leaf has a flavor to match its rich appearance. One example is Cupido Criollo, a line from master blender Kiki Berger that offers a fuller bodied kick than his regular Cupido line. Another cigar that makes use of this wrapper is the The Cigar Pequenos by Perdomo, and coming soon, the new CAO Criollo series.
Candela Wrappers: Due to shortages, Candela wrappers have been very rare over the past 9-10 years. Sometimes referred to as AMS, or "American Market Selection," cigars due to their tremendous popularity in the United States from the late 1800s through the mid 20th century, Candela is basically a bright green wrapper color achieved by a process which traps the chlorophyll content of the leaf prior to fermentation. Typically a very mild and smooth cigar results when this wrapper is used; although some have a little more body then a Connecticut wrapper. Several brands that are excellent representations of these wrappers are the Astral Candela, CI Candela, and Bering Candela.
Sun-Grown Wrappers: The terms Sun-Grown, Virgin Sun-Grown, Havana Sun-Grown are all generalizations on wrappers grown in sunlight without cheesecloth or muslin covers. Ecuador has become one of the leading producers of this type of wrapper; during the rainy season the sky is obscured by clouds eliminating the need for the tobacco to be covered. They produce a robust, fuller bodied smoke then most wrappers. The Oliva "O" series of cigars feature a sun-grown wrapper that gives the cigar its strength, yet remains very smooth. Another example of this wrapper can be found on the "Original Cubans" brand, a cigar that hearkens back to when Cuban cigars were the standard by which all others were measured.
Rosado Wrappers: Meaning pink in Spanish; these wrappers have a reddish hue and the cigars that utilize the Rosado wrapper are characterized as spicy and full of flavor. There are very few cigars in the market that use Rosado wrappers but the few that do have a loyal following. The reddish color comes from various strains of tobacco and from the growing conditions. The Cuban Parejo by Perdomo is grown with Nicaraguan seed and comes with both a Rosado and Maduro wrap. Coming in big ring gauges allows this cigar to make use of the Rosado wrap to deliver a full, complex taste. Another Rosado wrapped offering from Perdomo, Dos Rios, is grown in Ecuador with an Indonesian seed tobacco. A very economical priced cigar, Dos Rios comes in a box-press and has very spicy overtones. Taking the Rosado wrap to an extreme is La Estrella Cubana, which is cured with Sangria wine smoothing out the spicy overtones.
Shapes: Manufactures are also making use of figurado shapes and thicker ring gauges in an increasingly unusual array of sizes and permutations. From carrot-shaped cigars to standard torpedos, from "torbustos" to reverse torpedos, from double perfectos to monster cigars such as the new 10" x 100 Cuban Parejo Galaxia size by Perdomo - these new, sometimes experimental shapes and sizes abound, in an attempt to delight our palates. Some, to be sure, are outright novelties, such as the Egg by Drew Estate (a huge, bulging, bulbous center) and the baseball bat shaped cigar made by Don Juan. However, thick ring gauges are very much the norm now - the CAO Brazilia is a recent addition to the CAO stable, and is offered in ring gauges from 54 to 60 which help it deliver a variety of complex flavors. Another recent release from Alec Bradley is the Trilogy Native Cameroon, which comes in a triangular press giving it a very unique look and feel. Other sizes such as the thick Bohemian Red Corojos and the Vega Talanga Tercio offer very unique "pig-tail" caps and uncut, shaggy feet. While these shapes and sizes are often unique, quality tobaccos and superb construction is what makes them stand out. Surprisingly, one shape that is becoming harder and harder to find is the venerable old Lonsdale size, typically measuring around 6 to 7 inches with a ring gauge of 40-44. In the past this has been hugely popular, and just about every brand had one or more Lonsdale size in their lineup. Now it is falling out of favor and in its place are the longer and thicker sizes.
Small Cigars: Also called cigarillos or miniatures, small cigars have joined flavored cigars as growing product lines that were virtually nonexistent even 10 years ago Small cigars are diminutive versions of their fuller sized counterparts with corresponding quality and blends - many are with short-fillers left over from the manufacture of the larger sizes, while others are all long-filler. They can be either handmade, machine-made, or machine bunched with the wrappers being applied by hand. There are several factors that have contributed to the rise of these diminutive cigars. One factor is price, with many premium smokes costing $4-$8 dollars per stick, a cigarillo is typically a mere fraction of that. Plus, due to new restrictions and laws in various cities and towns across the country, options for smoking indoors diminish - and as our lives get continually busier - such short, quick smokes can be more appealing than that hour-long Churchill. Some brands that are particularly popular are the Nat Sherman Nats cigarillos, the Hoyo Excalibur Miniatures, CAO Petites, and Don Tomas Coronitas.
Good-bye "Don Nobody": The after-effects of the cigar boom continue to this day. Closeout bargains are getting few and far between, but they are still there. Sometimes these can mean enormous savings, other times, it's easy to see why the brand went belly-up. Many companies that popped up and began manufacturing cigars during the boom went bankrupt soon after, stiffing creditors in the process, and leaving millions and millions of excess cigar inventory. While quality varies from brand to brand the discerning consumer can pick up some real gems. Often these closeouts have been sitting in storage facilities for years and this aging will greatly improve what was once a merely average cigar. Aging can often smooth out any harshness and can also give the cigar a more complex taste as the tobacco matures and the blend marries.
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