Cigar: Difference between revisions
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cuban cigars are goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood.they taste and smell good. all cubans like cigars. |
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{{Quote box |quote= from the [[Spanish language|Spanish]] ''cigarro'' "cigar", which was <br /> perhaps derived from the Spanish ''cigarra'' "cicada" |source=([[OED]])}} |
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[[Image:Four cigars.jpg|thumb|Four cigars of different brands (from top: [[H. Upmann]], [[Montecristo (cigar brand)|Montecristo]], [[Macanudo (cigar brand)|Macanudo]], [[Romeo y Julieta (cigar brand)|Romeo y Julieta]])]] |
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[[Image:Cigar tube and cutter.jpg|thumb|A semi-airtight cigar storage tube and a double guillotine-style cutter]] |
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A '''cigar''' is a tightly rolled bundle of dried and fermented [[tobacco]] which is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the smoker's mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in [[Brazil]], [[Cameroon]], [[Cuba]], [[Dominican Republic]], [[Honduras]], [[Indonesia]], [[Mexico]], [[Nicaragua]], [[Sumatra]], [[the Philippines]], and the [[Eastern United States]]. |
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== History == |
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{{Unreferencedsection|date=January 2009}} |
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The indigenous inhabitants of the islands of the [[Caribbean Sea]], [[Mexico]], and [[Mesoamerica]] have smoked cigars since as early as the 10th century, as evidenced by the discovery of a ceramic vessel at a [[Maya civilization|Mayan]] archaeological site in [[Uaxactún]], [[Guatemala]]. The vessel was decorated with the painted figure of a man smoking a primitive cigar.{{Fact|date=February 2009}} |
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Explorer [[Christopher Columbus]] is generally credited with the introduction of tobacco to [[Europe]]. Two of Columbus's crewmen during his 1492 journey, [[Rodrigo de Jerez]] and [[Luis de Torres]], are said to have encountered tobacco for the first time on the island of San Salvador in the Bahamas, when natives presented them with dry leaves that spread a peculiar fragrance. Tobacco was widely diffused among all of the islands of the Caribbean and therefore they again encountered it in Cuba, where Columbus and his men had settled. |
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Around 1592, the Spanish [[galleon]] ''San Clemente'' brought 50 kilograms (110 lb) of tobacco seed to the Philippines over the Acapulco-Manila trade route. The seed was then distributed among the Roman Catholic missions, where the clerics found excellent climates and soils for growing high-quality tobacco on Philippine soil. |
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In the 19th century, cigar smoking was common, while [[cigarette]]s were still comparatively rare. The cigar business was an important industry, and factories employed many people before mechanized manufacturing of cigars became practical. Many modern cigars, as a matter of prestige and quality, are still rolled by hand, most especially in Central America and Cuba: some boxes bear the phrase ''totalmente a mano'' (totally by hand) or ''hecho a mano'' (made by hand). |
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== Manufacture ==<!-- This section is linked from [[Reader]] --> |
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[[Image:CigarMakersPR.jpg|thumb|left|Cigar makers in [[Puerto Rico]], circa 1942]] |
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Tobacco leaves are harvested and aged using a process that combines use of heat and shade to reduce sugar and water content without causing the large leaves to rot. This first part of the process, called [[curing]], takes between 25 and 45 days and varies substantially based upon climatic conditions as well as the construction of sheds or barns used to store harvested tobacco. The curing process is manipulated based upon the type of tobacco, and the desired color of the leaf. The second part of the process, called [[fermentation (biochemistry)|fermentation]], is carried out under conditions designed to help the leaf die slowly. Temperature and humidity are controlled to ensure that the leaf continues to ferment, without rotting or disintegrating. This is where the flavor, burning, and aroma characteristics are primarily brought out in the leaf. |
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Once the leaves have aged properly, they are sorted for use as filler or wrapper based upon their appearance and overall quality. During this process, the leaves are continually moistened and handled carefully to ensure each leaf is best used according to its individual qualities. The leaf will continue to be baled, inspected, unbaled, reinspected, and baled again repeatedly as it continues its aging cycle. When the leaf has matured according to the manufacturer's specifications, it will be used in the production of a cigar. |
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Quality cigars are still hand-made. An experienced cigar-roller can produce hundreds of very good, nearly identical, cigars per day. The rollers keep the tobacco moist—especially the wrapper—and use specially designed crescent-shaped knives, called ''chavetas'', to form the filler and wrapper leaves quickly and accurately. Once rolled, the cigars are stored in wooden forms as they dry, in which their uncapped ends are cut to a uniform size. From this stage, the cigar is a complete product that can be "laid down" and aged for decades if kept as close to 21°C (70°F), and 70% [[relative humidity]], as the environment will allow. Once cigars have been purchased, proper storage is usually accomplished by keeping the cigars in a specialized wooden box, or [[humidor]], where conditions can be carefully controlled for long periods of time. Even if a cigar becomes dry, it can be successfully re-humidified so long as it has not been handled carelessly. |
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Some cigars, especially premium brands, use different varieties of tobacco for the filler and the wrapper. "Long filler cigars" are a far higher quality of cigar, using long leaves throughout. These cigars also use a third variety of tobacco leaf, a "binder", between the filler and the outer wrapper. This permits the makers to use more delicate and attractive leaves as a wrapper. These high-quality cigars almost always blend varieties of tobacco. Even Cuban long-filler cigars will combine tobaccos from different parts of the island to incorporate several different flavors. |
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In low-grade and machine-made cigars, chopped up tobacco leaves are used for the filler, and long leaves or even a type of "paper" made from tobacco pulp is used for the wrapper which binds the cigar together. This alters the burning characteristics of the cigar, causing hand-made cigars to be sought-after. |
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Historically, a ''lector'' or reader was always employed to entertain the cigar factory workers. This practice became obsolete once [[audio book]]s for portable music players became available, but it is still practiced in some Cuban factories. The name for the [[Montecristo (cigar brand)|Montecristo cigar brand]] may have arisen from this practice. |
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=== Dominant manufacturers === |
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Two firms dominate the cigar industry. [[Altadis]], the world's largest cigar producer, produces cigars in the U.S., the Dominican Republic, and Honduras, and has a 50% stake in Corporación Habanos in Cuba. It also makes cigarettes. [[Swedish Match]], the second largest producer, produces cigars in Honduras, Belgium, Germany, Indonesia, the U.S., and the Dominican Republic; it also makes [[Chewing tobacco|chewing]] and pipe tobacco, [[snuff]], [[lighter]]s, and [[matches]].<ref name=Rarick/> |
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=== Families in the cigar industry === |
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Nearly all modern cigar makers are members of long-established cigar families, or purport to be. The art and skill of hand-making premium cigars has been passed from generation to generation; families are often shown in many cigar advertisements and packaging. |
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In 1992, ''Cigar Aficionado'' created the "Cigar Hall of Fame"<ref name="hof">[http://www.cigaraficionado.com/Cigar/CA_Archives/CA_Show_Article/0,2322,1320,00.html Cigar Aficionado Magazine Cigar Hall of Fame]</ref> to recognize families in the cigar industry. To date, six individuals have been inducted into the Hall of Fame for their families' contributions to the cigar industry: |
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* Edgar M. Cullman, Chairman, General Cigar Company, [[New York]], [[USA]] |
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* Zino Davidoff, Founder, Davidoff et Cie., [[Geneva]], [[Switzerland]] |
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* Carlos Fuente, Sr., Chairman, Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia., [[Santiago de los Caballeros]], [[Dominican Republic]] |
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* Frank Llaneza, Chairman, Villazon & Co., [[Tampa]], [[Florida]], USA |
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* Stanford J. Newman, Chairman, [[J.C. Newman Cigar Company]], [[Tampa]], [[Florida]], USA |
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* Angel Oliva, Sr., Founder, Oliva Tobacco Co., [[Tampa]], [[Florida]], USA |
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Perhaps the best-known cigar family in the world is the [[Arturo Fuente (cigar brand)|Arturo Fuente]] family. Now led by father and son [[Carlos Fuente, Sr.]] and Jr., the Fuente family has been rolling their Arturo Fuente and Montesino cigars since 1916. The release of the Fuente Fuente OpusX in 1995 heralded the first quality wrapper grown in the Dominican Republic. The oldest Dominican Republic cigar maker is the León family, who have been making their León Jimenes and La Aurora cigars on the island since 1905. |
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Not only are premium cigar-makers typically families, but so are those who grow the premium cigar tobacco. The Oliva family has been growing cigar tobacco since 1934 and their family's tobacco is found in nearly every major cigar brand sold on the US market. Some families, such as the well-known Padrons, have crossed over from tobacco growing to cigar making. While the Padron family has been growing tobacco since the 1850s, they began making cigars that bear their family's name in 1964. Like the Padrons, the [[Carlos Torano]] family first began growing tobacco in 1916 before they started rolling their own family's brands, which also bear the family name, in the 1990s. |
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Families are such an important part of the premium cigar industry that the term "cigar family" is a registered trademark of the Arturo Fuente and J.C. Newman families, used to distinguish and identify their families, premium cigar brands, and charitable foundation. Even the premium cigars made by the cigar industry's two corporate conglomerates, Altadis and Swedish Match, are overseen by members of two cigar families, Altadis' Benjamin Menendez and Swedish Match's [[Ernesto Perez-Carrillo]]. |
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== Marketing and distribution == |
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Cigars are marketed via advertisements, [[product placement]] in movies and other media, sporting events, cigar-friendly magazines such as ''[[Cigar Aficionado]]'', and cigar dinners. Advertisements often include depictions of [[affluence]], sexual imagery, and explicit or implied [[celebrity endorsement]].<ref name=Baker>{{cite journal |journal=JAMA |date=2000 |volume=284 |issue=6 |pages=735–40 |title= Health risks associated with cigar smoking |author= Baker F, Ainsworth SR, Dye JT ''et al.'' |pmid=10927783 |doi=10.1001/jama.284.6.735}}</ref> ''Cigar Aficionado'', launched in 1992, was credited both by cigar companies and readers in transforming the U.S. cigar smoking market from a small [[blue-collar]] segment to an upscale market promoted in places like luxury hotels and golf courses. The magazine presents cigars as symbols of a successful lifestyle, and is a major conduit of advertisements that do not conform to the tobacco industry's voluntary advertisement restrictions since 1965, such as a restriction not to associate smoking with glamour. The magazine also systematically presents pro-smoking arguments at length, arguing that cigars are safer than cigarettes, that life is dangerous anyway, that (contrary to the evidence discussed in ''[[#Heatlh effects|Health effects]]'') cigar smoking has health benefits, that moderation eliminates most or all health risk, that cigar smokers live to old age, that health research is flawed, and that carefully selected health-research results support claims of safety.<ref>{{cite journal |author= DeSantis AD, Morgan SE |title=Sometimes a cigar [magazine] is more than just a cigar [magazine]: pro-smoking arguments in ''Cigar Aficionado'', 1992–2000 |journal= Health Commun |volume=15 |issue=4 |pages=457–80 |year=2003 |pmid=14557079 |doi=10.1207/S15327027HC1504_05}}</ref> Like its competitor ''Smoke'', ''Cigar Aficionado'' differs from marketing vehicles used for other tobacco products in that it makes cigars the focus of the entire magazine, creating a symbiosis between product and lifestyle.<ref>{{cite journal |author= Wenger LD, Malone RE, George A, Bero LA |title= Cigar magazines: using tobacco to sell a lifestyle |journal= Tob Control |volume=10 |issue=3 |pages=279–84 |year=2001 |pmid=11544394 |pmc=1747592 |doi=10.1136/tc.10.3.279}}</ref> |
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[[Image:Flor de Baltimore.jpg|thumb|Cigar delivery truck, [[Salt Lake City]], 1913]] |
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In the U.S., cigars are exempt from many of the marketing regulations that govern cigarettes. For example, the [[Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act]] of 1970 exempted cigars from its advertising ban,<ref name=Delnevo/> and cigar ads, unlike cigarette ads, need not mention health risks.<ref name=Baker/> Cigars are taxed far less than cigarettes, so much so that in many U.S. states, a pack of [[#Little cigars|little cigars]] costs less than half as much as a pack of cigarettes.<ref name=Delnevo/> It is illegal for minors to purchase cigars and other tobacco products in the U.S., but laws are unevenly enforced: a 2000 study found that three-quarters of Internet cigar marketing sites allowed minors to purchase cigars.<ref name=Malone>{{cite journal |journal= Am J Public Health |date=2000 |volume=90 |issue=5 |pages=790–2 |title= Cigars, youth, and the Internet link |author= Malone RE, Bero LA |pmid=10800432 |url=http://www.ajph.org/cgi/reprint/90/5/790.pdf |format=PDF}}</ref> |
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Inexpensive cigars are sold in [[convenience store]]s, grocery stores, and pharmacies, mostly as [[self-serve]] items. Premium cigars are sold in [[tobacconist]]s and other specialized retailers.<ref name=Slade>{{cite book |title= Cigars: Health Effects and Trends |editor= Shopland DR, Burns DM, Hoffman D, Cummings KM, Amacher RH (eds.) |author= Slade J |chapter= Marketing and promotion of cigars |chapterurl=http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/tcrb/monographs/9/m9_7.PDF |format=PDF |accessdate=2008-12-11 |publisher= National Cancer Institute |series= Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9 |date=1998 |pages=195–219}}</ref> Some cigar stores are part of [[Chain store|chain]]s, which have varied in size: in the U.S., [[United Cigar Stores]] was one of only three outstanding examples of national chains in the early 1920s, the others being [[Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company|A&P]] and [[F. W. Woolworth Company|Woolworth's]].<ref>{{cite book |title= Chain Stores: Their Management and Operation |author= Hayward WS, White P, Fleek HS, Mac Intyre H |publisher= McGraw-Hill |location=New York |date=1922 |oclc=255149441 |chapter= The chain store field |pages=16–31}}</ref> Nontraditional outlets for cigars include hotel shops, restaurants, vending machines,<ref name=Slade/> and the Internet.<ref name=Malone/> |
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== Composition == |
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Cigars are composed of three types of tobacco leaves, whose variations determine smoking and flavor characteristics: |
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=== Wrappers === |
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A cigar's outermost leaves, or wrapper, come from the widest part of the plant. The wrapper determines much of the cigar's character and flavor, and as such its color is often used to describe the cigar as a whole. Colors are designated as follows, from lightest to darkest:'' |
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* '''Double Claro''' – very light, slightly greenish (also called ''Candela'', ''American Market Selection'' or ''jade''); achieved by picking leaves before maturity and drying quickly; often grown in [[Connecticut]]. |
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* '''Claro''' – light tan or yellowish. Indicative of shade-grown tobacco. |
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* '''Colorado''' – reddish-brown (also called ''Rosado'' or "Corojo"). |
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* '''Colorado Claro''' – mid-brown; particularly associated with tobacco grown in the [[Dominican Republic]] or in [[Cuba]]. |
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* '''Colorado Maduro''' – dark brown; particularly associated with Honduran or [[Cuba]]-grown tobacco. |
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* '''Natural''' – light brown to brown; generally sun-grown. |
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* '''Maduro''' – dark brown to very dark brown. |
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* '''Oscuro''' – a.k.a. "Double Maduro", black, often oily in appearance; mainly grown in [[Cuba]], [[Nicaragua]], [[Brazil]], [[Mexico]], and [[Connecticut]], USA. |
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Some manufacturers use an alternate designation: |
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* '''American Market Selection''' (AMS) – synonymous with Double Claro |
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* '''English Market Selection''' (EMS) – can refer to any color stronger than Double Claro but milder than Maduro |
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* '''Spanish Market Selection''' (SMS) – either of the two darkest colors, Maduro and Oscuro |
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A common misconception is that the darker the wrapper, the fuller the flavor. This is a poor indicator because flavor mainly comes from the filler. If anything, dark wrappers add a touch of sweetness, while light ones add a hint of dryness to the taste. {{Fact|date=January 2008}} |
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=== Fillers === |
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The majority of a cigar is made up of ''fillers'', wrapped-up bunches of leaves inside the wrapper. Fillers of various strengths are usually blended to produce desired cigar flavors. In the cigar industry this is referred to as a "blend". Many cigar manufacturers pride themselves in constructing the perfect blend(s) that will give the smoker the most enjoyment of cigar. The more oils present in the tobacco leaf, the stronger (less dry) the filler. Types range from the minimally flavored Volado taken from the bottom of the plant, through the light-flavored Seco (dry) taken from the middle of the plant, to the strong Ligero from the upper leaves exposed to the most sunlight. Fatter cigars of larger [[#Size and shape|gauge]] hold more filler, with greater potential to provide a full body and complex flavor. When used, Ligero is always folded into the middle of the filler because it burns slowly. |
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Fillers can be either long or short; long filler uses whole leaves and is of a better quality, while short filler, also called "mixed", uses chopped leaves, stems, and other bits. Recently some manufacturers have created what they term "medium filler" cigars. They use larger pieces of leaf than short filler without stems, and are of better quality than short filler cigars. Short filler cigars are easy to identify when smoked since they often burn hotter and tend to release bits of leaf into the smoker's mouth. Long filled cigars of high quality should burn evenly and consistently. Also available is a filler called "sandwich" (sometimes "Cuban sandwich") which is a cigar made by rolling short leaf inside long outer leaf. If a cigar is completely constructed (filler, binder and wrapper) of tobacco from only one country, it is referred to in the cigar industry as a "puro" which in Spanish means "pure". |
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=== Binders === |
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Binders are elastic leaves used to hold together the bunches of fillers. Essentially, binders are wrappers that are rejected because of holes, blemishes, discoloration, or excess veins. |
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== Size and shape == |
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[[Image:Largest cigar.jpg|thumb|World's largest cigar at the Tobacco and Matchstick Museum in [[Skansen]], Stockholm, Sweden.]] |
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Cigars are commonly categorized by the size and shape of the cigar, which together are known as the ''vitola''. |
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The size of a cigar is measured by two dimensions: its ring gauge (its diameter in sixty-fourths of an inch) and its length (in inches). For example, most non-Cuban robustos have a ring gauge of approximately 50 and a length of approximately 5 inches. Robustos which are of Cuban origin always have a ring gauge of 50 and a length of 4 ⅞ inches.{{Fact|date=April 2007}} |
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See also ''[[Factory name]].'' |
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=== Parejo === |
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The most common shape is the ''parejo'', which has a cylindrical body, straight sides, one end open, and a round tobacco-leaf "cap" on the other end which must be sliced off, have a V-shaped notch made in it with a special cutter, or punched through before smoking. |
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''Parejos'' are designated by the following terms: |
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* ''Coronas'' |
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** Rothschilds (4 ½" x 50) after the [[Rothschild family]] |
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** Robusto (4 ⅞" x 50) |
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** Hermosos No. 4 (5" x 48) |
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** Mareva/Petit Corona (5 ⅛" x 42) |
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** Corona (5 ½" x 42) |
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** Corona Gorda (5 ⅝" x 46) |
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** Toro (6" x 50) |
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** Corona Grande (6 ⅛" x 42) |
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** Cervantes/Lonsdale (6 ½" x 42), named for [[Hugh Cecil Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale]] |
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** Dalia (6 ¾" x 43) |
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** Julieta, also known as Churchill (7" x 47), named for [[Sir Winston Churchill]] |
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** Prominente/Double Corona (7 ⅝" x 49) |
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** Presidente (8" x 50) |
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** Gran Corona ("A") (9 ¼" x 47) |
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* ''Panatelas'' – longer and generally thinner than Coronas |
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** Small Panatela (5" x 33) |
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** Carlota (5 ⅝" x 35) |
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** Short Panatela (5" x 38) |
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** Slim Panatela (6" x 34.9) |
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** Panatela (6" x 38) |
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** Deliciados/Laguito No. 1 (7 ¼" x 38) |
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These dimensions are, at best, idealized. Actual dimensions can vary considerably.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mypage.iu.edu/~brmalone/useless.html |title= The most useless cigar page |author= Maloney BJ |date=2003 |accessdate=2008-01-23}}</ref> |
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=== Figurado === |
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[[Image:Cigarshapes1.png|thumb|Cigar shapes]] |
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Irregularly shaped cigars are known as ''figurados'' and are sometimes considered of higher quality because they are more difficult to make. |
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Historically, especially during the 19th century, ''figurados'' were the most popular shapes; however, by the 1930s they had fallen out of fashion and all but disappeared. |
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They have, however, recently received a small resurgence in popularity, and there are currently many brands (manufacturers) that produce ''figurados'' alongside the simpler ''parejos''. The [[Cuba]]n cigar brand '''''[[Cuaba (cigar brand)|Cuaba]]''''' only has ''figurados'' in their range. |
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''Figurados'' include the following: |
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* Torpedo - Like a ''parejo'' except that the cap is pointed. |
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* Pyramid - Has a broad foot and evenly narrows to a pointed cap. |
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* Perfecto - Narrow at both ends and bulged in the middle. |
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* Presidente/Diadema - shaped like a ''parejo'' but considered a ''figurado'' because of its enormous size and occasional closed foot akin to a perfecto. |
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* Culebras - Three long, pointed cigars braided together. |
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* Tuscanian - The typical Italian cigar, created in the early 19th century when Kentucky tobacco was hybridized with local varieties and used to create a long, tough, slim cigar thicker in the middle and tapered at the ends, with a very strong aroma. It is also known as a [[cheroot]], which is the largest selling cigar shape in the United States. |
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Arturo Fuente, a large cigar manufacturer based in the [[Dominican Republic]], has also manufactured figurados in exotic shapes ranging from chili peppers to baseball bats and American footballs. They are highly collectible and extremely expensive, when publicly available. In practice, the terms Torpedo and Pyramid are often used interchangeably, even among very knowledgeable cigar smokers. Min Ron Nee, the Hong Kong-based cigar expert whose work ''An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Post-Revolution Havana Cigars'' is considered to be the definitive work on cigars and cigar terms, defines Torpedo as "cigar slang". Nee thinks the majority is right (because slang is defined by majority usage) and torpedoes are pyramids by another name. |
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=== Little cigars === |
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Little cigars (sometimes called ''small cigars'') differ greatly from regular cigars. They weigh less than cigars and [[cigarillo]]s,<ref>{{cite book |title= Cigars: Health Effects and Trends |editor= Shopland DR, Burns DM, Hoffman D, Cummings KM, Amacher RH (eds.) |author= Connolly GN |chapter= Policies regulating cigars |chapterurl=http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/tcrb/monographs/9/m9_8.PDF |format=PDF |accessdate=2008-03-15 |publisher= National Cancer Institute |series= Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9 |date=1998 |pages=221–32}}</ref> but more importantly, they resemble cigarettes in size, shape, packaging, and filters.<ref name=smokers-choice/> Sales of little cigars quadrupled in the U.S. from 1971 to 1973 in response to the [[Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act]], which banned the broadcast of cigarette advertisements and required stronger health warnings on cigarette packs. Cigars were exempt from the ban, and perhaps more importantly, were [[#Marketing and distribution|taxed]] at a far lower rate. Little cigars are sometimes called "cigarettes in disguise", and unsuccessful attempts have been made to reclassify them as cigarettes. Sales of little cigars reached an all-time high in 2006, fueled in great part by their taxation loophole.<ref name=Delnevo>{{cite journal |
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|journal= Am J Public Health |
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|date=2007 |
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|volume=97 |
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|issue=8 |
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|pages=1368–75 |
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|title= 'A whole 'nother smoke' or a cigarette in disguise: how RJ Reynolds reframed the image of little cigars |author= Delnevo CD, Hrywna M |
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|doi=10.2105/AJPH.2006.101063 |
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|pmid=17600253 |
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}}</ref> |
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==Cigar cutters== |
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{{main|Cigar cutter}} |
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Although some cigars are cut on both ends, or twirled at both ends, the vast majority come with one straight cut end and one end in a "cap". Most quality handmade cigars, regardless of shape, will have a cap which is one or more small pieces of a wrapper pasted on to one end of the cigar with a either a natural tobacco paste or with a mixture of flour and water. The cap end of a cigar must be cut off for the cigar to be smoked properly. It is the rounded end without the tobacco exposed, and this is the end one should always cut. If the cap is cut jaggedly or without care, the end of the cigar will not burn evenly and smokeable tobacco will be lost. Some cigar manufacturers purposely place different types of tobacco from one end to the other to give the cigar smokers a variety of tastes, body and strength from start to finish. Smoking a cigar from the wrong end may result in a bad experience. |
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There are three basic types of cigar cutters: |
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*Guillotine (straight cut) |
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*Punch cut |
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*V-cut (a.k.a. notch cut, cat's eye, wedge cut, English cut) |
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== Flavor == |
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Each brand and type of cigar tastes different. While the wrapper does not entirely determine the flavor of the cigar, darker wrappers tend to produce a sweetness, while lighter wrappers usually have a "drier" taste. Whether a cigar is mild, medium, or full bodied does not correlate with quality. Different smokers will have different preferences, some liking one good cigar better than another, others disagreeing. Some words used to describe cigar flavor and texture include; spicy, peppery (red or black), sweet, harsh, burnt, green, earthy, woodsy, cocoa, roasted, aged, nutty, creamy, cedar, oak, chewy, fruity, and leathery. |
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Cigar smoke, which is rarely inhaled, tastes of tobacco with nuances of other tastes. Many different things affect the scent of cigar smoke: tobacco type, quality of the cigar, added flavors, age and humidity, production method (handmade vs. machine-made) and more. A fine cigar can taste completely different from inhaled cigarette smoke. When smoke is inhaled, as is usual with cigarettes, the tobacco flavor is less noticeable than the sensation from the smoke. Some cigar enthusiasts use a vocabulary similar to that of wine-tasters to describe the overtones and undertones observed while smoking a cigar. Journals are available for recording personal ratings, description of flavors observed, sizes, brands, etc. Cigar tasting is in such respects similar to [[wine-tasting|wine]], [[Cognac (drink)|cognac]] and whisky tasting. |
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== Cuban cigars == |
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{{Refimprovesect|date=July 2008}} |
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[[Image:Habanos-Mech.jpg|thumb|left|The label on Machine-made Cuban cigars—"Made in Cuba"]] |
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[[Image:Habanos-Total-a-mano.jpg|thumb|left|The label on Hand-made Cuban cigars—"Made in Cuba, completely by hand"]] |
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Cuban cigars are rolled from [[tobacco]] leaves found throughout the country of Cuba. The filler, binder, and wrapper may come from different portions of the island. All cigar production in Cuba is controlled by the Cuban government, and each brand may be rolled in several different factories in Cuba. Cuban cigar rollers or "torcedores" are claimed to be the most skilled in the world. Torcedores are highly respected in Cuban society and culture and travel worldwide displaying their art of hand rolling cigars.{{Fact|date=July 2008}} |
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[[Habanos SA]] and [[Cubatabaco]] between them do all the work relating to Cuban cigars, including [[manufacture]], [[quality control]], promotion and distribution, and export. Cuba produces both handmade and machine made cigars. All boxes and labels are marked ''Hecho en Cuba'' (made in Cuba). Machine-bunched cigars finished by hand add ''Hecho a mano'', while fully hand-made cigars say ''Totalmente a mano'' in script text, though not all Cuban cigars will include this statement. Some cigars show a ''TC'' or ''Tripa Corta'', meaning that short filler and cuttings were used in the hand-rolling process.{{Which?|date=February 2009}}{{Fact|date=July 2008}} Because of the perceived status of Cuban cigars, counterfeits are somewhat commonplace.<ref>[http://www.decaturspirits.com/cigars/fakecubans/ Identifying Counterfeit Cuban Cigars]</ref> |
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=== United States embargo against Cuba === |
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[[Image:ChewithCigar.jpg|thumb|upright|According to Marxist revolutionary [[Che Guevara]], "A smoke in times of rest is a great companion to the solitary soldier."<ref>[http://www.cigaraficionado.com/Cigar/CA_Archives/CA_Show_Article/0,2322,508,00.html "Che's Habanos"] by Jesus Arboleya and Roberto F. Campos, Cigar Aficionado, October 1997</ref>]] |
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{{main|United States embargo against Cuba}} |
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On February 7, 1962, [[United States]] President [[John F. Kennedy]] imposed a [[United States embargo against Cuba|trade embargo on Cuba]] to sanction [[Fidel Castro]]'s [[communist]] government. According to [[Pierre Salinger]], then Kennedy's press secretary, the president ordered him on the evening of February 6 to obtain 1,200 [[H. Upmann (cigar brand)|H. Upmann]] brand [[Cigar#Parejo|petit corona]] Cuban cigars; upon Salinger's arrival with the cigars the following morning, Kennedy signed the executive order which put the embargo into effect.<ref>[http://www.cigaraficionado.com/Cigar/CA_Archives/CA_Show_Article/0,2322,862,00.html Cigar Aficionado: "Kennedy, Cuba and Cigars"]</ref> Richard Goodwin, a White House assistant to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson, revealed in a 2000 New York Times article that in early 1962 JFK told him, “We tried to exempt cigars, but the cigar manufacturers in Tampa objected."<ref>{{cite news |title= President Kennedy's plan for peace with Cuba |author= Goodwin R |work= New York Times |date=2000-07-05 |accessdate=2008-09-20 |url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0DEFDB1039F936A35754C0A9669C8B63}}</ref> The embargo prohibited US residents from legally purchasing Cuban-cigars on the market, and Cuba was deprived of its major customer for tobacco. |
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In the United States, authentic Cuban-made cigars are seen as "[[forbidden fruit]]" for Americans to purchase. Upon the expropriation of private property in Cuba, many former Cuban cigar manufacturers moved to other countries (primarily [[Dominican Republic]]) to continue production.{{Fact|date=October 2008}} Dominican Republic's production of tobacco grew significantly as a result.{{Fact|date=October 2008}} After reallocation, most Cuban manufacturers continued to use their known company name, seed, and harvesting technique while [[Cubatabaco]], Cuba's state tobacco [[monopoly]] after the [[Cuban Revolution|Revolution]], independently continued production of cigars using the former private company names.{{Fact|date=October 2008}} As a result, cigar name brands like ''Romeo y Julieta'', ''Gloria Cubana'', ''Montecristo'' among others, are existent in both Cuba and Dominican Republic.{{Fact|date=October 2008}} Honduras and Nicaragua are also mass manufactures of cigars. Some Cuban refugees make cigars in the U.S. and advertise them as "Cuban" cigars, using the argument that the cigars are made by Cubans.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://travel.latimes.com/articles/la-trw-vegas3jun03 |work= Los Angeles Times |date=2007-05-30 |accessdate=2008-09-11 |title= Las Vegas cigar lounges roll out the welcome mat |author= Gould LE}}</ref> |
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It remains illegal for US residents to purchase or import Cuban cigars regardless of where they are in the world,<ref>[http://www.treas.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/programs/cuba/ccigar2.pdf Office of Foreign Assets Control: "Cuban Cigar Update"]</ref> although they are readily available across the northern border in [[Canada]] and the southern border in [[Mexico]]. While Cuban cigars are smuggled into the USA and sold at high prices, counterfeiting is rife; it has been said that 95% of Cuban cigars sold in the USA are counterfeit.<ref>{{cite web |
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|url=http://www.cigarnexus.com/counsel/counterfeit |
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|title=The Ultimate Counterfeit Cuban Cigar Primer |
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|author=Steve Saka |
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|date=2002-02-22 |
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|accessdate=2008-03-12 |
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}}</ref> Although Cuban cigars cannot legally be imported into the USA, the advent of the [[Internet]] has made it much easier for people in the United States to purchase cigars online from other countries, especially when shipped without bands. |
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=== Cigars specific to other countries === |
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[[Italy]] produces the "[[Sigaro Toscano]]" (''Tuscan cigar''), very different from the Havana style.{{Fact|date=July 2008}} |
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The [[cheroot]] is traditionally associated with [[Burma]] and [[India]].{{Fact|date=July 2008}} |
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== Health effects == |
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{{see|Health effects of tobacco}} |
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Like other forms of tobacco use, cigar smoking poses a significant health risk depending on dosage: risks are greater for those who inhale more when they smoke, smoke more cigars, or smoke them longer.<ref name=Symm/> The risk of dying from any cause is significantly greater for cigar smokers, with the risk particularly higher for smokers less than 65 years old, and with risk for moderate and deep inhalers reaching levels similar to cigarette smokers.<!-- <ref name=Shanks> --> The increased risk for those smoking 1–2 cigars per day is too small to be statistically significant,<ref name=Shanks>{{cite book |title= Cigars: Health Effects and Trends |editor= Shopland DR, Burns DM, Hoffman D, Cummings KM, Amacher RH (eds.) |author= Shanks TG, Burns DM |chapter= Disease consequences of cigar smoking |chapterurl=http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/tcrb/monographs/9/m9_4.PDF |format=PDF |accessdate=2008-10-21 |publisher= National Cancer Institute |series= Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9 |date=1998 |pages=105–160}}</ref> and the health risks of the 3/4 of cigar smokers who smoke less than daily are not known<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Tobacco/cigars |accessdate=2008-10-21 |title= Questions and answers about cigar smoking and cancer |date=2000-03-07 |publisher= National Cancer Institute}}</ref> and are hard to measure;<!-- <ref name=Burns/> --> although it has been claimed that people who smoke few cigars have no increased risk, a more accurate statement is that their risks are proportionate to their exposure.<ref name=Burns>{{cite book |title= Cigars: Health Effects and Trends |editor= Shopland DR, Burns DM, Hoffman D, Cummings KM, Amacher RH (eds.) |author= Burns DM |chapter= Cigar smoking: overview and current state of the science |chapterurl=http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/tcrb/monographs/9/m9_1.PDF |format=PDF |accessdate=2008-12-02 |publisher= National Cancer Institute |series= Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9 |date=1998 |pages=1–20}}</ref> Health risks are similar to [[cigarette]] smoking in [[nicotine]] addiction, [[periodontal]] health, tooth loss, and many types of cancer, including cancers of the [[Oral cancer|mouth]], throat, and [[esophageal cancer|esophagus]]. Cigar smoking also can cause cancers of the [[Lung cancer|lung]] and [[Laryngeal cancer|larynx]], where the increased risk is less than that of cigarettes. Many of these cancers have extremely low cure rates. Cigar smoking also increases the risk of lung and heart diseases such as [[chronic obstructive pulmonary disease]].<ref name=Symm>{{cite journal |journal= J Prim Prev |date=2005 |volume=26 |issue=4 |pages=363–75 |title= Cigar smoking: an ignored public health threat |author= Symm B, Morgan MV, Blackshear Y, Tinsley S |doi=10.1007/s10935-005-5389-z |pmid=15995804}}</ref> |
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== Popularity == |
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The [[prevalence]] of cigar smoking varies depending on location, historical period, and population surveyed, and prevalence estimates vary somewhat depending on the survey method. The U.S. is the top consuming country by far, followed by Germany and the UK; the U.S. and western Europe account for about 75% of cigar sales worldwide.<ref name=Rarick>{{cite paper |url=http://ssrn.com/abstract=1127582 |author= Rarick CA |title= Note on the premium cigar industry |date=2008-04-02 |publisher=SSRN |accessdate=2008-12-02}}</ref> The 2005 U.S. National Health Interview Survey estimated that 2.2% of adults smoke cigars, about the same as smokeless tobacco but far less than the 21% of adults who smoke cigarettes; it also estimated that 4.3% of men but only 0.3% of women smoke cigars.<ref>{{cite journal |journal= MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep |date=2006 |volume=55 |issue=42 |pages=1145–8 |title= Tobacco use among adults—United States, 2005 |author= Mariolis P, Rock VJ, Asman K ''et al.'' |url=http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5542a1.htm}}</ref> The 2002 U.S. National Survey of Drug Use and Health found that adults with serious psychological distress are significantly more likely to smoke cigars than those without.<ref>{{cite journal |journal= Addict Behav |date=2008 |volume=33 |issue=4 |pages=582–92 |title= Tobacco use among those with serious psychological distress: results from the national survey of drug use and health, 2002 |author= Hagman BT, Delnevo CD, Hrywna M, Williams JM |doi=10.1016/j.addbeh.2007.11.007 |pmid=18158218}}</ref> A 2007 California study found that gay men and bisexual women smoke significantly fewer cigars than the general population of men and women, respectively.<ref>{{cite journal |journal=Nicotine Tob Res |date=2007 |volume=9 |issue=9 |pages=937–40 |title= Cigar and smokeless tobacco use in the lesbian, gay, and bisexual population |author= Gruskin EP, Greenwood GL, Matevia M, Pollack LM, Bye LL, Albright V |doi=10.1080/14622200701488426 |pmid=17763109}}</ref> Substantial and steady increases in cigar smoking were observed during the 1990s and early 2000s in the U.S. among both adults and adolescents.<ref name=smokers-choice>{{cite journal |journal= Public Health Rep |date=2006 |volume=121 |issue=2 |pages=116–9 |title= Smokers' choice: what explains the steady growth of cigar use in the U.S.? |author= Delnevo CD |pmid=16528942 |url=http://www.publichealthreports.org/userfiles/121_2/121116.pdf |format=PDF}}</ref> Data suggest that cigar usage among young adult males increased threefold during the 1990s, a 1999–2000 survey of 31,107 young adult U.S. military recruits found that 12.3% smoked cigars,<ref>{{cite journal |journal= Addict Behav |date=2008 |volume=33 |issue=1 |pages=69–82 |title= Prevalence of alternative forms of tobacco use in a population of young adult military recruits |author= Vander Weg MW, Peterson AL, Ebbert JO, Debon M, Klesges RC, Haddock CK |doi=10.1016/j.addbeh.2007.07.005 |pmid=17706889 |pmc=2101765}}</ref> and a 2003–2004 survey of 4,486 high school students in a [[Midwestern]] county found that 18% smoked cigars.<ref>{{cite journal |journal= Am J Health Behav |date=2008 |volume=32 |issue=6 |pages=640–9 |title= Cigars, cigarettes, and adolescents |author= Brooks A, Gaier Larkin EM, Kishore S, Frank S |pmid=18442343 |doi= 10.5555/ajhb.2008.32.6.640 |doi_brokendate= 2008-06-25 |url=http://www.atypon-link.com/PNG/doi/pdf/10.5555/ajhb.2008.32.6.640}}</ref> |
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== Popular culture == |
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[[Image:Le Premier Cigarre, Les Beaux Jours de la Vie, by Honore Daumier.JPG|thumb|upright|Le Premier Cigarre, Les Beaux Jours de la Vie, by [[Honoré Daumier]].]] |
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[[Image:Cigar Box Label - Old Judge.JPG|thumb|Cigars in culture, from a [[cigar box]] label at the [[Lightner Museum]].]] |
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Major U.S. print media portray cigars favorably; they generally frame cigar use as a lucrative business or a trendy habit, rather than as a health risk.<ref>{{cite journal |journal= Am J Public Health |date=2001 |volume=91 |issue=2 |pages=288–91 |title= The cigar revival and the popular press: a content analysis, 1987–1997 |author= Wenger L, Malone R, Bero L |pmid=11211641 |pmc=1446522 |url=http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1446522&blobtype=pdf |format=PDF}}</ref> Rich people are often caricatured as wearing [[top hat]]s and [[tail coat|tails]] and smoking cigars. In the United States a poor-quality cigar is sometimes called a "dog rocket".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cigardiary.com/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=4&MMN_position=18:2 |title= Dog Rocket - The Cigar Diary |author=Steve Saka|date=2005 |accessdate=2008-02-27}}</ref> These cheap cigars are often converted into [[blunt (cigar)|blunt]]s rather than smoked directly. Cigars are often smoked to celebrate special occasion: the birth of a child, a graduation, a big sale. The expression [[Idiom|"close but no cigar"]] comes from the practice of giving cigars as [[prize]]s in games involving good aim at [[fairground]]s. |
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[[Edward VII of the United Kingdom|King Edward VII]] enjoyed smoking cigarettes and cigars, much to the chagrin of his mother, [[Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria]]. After her death, legend has it, King Edward said to his male guests at the end of a dinner party, "Gentlemen, you may smoke." In his name, a line of inexpensive American cigars has long been named King Edward. |
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[[Ulysses S. Grant|President Ulysses S. Grant]] of the [[United States of America|USA]] and [[Sigmund Freud|Dr. Sigmund Freud]] were both known for regularly smoking an entire box (25 cigars) a day{{Fact|date=October 2007}}. [[Ulysses S. Grant]] died of [[throat cancer]]. Challenged on the "[[phallic]]" shape of the cigar, Freud is supposed to have replied "sometimes a cigar is just a cigar."<ref> Attributed in Bartlett, ''Familiar Quotations'' 15th Ed. 679</ref> [[Sigmund Freud|Freud]] underwent more than 30 operations during his life to treat [[oral cancer]].<ref>Gay, Peter (1988). Freud: A Life for Our Time. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.</ref> |
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[[Winston Churchill]] (who has been credited with the practice of dunking a cigar in port or brandy)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.onlinehavanacigars.com/pages/cigarTips.htm |title= Cigar Tips |author=Online Havana Cigars|date=2008 |accessdate=2008-12-09}}</ref> was rarely seen without a cigar during his time as Britain's wartime leader; so much so that a large cigar size was named in his honor. |
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[[Fidel Castro]] was often seen smoking a cigar during the early days of the Cuban revolution, but gave up smoking in the early 1980s as part of a campaign to encourage the Cuban population to smoke less on health grounds.<ref>{{cite book |chapter= Tobacco in the ''Contrapunteo'': Ortiz and the Havana cigar |author= Stubbs J | title= Cuban Counterpoints: the Legacy of Fernando Ortiz |editor= Font MA, Quiroz AW (eds.) |publisher=Lexington |date=2005 |isbn=978-0739109687 |pages=105–24}}</ref> Many other celebrities were well-known cigar smokers, including [[George Burns]], [[Mark Twain]], [[Milton Berle]], and [[Bill Cosby]].<ref>{{cite journal |journal=Cigar Aficionado |date= Nov/Dec 1999 |url=http://www.cigaraficionado.com/Cigar/CA_Archives/CA_Show_Article/0,2322,1140,00.html |title= The top 100 cigar smokers of the twentieth century}}</ref> |
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[[Rudyard Kipling]] said in his poem ''The Betrothed'', "A woman is only a woman: but a good cigar is a smoke." |
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Since apart from certain forms of heavily cured and strong [[snuff (tobacco)|snuff]], the cigar is the most potent form of self-dosing with tobacco, it has long had associations of being a male rite of passage, as it may have had during the pre-Columbian era in America. Its fumes and rituals have in American and European cultures established a "men's hut"; in the 19th century, men would retire to the "smoking room" after dinner, to discuss serious issues. |
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== See also == |
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{{Commons|Cigar}} |
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*[[Box-pressed]] |
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*[[Cabinet selection]] |
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*[[Cigar bar]] |
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*[[List of cigar brands]] |
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*[[Smoking jacket]] |
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{{-}} |
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==References== |
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{{reflist|colwidth=30em}} |
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==External links== |
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* [http://www.cigargroup.com/faq Cigar Smoker's FAQ] - compiled from [http://groups.google.com/group/alt.smokers.cigars alt.smokers.cigars] |
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[[Category:Cigars]] |
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[[Category:Tobacco]] |
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[[Category:Smoking]] |
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Revision as of 19:09, 27 February 2009
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Four_cigars.jpg/220px-Four_cigars.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8a/Cigar_tube_and_cutter.jpg/220px-Cigar_tube_and_cutter.jpg)
A cigar is a tightly rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco which is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the smoker's mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Sumatra, the Philippines, and the Eastern United States.
History
The indigenous inhabitants of the islands of the Caribbean Sea, Mexico, and Mesoamerica have smoked cigars since as early as the 10th century, as evidenced by the discovery of a ceramic vessel at a Mayan archaeological site in Uaxactún, Guatemala. The vessel was decorated with the painted figure of a man smoking a primitive cigar.[citation needed]
Explorer Christopher Columbus is generally credited with the introduction of tobacco to Europe. Two of Columbus's crewmen during his 1492 journey, Rodrigo de Jerez and Luis de Torres, are said to have encountered tobacco for the first time on the island of San Salvador in the Bahamas, when natives presented them with dry leaves that spread a peculiar fragrance. Tobacco was widely diffused among all of the islands of the Caribbean and therefore they again encountered it in Cuba, where Columbus and his men had settled.
Around 1592, the Spanish galleon San Clemente brought 50 kilograms (110 lb) of tobacco seed to the Philippines over the Acapulco-Manila trade route. The seed was then distributed among the Roman Catholic missions, where the clerics found excellent climates and soils for growing high-quality tobacco on Philippine soil.
In the 19th century, cigar smoking was common, while cigarettes were still comparatively rare. The cigar business was an important industry, and factories employed many people before mechanized manufacturing of cigars became practical. Many modern cigars, as a matter of prestige and quality, are still rolled by hand, most especially in Central America and Cuba: some boxes bear the phrase totalmente a mano (totally by hand) or hecho a mano (made by hand).
Manufacture
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/CigarMakersPR.jpg/220px-CigarMakersPR.jpg)
Tobacco leaves are harvested and aged using a process that combines use of heat and shade to reduce sugar and water content without causing the large leaves to rot. This first part of the process, called curing, takes between 25 and 45 days and varies substantially based upon climatic conditions as well as the construction of sheds or barns used to store harvested tobacco. The curing process is manipulated based upon the type of tobacco, and the desired color of the leaf. The second part of the process, called fermentation, is carried out under conditions designed to help the leaf die slowly. Temperature and humidity are controlled to ensure that the leaf continues to ferment, without rotting or disintegrating. This is where the flavor, burning, and aroma characteristics are primarily brought out in the leaf.
Once the leaves have aged properly, they are sorted for use as filler or wrapper based upon their appearance and overall quality. During this process, the leaves are continually moistened and handled carefully to ensure each leaf is best used according to its individual qualities. The leaf will continue to be baled, inspected, unbaled, reinspected, and baled again repeatedly as it continues its aging cycle. When the leaf has matured according to the manufacturer's specifications, it will be used in the production of a cigar.
Quality cigars are still hand-made. An experienced cigar-roller can produce hundreds of very good, nearly identical, cigars per day. The rollers keep the tobacco moist—especially the wrapper—and use specially designed crescent-shaped knives, called chavetas, to form the filler and wrapper leaves quickly and accurately. Once rolled, the cigars are stored in wooden forms as they dry, in which their uncapped ends are cut to a uniform size. From this stage, the cigar is a complete product that can be "laid down" and aged for decades if kept as close to 21°C (70°F), and 70% relative humidity, as the environment will allow. Once cigars have been purchased, proper storage is usually accomplished by keeping the cigars in a specialized wooden box, or humidor, where conditions can be carefully controlled for long periods of time. Even if a cigar becomes dry, it can be successfully re-humidified so long as it has not been handled carelessly.
Some cigars, especially premium brands, use different varieties of tobacco for the filler and the wrapper. "Long filler cigars" are a far higher quality of cigar, using long leaves throughout. These cigars also use a third variety of tobacco leaf, a "binder", between the filler and the outer wrapper. This permits the makers to use more delicate and attractive leaves as a wrapper. These high-quality cigars almost always blend varieties of tobacco. Even Cuban long-filler cigars will combine tobaccos from different parts of the island to incorporate several different flavors.
In low-grade and machine-made cigars, chopped up tobacco leaves are used for the filler, and long leaves or even a type of "paper" made from tobacco pulp is used for the wrapper which binds the cigar together. This alters the burning characteristics of the cigar, causing hand-made cigars to be sought-after.
Historically, a lector or reader was always employed to entertain the cigar factory workers. This practice became obsolete once audio books for portable music players became available, but it is still practiced in some Cuban factories. The name for the Montecristo cigar brand may have arisen from this practice.
Dominant manufacturers
Two firms dominate the cigar industry. Altadis, the world's largest cigar producer, produces cigars in the U.S., the Dominican Republic, and Honduras, and has a 50% stake in Corporación Habanos in Cuba. It also makes cigarettes. Swedish Match, the second largest producer, produces cigars in Honduras, Belgium, Germany, Indonesia, the U.S., and the Dominican Republic; it also makes chewing and pipe tobacco, snuff, lighters, and matches.[1]
Families in the cigar industry
Nearly all modern cigar makers are members of long-established cigar families, or purport to be. The art and skill of hand-making premium cigars has been passed from generation to generation; families are often shown in many cigar advertisements and packaging.
In 1992, Cigar Aficionado created the "Cigar Hall of Fame"[2] to recognize families in the cigar industry. To date, six individuals have been inducted into the Hall of Fame for their families' contributions to the cigar industry:
- Edgar M. Cullman, Chairman, General Cigar Company, New York, USA
- Zino Davidoff, Founder, Davidoff et Cie., Geneva, Switzerland
- Carlos Fuente, Sr., Chairman, Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia., Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic
- Frank Llaneza, Chairman, Villazon & Co., Tampa, Florida, USA
- Stanford J. Newman, Chairman, J.C. Newman Cigar Company, Tampa, Florida, USA
- Angel Oliva, Sr., Founder, Oliva Tobacco Co., Tampa, Florida, USA
Perhaps the best-known cigar family in the world is the Arturo Fuente family. Now led by father and son Carlos Fuente, Sr. and Jr., the Fuente family has been rolling their Arturo Fuente and Montesino cigars since 1916. The release of the Fuente Fuente OpusX in 1995 heralded the first quality wrapper grown in the Dominican Republic. The oldest Dominican Republic cigar maker is the León family, who have been making their León Jimenes and La Aurora cigars on the island since 1905.
Not only are premium cigar-makers typically families, but so are those who grow the premium cigar tobacco. The Oliva family has been growing cigar tobacco since 1934 and their family's tobacco is found in nearly every major cigar brand sold on the US market. Some families, such as the well-known Padrons, have crossed over from tobacco growing to cigar making. While the Padron family has been growing tobacco since the 1850s, they began making cigars that bear their family's name in 1964. Like the Padrons, the Carlos Torano family first began growing tobacco in 1916 before they started rolling their own family's brands, which also bear the family name, in the 1990s.
Families are such an important part of the premium cigar industry that the term "cigar family" is a registered trademark of the Arturo Fuente and J.C. Newman families, used to distinguish and identify their families, premium cigar brands, and charitable foundation. Even the premium cigars made by the cigar industry's two corporate conglomerates, Altadis and Swedish Match, are overseen by members of two cigar families, Altadis' Benjamin Menendez and Swedish Match's Ernesto Perez-Carrillo.
Marketing and distribution
Cigars are marketed via advertisements, product placement in movies and other media, sporting events, cigar-friendly magazines such as Cigar Aficionado, and cigar dinners. Advertisements often include depictions of affluence, sexual imagery, and explicit or implied celebrity endorsement.[3] Cigar Aficionado, launched in 1992, was credited both by cigar companies and readers in transforming the U.S. cigar smoking market from a small blue-collar segment to an upscale market promoted in places like luxury hotels and golf courses. The magazine presents cigars as symbols of a successful lifestyle, and is a major conduit of advertisements that do not conform to the tobacco industry's voluntary advertisement restrictions since 1965, such as a restriction not to associate smoking with glamour. The magazine also systematically presents pro-smoking arguments at length, arguing that cigars are safer than cigarettes, that life is dangerous anyway, that (contrary to the evidence discussed in Health effects) cigar smoking has health benefits, that moderation eliminates most or all health risk, that cigar smokers live to old age, that health research is flawed, and that carefully selected health-research results support claims of safety.[4] Like its competitor Smoke, Cigar Aficionado differs from marketing vehicles used for other tobacco products in that it makes cigars the focus of the entire magazine, creating a symbiosis between product and lifestyle.[5]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/6/64/Flor_de_Baltimore.jpg/220px-Flor_de_Baltimore.jpg)
In the U.S., cigars are exempt from many of the marketing regulations that govern cigarettes. For example, the Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act of 1970 exempted cigars from its advertising ban,[6] and cigar ads, unlike cigarette ads, need not mention health risks.[3] Cigars are taxed far less than cigarettes, so much so that in many U.S. states, a pack of little cigars costs less than half as much as a pack of cigarettes.[6] It is illegal for minors to purchase cigars and other tobacco products in the U.S., but laws are unevenly enforced: a 2000 study found that three-quarters of Internet cigar marketing sites allowed minors to purchase cigars.[7]
Inexpensive cigars are sold in convenience stores, grocery stores, and pharmacies, mostly as self-serve items. Premium cigars are sold in tobacconists and other specialized retailers.[8] Some cigar stores are part of chains, which have varied in size: in the U.S., United Cigar Stores was one of only three outstanding examples of national chains in the early 1920s, the others being A&P and Woolworth's.[9] Nontraditional outlets for cigars include hotel shops, restaurants, vending machines,[8] and the Internet.[7]
Composition
Cigars are composed of three types of tobacco leaves, whose variations determine smoking and flavor characteristics:
Wrappers
A cigar's outermost leaves, or wrapper, come from the widest part of the plant. The wrapper determines much of the cigar's character and flavor, and as such its color is often used to describe the cigar as a whole. Colors are designated as follows, from lightest to darkest:
- Double Claro – very light, slightly greenish (also called Candela, American Market Selection or jade); achieved by picking leaves before maturity and drying quickly; often grown in Connecticut.
- Claro – light tan or yellowish. Indicative of shade-grown tobacco.
- Colorado – reddish-brown (also called Rosado or "Corojo").
- Colorado Claro – mid-brown; particularly associated with tobacco grown in the Dominican Republic or in Cuba.
- Colorado Maduro – dark brown; particularly associated with Honduran or Cuba-grown tobacco.
- Natural – light brown to brown; generally sun-grown.
- Maduro – dark brown to very dark brown.
- Oscuro – a.k.a. "Double Maduro", black, often oily in appearance; mainly grown in Cuba, Nicaragua, Brazil, Mexico, and Connecticut, USA.
Some manufacturers use an alternate designation:
- American Market Selection (AMS) – synonymous with Double Claro
- English Market Selection (EMS) – can refer to any color stronger than Double Claro but milder than Maduro
- Spanish Market Selection (SMS) – either of the two darkest colors, Maduro and Oscuro
A common misconception is that the darker the wrapper, the fuller the flavor. This is a poor indicator because flavor mainly comes from the filler. If anything, dark wrappers add a touch of sweetness, while light ones add a hint of dryness to the taste. [citation needed]
Fillers
The majority of a cigar is made up of fillers, wrapped-up bunches of leaves inside the wrapper. Fillers of various strengths are usually blended to produce desired cigar flavors. In the cigar industry this is referred to as a "blend". Many cigar manufacturers pride themselves in constructing the perfect blend(s) that will give the smoker the most enjoyment of cigar. The more oils present in the tobacco leaf, the stronger (less dry) the filler. Types range from the minimally flavored Volado taken from the bottom of the plant, through the light-flavored Seco (dry) taken from the middle of the plant, to the strong Ligero from the upper leaves exposed to the most sunlight. Fatter cigars of larger gauge hold more filler, with greater potential to provide a full body and complex flavor. When used, Ligero is always folded into the middle of the filler because it burns slowly.
Fillers can be either long or short; long filler uses whole leaves and is of a better quality, while short filler, also called "mixed", uses chopped leaves, stems, and other bits. Recently some manufacturers have created what they term "medium filler" cigars. They use larger pieces of leaf than short filler without stems, and are of better quality than short filler cigars. Short filler cigars are easy to identify when smoked since they often burn hotter and tend to release bits of leaf into the smoker's mouth. Long filled cigars of high quality should burn evenly and consistently. Also available is a filler called "sandwich" (sometimes "Cuban sandwich") which is a cigar made by rolling short leaf inside long outer leaf. If a cigar is completely constructed (filler, binder and wrapper) of tobacco from only one country, it is referred to in the cigar industry as a "puro" which in Spanish means "pure".
Binders
Binders are elastic leaves used to hold together the bunches of fillers. Essentially, binders are wrappers that are rejected because of holes, blemishes, discoloration, or excess veins.
Size and shape
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/Largest_cigar.jpg/220px-Largest_cigar.jpg)
Cigars are commonly categorized by the size and shape of the cigar, which together are known as the vitola.
The size of a cigar is measured by two dimensions: its ring gauge (its diameter in sixty-fourths of an inch) and its length (in inches). For example, most non-Cuban robustos have a ring gauge of approximately 50 and a length of approximately 5 inches. Robustos which are of Cuban origin always have a ring gauge of 50 and a length of 4 ⅞ inches.[citation needed]
See also Factory name.
Parejo
The most common shape is the parejo, which has a cylindrical body, straight sides, one end open, and a round tobacco-leaf "cap" on the other end which must be sliced off, have a V-shaped notch made in it with a special cutter, or punched through before smoking.
Parejos are designated by the following terms:
- Coronas
- Rothschilds (4 ½" x 50) after the Rothschild family
- Robusto (4 ⅞" x 50)
- Hermosos No. 4 (5" x 48)
- Mareva/Petit Corona (5 ⅛" x 42)
- Corona (5 ½" x 42)
- Corona Gorda (5 ⅝" x 46)
- Toro (6" x 50)
- Corona Grande (6 ⅛" x 42)
- Cervantes/Lonsdale (6 ½" x 42), named for Hugh Cecil Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale
- Dalia (6 ¾" x 43)
- Julieta, also known as Churchill (7" x 47), named for Sir Winston Churchill
- Prominente/Double Corona (7 ⅝" x 49)
- Presidente (8" x 50)
- Gran Corona ("A") (9 ¼" x 47)
- Panatelas – longer and generally thinner than Coronas
- Small Panatela (5" x 33)
- Carlota (5 ⅝" x 35)
- Short Panatela (5" x 38)
- Slim Panatela (6" x 34.9)
- Panatela (6" x 38)
- Deliciados/Laguito No. 1 (7 ¼" x 38)
These dimensions are, at best, idealized. Actual dimensions can vary considerably.[10]
Figurado
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/Cigarshapes1.png/220px-Cigarshapes1.png)
Irregularly shaped cigars are known as figurados and are sometimes considered of higher quality because they are more difficult to make.
Historically, especially during the 19th century, figurados were the most popular shapes; however, by the 1930s they had fallen out of fashion and all but disappeared. They have, however, recently received a small resurgence in popularity, and there are currently many brands (manufacturers) that produce figurados alongside the simpler parejos. The Cuban cigar brand Cuaba only has figurados in their range.
Figurados include the following:
- Torpedo - Like a parejo except that the cap is pointed.
- Pyramid - Has a broad foot and evenly narrows to a pointed cap.
- Perfecto - Narrow at both ends and bulged in the middle.
- Presidente/Diadema - shaped like a parejo but considered a figurado because of its enormous size and occasional closed foot akin to a perfecto.
- Culebras - Three long, pointed cigars braided together.
- Tuscanian - The typical Italian cigar, created in the early 19th century when Kentucky tobacco was hybridized with local varieties and used to create a long, tough, slim cigar thicker in the middle and tapered at the ends, with a very strong aroma. It is also known as a cheroot, which is the largest selling cigar shape in the United States.
Arturo Fuente, a large cigar manufacturer based in the Dominican Republic, has also manufactured figurados in exotic shapes ranging from chili peppers to baseball bats and American footballs. They are highly collectible and extremely expensive, when publicly available. In practice, the terms Torpedo and Pyramid are often used interchangeably, even among very knowledgeable cigar smokers. Min Ron Nee, the Hong Kong-based cigar expert whose work An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Post-Revolution Havana Cigars is considered to be the definitive work on cigars and cigar terms, defines Torpedo as "cigar slang". Nee thinks the majority is right (because slang is defined by majority usage) and torpedoes are pyramids by another name.
Little cigars
Little cigars (sometimes called small cigars) differ greatly from regular cigars. They weigh less than cigars and cigarillos,[11] but more importantly, they resemble cigarettes in size, shape, packaging, and filters.[12] Sales of little cigars quadrupled in the U.S. from 1971 to 1973 in response to the Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act, which banned the broadcast of cigarette advertisements and required stronger health warnings on cigarette packs. Cigars were exempt from the ban, and perhaps more importantly, were taxed at a far lower rate. Little cigars are sometimes called "cigarettes in disguise", and unsuccessful attempts have been made to reclassify them as cigarettes. Sales of little cigars reached an all-time high in 2006, fueled in great part by their taxation loophole.[6]
Cigar cutters
Although some cigars are cut on both ends, or twirled at both ends, the vast majority come with one straight cut end and one end in a "cap". Most quality handmade cigars, regardless of shape, will have a cap which is one or more small pieces of a wrapper pasted on to one end of the cigar with a either a natural tobacco paste or with a mixture of flour and water. The cap end of a cigar must be cut off for the cigar to be smoked properly. It is the rounded end without the tobacco exposed, and this is the end one should always cut. If the cap is cut jaggedly or without care, the end of the cigar will not burn evenly and smokeable tobacco will be lost. Some cigar manufacturers purposely place different types of tobacco from one end to the other to give the cigar smokers a variety of tastes, body and strength from start to finish. Smoking a cigar from the wrong end may result in a bad experience.
There are three basic types of cigar cutters:
- Guillotine (straight cut)
- Punch cut
- V-cut (a.k.a. notch cut, cat's eye, wedge cut, English cut)
Flavor
Each brand and type of cigar tastes different. While the wrapper does not entirely determine the flavor of the cigar, darker wrappers tend to produce a sweetness, while lighter wrappers usually have a "drier" taste. Whether a cigar is mild, medium, or full bodied does not correlate with quality. Different smokers will have different preferences, some liking one good cigar better than another, others disagreeing. Some words used to describe cigar flavor and texture include; spicy, peppery (red or black), sweet, harsh, burnt, green, earthy, woodsy, cocoa, roasted, aged, nutty, creamy, cedar, oak, chewy, fruity, and leathery.
Cigar smoke, which is rarely inhaled, tastes of tobacco with nuances of other tastes. Many different things affect the scent of cigar smoke: tobacco type, quality of the cigar, added flavors, age and humidity, production method (handmade vs. machine-made) and more. A fine cigar can taste completely different from inhaled cigarette smoke. When smoke is inhaled, as is usual with cigarettes, the tobacco flavor is less noticeable than the sensation from the smoke. Some cigar enthusiasts use a vocabulary similar to that of wine-tasters to describe the overtones and undertones observed while smoking a cigar. Journals are available for recording personal ratings, description of flavors observed, sizes, brands, etc. Cigar tasting is in such respects similar to wine, cognac and whisky tasting.
Cuban cigars
This section needs additional citations for verification. (July 2008) |
Cuban cigars are rolled from tobacco leaves found throughout the country of Cuba. The filler, binder, and wrapper may come from different portions of the island. All cigar production in Cuba is controlled by the Cuban government, and each brand may be rolled in several different factories in Cuba. Cuban cigar rollers or "torcedores" are claimed to be the most skilled in the world. Torcedores are highly respected in Cuban society and culture and travel worldwide displaying their art of hand rolling cigars.[citation needed]
Habanos SA and Cubatabaco between them do all the work relating to Cuban cigars, including manufacture, quality control, promotion and distribution, and export. Cuba produces both handmade and machine made cigars. All boxes and labels are marked Hecho en Cuba (made in Cuba). Machine-bunched cigars finished by hand add Hecho a mano, while fully hand-made cigars say Totalmente a mano in script text, though not all Cuban cigars will include this statement. Some cigars show a TC or Tripa Corta, meaning that short filler and cuttings were used in the hand-rolling process.[which?][citation needed] Because of the perceived status of Cuban cigars, counterfeits are somewhat commonplace.[13]
United States embargo against Cuba
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/ChewithCigar.jpg/170px-ChewithCigar.jpg)
On February 7, 1962, United States President John F. Kennedy imposed a trade embargo on Cuba to sanction Fidel Castro's communist government. According to Pierre Salinger, then Kennedy's press secretary, the president ordered him on the evening of February 6 to obtain 1,200 H. Upmann brand petit corona Cuban cigars; upon Salinger's arrival with the cigars the following morning, Kennedy signed the executive order which put the embargo into effect.[15] Richard Goodwin, a White House assistant to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson, revealed in a 2000 New York Times article that in early 1962 JFK told him, “We tried to exempt cigars, but the cigar manufacturers in Tampa objected."[16] The embargo prohibited US residents from legally purchasing Cuban-cigars on the market, and Cuba was deprived of its major customer for tobacco.
In the United States, authentic Cuban-made cigars are seen as "forbidden fruit" for Americans to purchase. Upon the expropriation of private property in Cuba, many former Cuban cigar manufacturers moved to other countries (primarily Dominican Republic) to continue production.[citation needed] Dominican Republic's production of tobacco grew significantly as a result.[citation needed] After reallocation, most Cuban manufacturers continued to use their known company name, seed, and harvesting technique while Cubatabaco, Cuba's state tobacco monopoly after the Revolution, independently continued production of cigars using the former private company names.[citation needed] As a result, cigar name brands like Romeo y Julieta, Gloria Cubana, Montecristo among others, are existent in both Cuba and Dominican Republic.[citation needed] Honduras and Nicaragua are also mass manufactures of cigars. Some Cuban refugees make cigars in the U.S. and advertise them as "Cuban" cigars, using the argument that the cigars are made by Cubans.[17]
It remains illegal for US residents to purchase or import Cuban cigars regardless of where they are in the world,[18] although they are readily available across the northern border in Canada and the southern border in Mexico. While Cuban cigars are smuggled into the USA and sold at high prices, counterfeiting is rife; it has been said that 95% of Cuban cigars sold in the USA are counterfeit.[19] Although Cuban cigars cannot legally be imported into the USA, the advent of the Internet has made it much easier for people in the United States to purchase cigars online from other countries, especially when shipped without bands.
Cigars specific to other countries
Italy produces the "Sigaro Toscano" (Tuscan cigar), very different from the Havana style.[citation needed]
The cheroot is traditionally associated with Burma and India.[citation needed]
Health effects
Like other forms of tobacco use, cigar smoking poses a significant health risk depending on dosage: risks are greater for those who inhale more when they smoke, smoke more cigars, or smoke them longer.[20] The risk of dying from any cause is significantly greater for cigar smokers, with the risk particularly higher for smokers less than 65 years old, and with risk for moderate and deep inhalers reaching levels similar to cigarette smokers. The increased risk for those smoking 1–2 cigars per day is too small to be statistically significant,[21] and the health risks of the 3/4 of cigar smokers who smoke less than daily are not known[22] and are hard to measure; although it has been claimed that people who smoke few cigars have no increased risk, a more accurate statement is that their risks are proportionate to their exposure.[23] Health risks are similar to cigarette smoking in nicotine addiction, periodontal health, tooth loss, and many types of cancer, including cancers of the mouth, throat, and esophagus. Cigar smoking also can cause cancers of the lung and larynx, where the increased risk is less than that of cigarettes. Many of these cancers have extremely low cure rates. Cigar smoking also increases the risk of lung and heart diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.[20]
Popularity
The prevalence of cigar smoking varies depending on location, historical period, and population surveyed, and prevalence estimates vary somewhat depending on the survey method. The U.S. is the top consuming country by far, followed by Germany and the UK; the U.S. and western Europe account for about 75% of cigar sales worldwide.[1] The 2005 U.S. National Health Interview Survey estimated that 2.2% of adults smoke cigars, about the same as smokeless tobacco but far less than the 21% of adults who smoke cigarettes; it also estimated that 4.3% of men but only 0.3% of women smoke cigars.[24] The 2002 U.S. National Survey of Drug Use and Health found that adults with serious psychological distress are significantly more likely to smoke cigars than those without.[25] A 2007 California study found that gay men and bisexual women smoke significantly fewer cigars than the general population of men and women, respectively.[26] Substantial and steady increases in cigar smoking were observed during the 1990s and early 2000s in the U.S. among both adults and adolescents.[12] Data suggest that cigar usage among young adult males increased threefold during the 1990s, a 1999–2000 survey of 31,107 young adult U.S. military recruits found that 12.3% smoked cigars,[27] and a 2003–2004 survey of 4,486 high school students in a Midwestern county found that 18% smoked cigars.[28]
Popular culture
Major U.S. print media portray cigars favorably; they generally frame cigar use as a lucrative business or a trendy habit, rather than as a health risk.[29] Rich people are often caricatured as wearing top hats and tails and smoking cigars. In the United States a poor-quality cigar is sometimes called a "dog rocket".[30] These cheap cigars are often converted into blunts rather than smoked directly. Cigars are often smoked to celebrate special occasion: the birth of a child, a graduation, a big sale. The expression "close but no cigar" comes from the practice of giving cigars as prizes in games involving good aim at fairgrounds.
King Edward VII enjoyed smoking cigarettes and cigars, much to the chagrin of his mother, Queen Victoria. After her death, legend has it, King Edward said to his male guests at the end of a dinner party, "Gentlemen, you may smoke." In his name, a line of inexpensive American cigars has long been named King Edward.
President Ulysses S. Grant of the USA and Dr. Sigmund Freud were both known for regularly smoking an entire box (25 cigars) a day[citation needed]. Ulysses S. Grant died of throat cancer. Challenged on the "phallic" shape of the cigar, Freud is supposed to have replied "sometimes a cigar is just a cigar."[31] Freud underwent more than 30 operations during his life to treat oral cancer.[32]
Winston Churchill (who has been credited with the practice of dunking a cigar in port or brandy)[33] was rarely seen without a cigar during his time as Britain's wartime leader; so much so that a large cigar size was named in his honor.
Fidel Castro was often seen smoking a cigar during the early days of the Cuban revolution, but gave up smoking in the early 1980s as part of a campaign to encourage the Cuban population to smoke less on health grounds.[34] Many other celebrities were well-known cigar smokers, including George Burns, Mark Twain, Milton Berle, and Bill Cosby.[35]
Rudyard Kipling said in his poem The Betrothed, "A woman is only a woman: but a good cigar is a smoke."
Since apart from certain forms of heavily cured and strong snuff, the cigar is the most potent form of self-dosing with tobacco, it has long had associations of being a male rite of passage, as it may have had during the pre-Columbian era in America. Its fumes and rituals have in American and European cultures established a "men's hut"; in the 19th century, men would retire to the "smoking room" after dinner, to discuss serious issues.
See also
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
References
- ^ a b Rarick CA (2008-04-02). "Note on the premium cigar industry". SSRN. Retrieved 2008-12-02.
{{cite journal}}
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(help) - ^ Cigar Aficionado Magazine Cigar Hall of Fame
- ^ a b Baker F, Ainsworth SR, Dye JT; et al. (2000). "Health risks associated with cigar smoking". JAMA. 284 (6): 735–40. doi:10.1001/jama.284.6.735. PMID 10927783.
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(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ DeSantis AD, Morgan SE (2003). "Sometimes a cigar [magazine] is more than just a cigar [magazine]: pro-smoking arguments in Cigar Aficionado, 1992–2000". Health Commun. 15 (4): 457–80. doi:10.1207/S15327027HC1504_05. PMID 14557079.
- ^ Wenger LD, Malone RE, George A, Bero LA (2001). "Cigar magazines: using tobacco to sell a lifestyle". Tob Control. 10 (3): 279–84. doi:10.1136/tc.10.3.279. PMC 1747592. PMID 11544394.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c Delnevo CD, Hrywna M (2007). "'A whole 'nother smoke' or a cigarette in disguise: how RJ Reynolds reframed the image of little cigars". Am J Public Health. 97 (8): 1368–75. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2006.101063. PMID 17600253.
- ^ a b Malone RE, Bero LA (2000). "Cigars, youth, and the Internet link" (PDF). Am J Public Health. 90 (5): 790–2. PMID 10800432.
- ^ a b Slade J (1998). "Marketing and promotion of cigars". In Shopland DR, Burns DM, Hoffman D, Cummings KM, Amacher RH (eds.) (ed.). Cigars: Health Effects and Trends. Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9. National Cancer Institute. pp. 195–219.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Maloney BJ (2003). "The most useless cigar page". Retrieved 2008-01-23.
- ^ Connolly GN (1998). "Policies regulating cigars". In Shopland DR, Burns DM, Hoffman D, Cummings KM, Amacher RH (eds.) (ed.). Cigars: Health Effects and Trends. Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9. National Cancer Institute. pp. 221–32.
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- ^ Identifying Counterfeit Cuban Cigars
- ^ "Che's Habanos" by Jesus Arboleya and Roberto F. Campos, Cigar Aficionado, October 1997
- ^ Cigar Aficionado: "Kennedy, Cuba and Cigars"
- ^ Goodwin R (2000-07-05). "President Kennedy's plan for peace with Cuba". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-09-20.
- ^ Gould LE (2007-05-30). "Las Vegas cigar lounges roll out the welcome mat". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-09-11.
- ^ Office of Foreign Assets Control: "Cuban Cigar Update"
- ^ Steve Saka (2002-02-22). "The Ultimate Counterfeit Cuban Cigar Primer". Retrieved 2008-03-12.
- ^ a b Symm B, Morgan MV, Blackshear Y, Tinsley S (2005). "Cigar smoking: an ignored public health threat". J Prim Prev. 26 (4): 363–75. doi:10.1007/s10935-005-5389-z. PMID 15995804.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Shanks TG, Burns DM (1998). "Disease consequences of cigar smoking". In Shopland DR, Burns DM, Hoffman D, Cummings KM, Amacher RH (eds.) (ed.). Cigars: Health Effects and Trends. Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9. National Cancer Institute. pp. 105–160.
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- ^ Burns DM (1998). "Cigar smoking: overview and current state of the science". In Shopland DR, Burns DM, Hoffman D, Cummings KM, Amacher RH (eds.) (ed.). Cigars: Health Effects and Trends. Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9. National Cancer Institute. pp. 1–20.
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(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Hagman BT, Delnevo CD, Hrywna M, Williams JM (2008). "Tobacco use among those with serious psychological distress: results from the national survey of drug use and health, 2002". Addict Behav. 33 (4): 582–92. doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2007.11.007. PMID 18158218.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Gruskin EP, Greenwood GL, Matevia M, Pollack LM, Bye LL, Albright V (2007). "Cigar and smokeless tobacco use in the lesbian, gay, and bisexual population". Nicotine Tob Res. 9 (9): 937–40. doi:10.1080/14622200701488426. PMID 17763109.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Vander Weg MW, Peterson AL, Ebbert JO, Debon M, Klesges RC, Haddock CK (2008). "Prevalence of alternative forms of tobacco use in a population of young adult military recruits". Addict Behav. 33 (1): 69–82. doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2007.07.005. PMC 2101765. PMID 17706889.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Brooks A, Gaier Larkin EM, Kishore S, Frank S (2008). "Cigars, cigarettes, and adolescents". Am J Health Behav. 32 (6): 640–9. doi:10.5555/ajhb.2008.32.6.640. PMID 18442343.
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value (help); Unknown parameter|doi_brokendate=
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suggested) (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Wenger L, Malone R, Bero L (2001). "The cigar revival and the popular press: a content analysis, 1987–1997" (PDF). Am J Public Health. 91 (2): 288–91. PMC 1446522. PMID 11211641.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Steve Saka (2005). "Dog Rocket - The Cigar Diary". Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ Attributed in Bartlett, Familiar Quotations 15th Ed. 679
- ^ Gay, Peter (1988). Freud: A Life for Our Time. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
- ^ Online Havana Cigars (2008). "Cigar Tips". Retrieved 2008-12-09.
- ^ Stubbs J (2005). "Tobacco in the Contrapunteo: Ortiz and the Havana cigar". In Font MA, Quiroz AW (eds.) (ed.). Cuban Counterpoints: the Legacy of Fernando Ortiz. Lexington. pp. 105–24. ISBN 978-0739109687.
{{cite book}}
:|editor=
has generic name (help) - ^ "The top 100 cigar smokers of the twentieth century". Cigar Aficionado. Nov/Dec 1999.
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(help)
External links
- Cigar Smoker's FAQ - compiled from alt.smokers.cigars