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There are numerous terms that are thrown around the cigar forums
and smoke shops. Don't be intimidated. Just because
you are not familiar with the terms doesn't mean that you cannot
enjoy a fine cigar. Furthermore, those that know the terms,
are not necessarily aficionados either! Learn what you can,
but always enjoy. You will find that MOST all cigar smokers
that you meet are great folks. Of course you will
undoubtedly come across the occasional 'cigar snob', but they are
far and few.
If I've missed anything, please feel free to let me know.
Sent me the word or term, as well as the definition (or the link
where the information can be found) to the NESO webmaster@ne-smokeout.com.
A
B C
D E
F G
H I J K L
M N O
P Q R
S T
U V W
X Y Z
Amarillo
-
A yellow wrapper leaf grown under
shade.
Amatista -
A glass jar containing 50 or 25 cigars, sealed and sold as factory
fresh.
Band
-
A
paper ring around the head of most cigars. Legend has it that
cigar bands were invented by Spanish nobles to keep their gloves
from being stained. Cigar bands are often printed with the name of
the brand, country of origin, and/or indication that the cigar is
hand-rolled. They often have colorful graphics, which have made
them a popular collectors item.
Barrel -
The
main body of the cigar.
Belicoso
-
Traditionally
a short, pyramid-shaped cigar, 5 or 5 1/2 inches in length with a
shorter, more rounded taper at the head and a ring gauge of 50 or
less. Belicoso is often used to describe Coronas or Corona Gordas
with a tapered head.
Binder
-
The portion of leaf used to hold together the blend of
filler leaves; with the wrapper and filler, it is one of the three
main components in a cigar.
Blend
-
The
mix tobacco in a cigar, including up to five types of filler
leaves, a binder leaf and an outer wrapper.
Boite
Nature -
The
cedar box in which many cigars are sold.
Book
Style
(also,
Booking)
-
A rolling method by which the cigar maker
lays the filler leaves atop one another, then rolls them up like a
scroll. Book style, or booking, is common in Honduras. The
alternate style is based on the old Cuban method called entubar.
Bouquet
-
The
smell, or nose of a fine cigar. A badly stored cigars can lose its
bouquet.
Box
-
The
container used to package cigars.
Box-pressed -
The slightly square appearance taken on by cigars
packed tightly in a box.
Bull's-Eye
Piercer
-
A device for opening the closed head of a cigar before smoking.
Bunch
-
Up
to four different types of filler tobacco blended to create the
body of the cigar. The bunch is held together by the binder.
Bundle
-
A packaging method designed with economy in mind that uses a
cellophane over wrap. It usually contains 25 or 50 cigars,
traditionally without bands. Bundles, oftentimes seconds of
premium brands, are usually less expensive than boxed cigars.
Burros
(also
called bulks) -
The
piles, or bulks, in which cigar tobacco is fermented. They can be
six feet tall and are carefully monitored. If the heat level
inside them gets too high, the burro is taken apart to slow the
fermentation.
Cabinet
Selection -
Cigars
packed in a wooden box rather than the standard cardboard or
paper-covered cigar boxes. These are preferable when buying cigars
for aging.
Candela
-
A bright green shade of wrapper, achieved by a heat-curing process
that fixes the chlorophyll content of the wrapper while it's still
in the barn. Also referred to as double claro.
Cap
-
A circular piece of wrapper leaf placed at the head of the cigar.
Capa -
The
cigar's wrapper (also called the binder).
Case - In
the cigar production process, workers case (slightly moisten) aged
tobacco so it will be easy for hand rollers to work with.
Catador -
a
professional cigar taster who determines a cigar's qualities of
taste, texture and aroma.
Chaveta
(roller's
knife) -
The knife used in a cigar factory for
cutting the wrapper leaf.
Churchill
-
A
large Corona-format cigar.
Claro -
The
lightest in color (like milky coffee) wrapper, usually mild and is
also sometimes called a "natural."
Colorado -
A medium-brown to brownish-red shade of wrapper tobacco. Colorado
cigars are usually aromatic and are associated with well-matured
cigars.
Corojos -
Plants
chosen to provide wrapper leaves and grown under a gauze
sunscreen.
Corona -
The
most familiar size and shape for premium cigars: generally
straight-sided with an open foot and a closed, rounded head.
Culebra -
A cigar made of three
Panatelas
braided together.
Curing -
The
process of drying newly harvested tobaccos.
Diademas -
A big cigar with a closed and tapered head, generally about eight
inches long; the foot may be open or closed like a Perfecto.
Dominican
Republic -
East
of Cuba with a similar growing climate, the Dominican Republic has
recently become a major exporter of cigars, mostly to the U.S.
Double
Claro -
A
cigar, greenish brown, from an
immature
leaf that was dried fast. These cigars are mild or bland with
little oil.
(See
Candela)
Double
Corona
(also
called prominente) -
A big cigar, generally 7 1/2 to 8 inches by a 49 to 52 ring gauge.
Draw -
The flow of smoke from a cigar.
English
Market Selection -
A color designation for
wrapper leaves that are somewhat lighter in color than Maduro,
especially selected for taste and bouquet. Also referred to as
Naturals.
Entubar -
A rolling method that originated in
Cuba. Rather than booking the filler leaves, the roller folds each
individual filler leaf back on itself, then bunches the leaves
together. Proponents of this method say it creates superior air
flow through the cigar, which results in a more even draw and
burn.
Escaparates -
Cooling cabinets in which cigars are
kept at the factory for a few weeks after they have been rolled.
Fermentation -
After harvest, the tobacco leaves are gathered in
large bulks (or piles), then
moistened and allowed to ferment. Temperatures may
reach 140°F before the bulk is broken down and restacked until
fermentation stops naturally. This process, called working the
bulk, releases ammonia from the tobacco.
Figurado
-
A Spanish term that refers to cigars with shapes
sizes, such as Belicosos, Torpedos, Pyramids, Perfectos and
Culebras (see
Shapes
and Shades
).
Filler -
The
individual tobacco used in the body of the cigar. A fine cigar
usually contains between two to five different types of filler.
Handmade cigars have long fillers where machine made cigars
usually contain smaller-cut leaf.
Finish -
A tasting term which refers to the
taste that lingers on your palate after a puff. Mild cigars do not
have much finish, either in terms of length or complexity, but
stronger, more full-bodied cigars have distinctive flavors that
linger.
Flag -
An extension of the wrapper leaf
shaped to finish the head of a cigar; used instead of a cap. Flags
are sometimes tied off in a pigtail or a curly head.
Foot -
The end of the cigar one lights.
Most often it is pre-cut, except in the case of Torpedos and
Perfectos.
Gran
Corona -
A very large cigar; generally 9 1/4
inches by 47 ring gauge.
Gum -
A vegetable adhesive used to secure
the head of the wrapper leaf around the finished bunch.
Habano -
A designation which, when inscribed
on a cigar band, indicates that a cigar is Cuban. (Note: not all
Cuban cigars are marked with "Habano" or
"Havana.")
Half-wheel
(media
ruedas) -
A bundle of 50 cigars. Cigar rollers usually use ribbon to tie the
cigars they produce into half-wheels.
Hand
-
Individual tobacco leaves hung
together after harvest and tied at the top. These hands are piled
together to make a bulk for fermentation.
Handmade -
A cigar made entirely by hand with
high-quality wrapper and long filler. All premium cigars are
handmade. Hand-rollers can generally use more delicate wrapper
leaves than machines.
Hand-rolled
-
A cigar made entirely by hand with
high-quality wrapper and long filler.
Head (Also called the Cap)-
The
closed end of the cigar opposite from the end one lights.
Homogenized
Binder -
Binder made of chopped tobacco
leaf and cellulose; used most often in machine production and to
facilitate the burn of certain products.
Hot -
Describes a cigar that is
under filled and has a quick, loose draw. Can
cause harsh flavors.
Humidor -
A room or a box, of varying sizes,
designed to preserve or promote the proper storage and aging of
cigars by maintaining a relative humidity level of 70 percent and
a temperature of approximately 65° to 70° F.
Hygrometer -
A device that indicates the humidity
(percentage of moisture in the air; used to monitor humidor
conditions.
Lance -
A cutter used to pierce a small hole
in the closed end of a cigar. Also called a
Piercer.
Lector -
Traditionally, the person who reads
to the cigar rollers while they work.
Ligero -
One of the three basic types of
filler tobacco. The name means light in Spanish, but this aromatic
tobacco lends body to a blend.
Long
Filler -
Filler tobacco that runs the
length of the body of the cigar, rather than chopped pieces found
in machine-made cigars.
Lonsdale - A
long cigar; generally 6 to 6 3/4 inches by a 42 to 44 ring gauge,
but there are many variations.
Machine-made | | |
