Robustojoe: Online Cigar Magazine

These days strong cigars are all the rage.  So much so that the word ligero is featured on many cigar bands/rings as a way of trumpeting its strength. Ligero leaves are generally taken from the upper-most part of the tobacco plant and are strong because these leaves get the most sun and consequently are the thickest and most potent.  But simply being from the top of the plant doesn't make it suitable ligero.  This determination is done in the sorting stage ...

Some of us already know that cigars have their perfect shape because they are placed into cigar molds before the wrapper leaf is applied. Although figurados, (cigars with tapered ends) were once formed only by hand, cigar manufactures are now using cigar molds for these odd shaped cigars as well. But the use of cigar molds doesn't mean just any torcedor (cigar roller) can create these unusually shaped cigars. Figurados, which include perfectos, torpedos, pyramides, ...

New info!!!... Lew Rothman has pointed out the distinction between "box pressed" and "square pressed" cigars. See his comment below. Turns out, what we commonly refer to as "box pressed", is actually "square pressed":  the cigars start out as round cigars but are filled with about 10% less tobacco and, after rolling, are put into molds that give the cigars that square shape.  The under-filling allows the cigars to draw well after being compressed into shape.

Does humid air rise?  Will the cigars at the top of my humidor be more moist than the ones on the bottom?  There seems to be a lot of confusion about these simple questions.  But by placing multiple hygrometers inside a large humidor, I've observed that humid air DOES rise.  This observation is confirmed by a more scientific approach in this online article: http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/kinetic/relhum.html#c5...

Did you know that… the tip of a tobacco leaf is sweeter and milder than the middle?  This is why the first inch of a cigar is more easy-going than the rest.  Like a jalapeño, judging the power of a chili by the tip can lead to over-the-top guacamole.  This is one reason why the current trend towards short, fat cigars is so successful.  They are made from the center section ...

Industry sources attribute flaky cigar ash to high potassium and magnesium levels in the soil.  Apparently, these minerals can causes tobacco to burn more efficiently, leaving the ash flaky.  This would dispel the misconception that flaky cigar ash is the result of short filler cigar construction.

Did you know that..."Cohiba, a word used by the Taino Indians of Cuba was thought to mean tobacco, but now is considered to have referred to cigars.  The word cigar originated from sikar, the Mayan word for smoking." Quote from The Cigar Companion, A Connoisseur's Guide, by Anwer Bati and Simon Chase.

Did you know that...around 20 million Cuban cigars are sold illegally in the United State annually?  This is according to Manuel Garcia, the marketing VP of Habanos S.A. Others estimate that as many as one third of the total Cuban cigars sold in a year are purchased by Americans. Source: Cigar Insider, March 9, 2010.