Cigars: Cigar Manufacture

 Cigar Strength

Cigars are classified as mild, medium, or full bodied. The body refers to the impact the smoke is supposed to have inside the mouth. It is difficult to measure because it is a subjective perception, which is the reason why cigars are often rated "mild to medium" or "medium to full". Cigar makers know what type of tobaccos they have to use to POD SALT DISPOSABLE achieve the desired level of impact. The difficulty lies in blending them to get a pleasant balance between taste and aroma.

Cigar Size

Cigars are measured by diameter and by length. Diameter size, called ring gauge, is measured by 64th of one inch. Length is measured by inches. A 50x5 cigar has a ring gauge of 50 times 1/64 inch and is 5 inches long. Sometimes you''ll see 5x50, which is the same, do not think that the cigar is 50 inches long! If the cigar is not a cylinder, the ring gauge shown is generally the bigger one. For a torpedo (pyramidal), the smallest and the largest diameters of the truncated segment can be mentioned as 36-54, for example. Cigars have been named according to their size: Churchill, Robusto, Corona, Panatela, etc., but these are not strict definitions. Each one is in a range of length and diameter. A Robusto is classically a 50x5, but the ring gauge can vary in a 48-54 range and the length between 4 1/2 and 5 1/2 inches.

Cigar Shading

Before premium cigars are packed inside the box, they are classified by color so that all the cigars in the box look alike. It is a very difficult operation and few people are able to make such a sharp sorting. A good "shader" goes up to 72 different colors or tones, including criteria for brightness and shine. It is absolutely fascinating to see how fast they can do it, too.

Cigar Drying

When making cigars, fillers are handled dry (about 16% humidity) and they are quite stiff. However, to make the bunch, the binder has to be moistened in order to be flexible enough to wrap around, and so does the wrapper. So, the binder gives water to the fillers and the bunch becomes too soft to be wrapped. The pressing time helps to dry it enough for wrapping. Likewise, the moistened wrapper is going to transmit water to the rest of the cigar. Once again, a drying period is necessary to reach the proper moisture content in the cigar. Generally, the time to go through the quality control is long enough for the cigars to be ready to be stored in the humidor.