Cabinet Selection - Cigars packed in a wooden box rather than cardboard or paper-covered cigar boxes. These are preferred when buying cigars for aging.

Cap - A circular piece of wrapper leaf placed at the head of the cigar.

Corona - The most familiar size and shape for premium cigars: generally straight-sided with an open foot and a closed, rounded head.

Draw - The flow of smoke from a cigar.

Filler - The individual tobacco used in the body of the cigar. A fine cigar usually contains between two and 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.

Head - The closed end of the cigar opposite from the end one lights.

Hot - Describes a cigar that is underfilled 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.

Lance - A cutter used to pierce a small hole in the closed end of a cigar. Also called a piercer.

Maduro - A cigar, very dark brown in color (like black coffee). These are usually selected by experienced smokers. Thought of as the traditional Cuban color.

Oil - The mark of a well-humidified cigar. Even well-aged cigars secrete oil at 70 to 72 percent relative humidity, the level at which they should be stored.

Perfecto - A distinctive cigar shape that is closed at both ends, with a rounded head; usually with a bulge in the middle.

Shoulder - The area of a cigar where the cap meets the body. If you cut into the shoulder, the cigar will begin to unravel.

Sugar - Sugars occur naturally in tobacco. Darker wrappers, such as maduros, contain more sugar, making them sweeter.

Torpedo - A cigar shape that features a closed foot, a pointed head and a bulge in the middle.

Tubos - Cigars packed in individual wood, metal or glass tubes to keep them fresh.

Tunneling - The unwelcome phenomenon of having your cigar burn unevenly. To prevent it, rotate your cigar now and then.

Vintage - When a vintage is used for a cigar, it usually refers to the year the tobacco was harvested, not the year the cigar was made.

Wrapper (capa) - Leaves with elasticity are used to restrain the filler within the cigar. Good wrappers usually have no visable veins. Colors vary due to the maturing process.

About Cigar Cutters

 
The great debate amoung many cigar enthusiasts centers around the task of cigar cutting.  There are guillotine cutters, hole punchers, V cutters, cigar scizzors, drug store razor blades and of course your own teeth.  Which method is best? 

One very important consideration is how the cut effects the physical condition of the cigar.  You certainly do not want to cut too deep into the cigar body (just the cap) and you also do not the cigar wrapper to start becoming undone while you are enjoying it. 

Step one is to look at the head of the cigar (the closed end for those folks new to cigar smoking).  This top part of the cigar is known as the cap, and depending on how large the cap is ~ will determine how far down you should make your cut. Cutting too far down will bring undesireable results, as will cutting too little.  Try and eyeball the center of the cap and try and aim for a happy medium.  Practice makes perfect, so this will be your excuse to enjoy a number of different cigars (I need to practice sweetheart ~ and I certainly cannot allow a cut cigar to go to waste). 

Some people prefer a good guillotine cutter, but even with this type of cutter you must be careful.  A dull blade or cheaply make cutter could leave you with a cigar that has the appearance of a ginzu knife attack.  I have used guillotine cutters with success, but the trick is an even and quickly executed cut stroke.  Also, by all means make sure the blade is sharp. 

I have also used V-cutters that some smokers will swear by, but again, I think the same rules apply as to a guillotine cutter.  A dull cutting blade is the cigar smokers enemy. 
Another problem with either a guillotine or V-cutter is that the larger ring sizes may be somewhat more cumbersome to cut.   A friend of mine told me to buy a bigger guillotine, but I do not want to have a contraption used in the French revolution just to cut cigars (plus my wife may get the wrong idea with such a thing in the house). 

Another idea is the hole punch.  One advantage is to a hole punch is less possibility of damage to the cigar wraper when making your incision.  I would suggest a hole punch that also extracts the contents of filler material.  As with any variety of cutters, the case of cheap is expensive applies.  Meaning that cheap cutters may ruin more good cigars with the way they cut than to spend the money on a good quality cutter. 

 

About Cigar Humidors 

And Storage...........

 
One common question cigar smokers ask is ~ What is the best way to store or keep my cigars ?  Here are a few tips and words of advice about aging and other related topics. 

First, with respect to aging and / or cigar freshness, keep in mind that the cigar manufacturer for up to two years or more prior to rolling normally ages most tobacco.  We of course are talking about manufacturers concerned about quality and not the cheap stuff sold in some convenience stores.  So the first question is ~ what are you trying to achieve in the storage process?  

If your goal is to further enhance your cigars through additional aging, you may want to consider a separate humidor for this purpose.  It is not a good idea to keep the cigars you want to enjoy right now with the cigars you intend to age.  The opening and closing of your humidor and constant rotation of new cigars may end up defeating your purpose.  Regardless of your intentions, the question is ~ what is the ideal storage method. 

There are a number of different humidors on the market today, ranging in price from $25 up to the super fancy deluxe variety ~ which could cost up to $2500, maybe more. 
I do not know of one brand or model, which could be said to work better than other.  The important feature for all humidors, irrespective of price,  is their ability to maintain the desired level of humidity and temperature.  In this regard, some of the "cheapo" models can work just as well as the fancy $1,000 units.  When purchasing a humidor, investigate to see how well the box is constructed.  Remember that the goal is to keep air and other elements out.  Tight fitting seams and secure closure are important. 
We would highly suggest a humidor that is constructed from, or in the least has liner of, Spanish Cedar.   

The desired ration of humidity and temperature that you want to maintain is 70% humidity and 70 degrees Fahrenheit.  That is an easy formula to remember.  Some cigar lovers often keep the humidity too high.  You are not trying to recreate a rain forest, just keep a constant humidity level of 70% and you will do fine. 

Another question many cigar smokers ask about concerns the cellophane wrapper that some companies use. It cannot hurt to leave the cellophane wrapper on when placing your cigars in the humidor.  There are two reasons for this.  One is that the constant opening and closing of the humidor will allow air to enter.  By keeping the cellophane on, you are adding an extra level of protection.  The other reason concerns the other cigars in your humidor.  If the contents of the humidor are all the same cigar line, or one particular brand, the cellophane issue will not be such a big deal.  However, when you start mixing other cigar lines, your mild or sweet tasting cigars may start taking on the flavor of your stronger or more earthy type cigars.  You may want that, but we would advise against it.  The cellophane wrapper therefore also offers some protection from oil migration and flavor exchange.  Remember that the cellophane covering is certainly neither air nor moisture proof. So, even with the cellophane on, the above mentioned scenario could happen over time.  The only advantage of the cellophane wrapper is that it slows this process down. 

The best way to place your cigars is in a horizontal fashion. This method seems to work best at keeping air damage or drying to a minimum.  If you have purchased longer cigars, like churchills for example, you may want to consider purchasing a humidor that is large enough to accommodate horizontal storage.