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cigar tips and tricks

Eleven Enlightening Facts About Padrón

Eleven Enlightening Facts About Padrón

Here are some facts you may not know about this esteemed line of cigars.

August 3, 2023
Cigar 101: Vertical Brand Tastings, Explained

Cigar 101: Vertical Brand Tastings, Explained

At Cigar Aficionado, we often reference “vertical brand tastings.” The following is a primer on the process and why it matters when evaluating cigar lines.

November 4, 2022
A Timeline of Fat Ring Gauge Cigars

A Timeline of Fat Ring Gauge Cigars

See how the cigar market went from thin to thick over the last 30 years.

March 16, 2021
The ABCs of Cigars

The ABCs of Cigars

From amatista to zafadores, we define 26 cigar-industry every aficionado needs to know.

February 9, 2021
Why is There a Stem in My Cigar?

Why is There a Stem in My Cigar?

While veins may not be pretty to look at, they can be full of flavor. The stems, too. At the center of each tobacco leaf is a thick, linear structure known as a midrib, i.e. a …

August 28, 2020
10 Things To Know About Fuente Fuente OpusX

10 Things To Know About Fuente Fuente OpusX

The mystique behind Fuente Fuente OpusX has endured for 25 years since its birth in 1995. We compiled a list of 10 facts that will shed some light on the cigar brand that became a …

April 2, 2020

Lector

A person who reads to the cigar rollers while they work. This practice is no longer common, but still occurs in many Cuban cigar factories and on rare occasion in a factory …

counterfeit cigars

8 Things To Know About Counterfeit Cuban Cigars

8 Things To Know About Counterfeit Cuban Cigars

Save your money (and your palates) by following these eight key tips to avoid getting burned by a fake Cuban cigar.

December 9, 2019
How To Spot A Fake Hoyo De Monterrey

How To Spot A Fake Hoyo De Monterrey

Learn how to tell whether the Hoyo De Monterrey you're smoking is authentic or fake.

August 23, 2018
How To Spot A Fake Partagás

How To Spot A Fake Partagás

Learn how to tell whether the Partagás you're smoking is authentic or fake.

August 23, 2018
How To Spot A Fake Bolivar

How To Spot A Fake Bolivar

Find out if your Cuban Bolivar is real or fake. 

August 22, 2018
How To Spot A Fake Cohiba Behike BHK

How To Spot A Fake Cohiba Behike BHK

Find out if your Cuban Cohiba Behike BHK is real or fake.

August 16, 2018
How To Spot A Fake Romeo y Julieta

How To Spot A Fake Romeo y Julieta

Find out if your Cuban Romeo y Julieta is real or fake.

August 15, 2018

Cigar 101 Videos

Cigar 101: Cigar Lighters & How to Light a Cigar

Senior editor Andrew Nagy shows how to operate the most common types of lighters used to light a cigar.

June 5, 2019

Cigar 101: Cigar Cutters & How to Cut a Cigar

Senior editor Andrew Nagy demonstrates how to operate the most common kinds of cutters used to clip cigars.

June 3, 2019

Cigar 101: Snakes In The Humidor

Cigar Aficionado's resident snake experts, David Savona and Gregory Mottola, talk and smoke culebras, the twisted, serpentine cigars that come in threes.

November 17, 2015

From the Farm: Nick Melillo On Connecticut Broadleaf

Nick Melillo, the creator of Foundation Cigar Co., and senior editor Andrew Nagy discuss the highly sought Connecticut broadleaf from the tobacco barn on Nick's farm in Connecticut.

April 20, 2020

Rocky's New Crop

Rocky Patel talks about his newest tobacco crop growing in Estelí, Nicaragua.

June 12, 2014

Ecuador's Cuban-Seed Wrapper

Ecuador Habano-seed wrapper is one of the most popular wrappers on the market.

January 14, 2014

Cigar Brands

Avo

Avo

During his playing days in Puerto Rico, cigar icon and jazz musician Avo Uvezian said that he would purchase a few local cigars each night and place them on top of the piano for …

May 12, 2017
Maestro del Tiempo

Maestro del Tiempo

Maestro del Tiempo is a Nicaraguan puro that was first released in 2016. According to Warped Cigars owner Kyle Gellis, Maestro del Tiempo, or Master of Time, alludes to the period …

August 22, 2018
CLE

CLE

In 2012, Christian Eiroa returned to the cigar business with a new brand called CLE, which stands for Eiroa’s initials (his middle name is Luis). The successful brand has spawned …

June 12, 2017
Norteño

Norteño

Norteños come off the tables of La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate and from the mind of Willy Herrera, Drew Estate's master blender. He took a Mexican San Andrés wrapper, a Honduran …

April 17, 2017
Nat Sherman

Nat Sherman

The history of Nat Sherman cigars goes all the way back to 1930, when founder Nat Sherman acquired a clear Havana cigar brand called Epoca. For many years, Nat Sherman's cigar …

May 9, 2017
Room101

Room101

When founder and former marine Matt Booth created his Los Angeles-based brand in 2003, he was only crafting alternative luxury silver jewelry. Six years later, Booth struck a deal …

April 3, 2020

tobacco

Hail Destroys Acres Of Fuente Fuente OpusX Wrapper Leaf

Hail Destroys Acres Of Fuente Fuente OpusX Wrapper Leaf

An intense and long-lived hailstorm destroyed several acres of cigar tobacco at Chateau de la Fuente in El Caribe, Dominican Republic on May 6.

May 11, 2022
The Mystique of Medio Tempo

The Mystique of Medio Tempo

The newest buzzword in the cigar-blending world is medio tiempo: a high-primed leaf that packs a big punch. Despite being a darling to some makers, its enigmatic qualities (even …

November 16, 2021
Tobacco Seeds Discovered Among Stone Age Ruins

Tobacco Seeds Discovered Among Stone Age Ruins

The use of tobacco by humans goes back much farther in history than previously thought.

October 12, 2021
Crop Report: Nicaragua’s Tobacco Season Extends into June

Crop Report: Nicaragua’s Tobacco Season Extends into June

The season is extending an extra month, to mid-June.

May 11, 2021
Black Gold

Black Gold

The San Andrés Valley on Mexico’s Gulf Coast produces some of the most sought-after tobaccos in the world.

May 12, 2020
Shade in the Dusk

Shade in the Dusk

The once-dominant wrapper leaf grown under cloth in the Connecticut River Valley now needs protection from encroaching development.

October 25, 2019
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