Cigar Terms you May Stumble Across

Cigar smoking is a hobby that is rich is history and diverse in culture. With many different civilisations have affecting the modern art of cigar rolling and smoking, it is no surprise that there is a variety of alien terms that you may encounter when entering the Tobacco Shop to buy a cigar. Here are a few of the most helpful terms to help you:

Anilla – Anillia literally translates into 'ring' in Spanish and in cigar terms represents the band that wraps around the body of the cigar.

Burros – Unusually used a term in the US to refer to small donkey; Burros are carefully monitored fermenting piles of tobacco.

Catadores – Possessing one of the greatest jobs on earth; Catadores are the skilled tasters who quality check cigars every days.

Chaveta – The Chaveta is a knife used by the roller to cut the wrapper tobacco leaf. The blade is in  semi-circular shape.

Culebra – A Culebra is made from three Panatelas braided together. The term is derived from the Spanish word for snake.

Despadilla – The stripping house where binder and filler leaves have their veins stripped; the Despailla is also the location for the second fermentation period.

Figurado – A cigar that is rolled into a point at one end is know as a Figurado. Similarly, a cigar that has both ends pointed is know as a double-Figurado.

Fortaleza – Ranked from 1-3, the Fortaleza signifies the strength of the cigar with 3 being the strongest.

Galera – The Galera is the factory in which the cigars are produced.

Ligador – The Ligador is the master blender in the Galera and is responsible for over-seeing the production of cigars.

Pantela – A long, slender cigar.

Torcedor – The roller of cigars, Torcedor translates literally as 'twister' even though a Torcedor should never twist.

Vuelta Abajo – The finest tobacco growing region in the world, growing all types of tobacco leaf and the main source of tobacco for Habanos.