Words You Should Know #2: Vitola

No, not this:

(It's a victrola) [source]

Or this guy:

(It's Vitruvius. He was known to be a hard-head. Authors generally are.) [source]

Or even this guy:

(It's Vito Corleone.) (He is too a real person!)
 

Instead, I give you this:

[source]

"Whaaa?" You're asking as you freak out from sensory overload. Calm down, calm down.

Here's the dealio: Vitola is the unique measurements of a particular cigar. That's all. A Lonsdale is always a Lonsdale, regardless of who makes it--It will be 6.5" long and a ring size of 42. You'll see it listed as 6.5 x 42. Same thing with the salomon (5.8 x 56). Or the torpedo (6.5 x 52). (You knew I was going to choose the wacky shapes, right?)

Not sure what the ring size* is all about? A ring is 1/64 of an inch in diameter. So that Lonsdale 42 ring size means the diameter is 42/64. So what does that matter? Bigger the better, right? Err...maybe? Not really? Depends on what you like.

The general rule is the thicker (higher ring gauge number), the cooler the smoke, which means you'll get a hotter burn with the smaller ring gauge.

Also, the ratio of wrapper to filler is significantly different--higher ring gauge, more filler so the wrapper plays a smaller, but still important role. Smaller ring gauge means the wrapper will account for more flavor in the smoke and less variation in the filler.

I know! It's more interesting than victrolas and Vitruvius! Even Vitruvius playing a victrola! (But nothing is more interesting than Vito Corleone, of course!)

Oh, there's lots and lots more to learn, but let's stop here for the day, okay?**


* If you're a fan of comedian Brian Regan, you might know this as a girth unit.

**There's really no need for more sparkles, but I feel like I owe it to you.***

***Three is better!

An Anatomy Lesson

Say you took a cigar apart--although the rest of us would be standing over you, saying, "What exactly do you think you're doing?" But anyway, say you had a cigar, and you decided to take it apart because you just HAD to see how it was made.

Let me just tell you, and that will keep us all from mourning the loss of a perfectly good cigar, okay? Okay!

[source]

Here's another view:

[source]

If you want to sound super fancy at your next cocktail party, you can let some of this info slip (as long as the group is talking about cigars; don't be socially awkward like me and just spit out random facts):

Wrappers determine a lot of the cigar's flavor and character and folks general describe the cigar by the color of the wrapper. One major MAJOR misconception about cigars is that the darker the cigar, the stronger the cigar. No, no, no. Don't judge the book by the cover. (Unless you're judging my books; they have great covers--they have great innerds.)

Binders are wrappers that are rejected because they just aren't good enough. Kind of like that cozy t-shirt you put on but then have to cover with a nicer shirt. Poor cozy t-shirt. Poor binder, the leaves of which are elasticy (elasticish?) because they need to hold everything (the filler) together. Like Spanx.*

Filler/Blend are the innerds that determine how strong the cigar will be. There's much more to it than this, but let's start with the basics, okay? (Remember: Cocktail party fodder for now.) When I was first learning about this, from the great Michael Herklotz of Nat Sherman, my head was spinning from all the info. (I swear it had nothing to do with the sangria.)

• Volado--Taken from the bottom of the plant, with minimum flavor
• Seco--Taken from the middle of the plant, with light flavor
• Ligero--Taken from the upper leaves exposed to the most sunlight, the fullest flavor and strength.

Stay tuned for more necessary filler info among other awesome stuff (not filler filler, although that is funny to say). Search the Cigars 101 tag if you're all about the learning.


*(For all the men who have unexpectedly encountered Spanx during activities and are shaking their heads: We're sorry, but sometimes we need to hold everything together, just like the binder contains the filler. it's not sexy, but necessary. Does that help ease the horror?)