Cigar Primer & World’s Highest-Rated Cigars
Written by The Educated Cigar, Richland WA
Cigar Primer: There are several major factors to consider when thinking about cigars.
1) Tobacco length is perhaps the most important factor. All things else being the same, a top-quality cigar will be composed of longleaf tobacco that runs from end-to-end. Inferior cigars are made from chopped tobacco of various sizes that fall apart as the cigar is smoked. Premium cigars are made from longleaf tobacco. The Educated Cigar only offers longleaf cigars.
2) Handmade or by Machine: Premium cigars are always handmade by talented and well-trained individuals. Machine made cigars are usually much inferior. The Educated Cigar only offers handmade cigars.
3) All-Natural or Flavored: Cigars can be made from one or more different all-natural tobaccos. Sometimes these cigars are infused with different flavors; in fact there are probably at least 100 different infused flavors available (such as cherry, chocolate, coffee, honey, rum, vanilla and many more). Most beginners seem to prefer a variety of flavored cigars, while most ‘aficionados’ prefer all-natural (unflavored) cigars. So called unflavored cigars actually come in many different all-natural ‘flavors’ depending on their special DNA sequence, very much like different apples or peppers. The Educated Cigar offers about 100 different flavor-infused cigars and about 500 different ‘unflavored’ cigars. Most unflavored cigars are actually composed of two, three or even four layers of different unflavored (all-natural) tobaccos, in order to make a variety of taste profiles.
4) Size & Shape: Cigars are available that are smaller than a cigarette and many many times larger both in diameter and length. Most cigars have parallel edges with a slightly rounded end cap that needs to be ‘cut’ before it can be ‘smoked’. A small fraction of cigars have one or both ends that are tapered. Actually cigars are not meant to be ‘smoked’ but rather ‘puffed’.
5) Aging & Price: Most cigars are composed of tobaccos that are aged for months. Some have tobaccos that are aged for a year or two, while a very small fraction of cigars are composed of tobaccos that are aged for 5 to 10 years, or even longer. Just like the cost of whiskey depends on the length of time spent in the barrel(s), so will the cost of cigars depend on the time the tobaccos and finished cigars spend in special aging rooms. The quality of the ‘burn’ and smoothness of a cigar depends significantly on the length and nature of it’s aging. In many cases, the price of a cigar is much more dependent on the brand name rather than the rating.
6) Tobacco tasting profile: Cigars have a varying depth of tasting profile normally referred to as mild, medium or full flavor. Typically a light-colored Connecticut grown tobacco is said to be mild and is usually not grown in full sunlight, At the other end of the spectrum, tobaccos grown in full sunlight are much darker (usually referred to as maduro) and have a richer and more full-bodied tasting profile due to their much higher content of pigment development. Then of course there are all the intermediate levels of sunlight exposure; the resulting cigars are often referred to as medium bodied. In addition, varies genetic strains of cigar tobaccos supplement the tasting profile due to sun exposure.
Ideally when you attempt to pair a beverage with a cigar, the rule of thumb is mild with mild, medium with medium and full-strength (or full flavor) with full-strength. If this rule is not taken then either the beverage or the cigar will over-power the other.
7) Cuban Cigars: As a result of the Cuban missile crisis, President JFK initiated the Cuban trade embargo in 1962, making Cuban cigars illegal in the USA. In 2014, President Obama legalized them (with some restrictions). In 2020, President Trump made them illegal (once again). Cuban cigars remain illegal in the USA, but not in essentially any other country. Not only can’t Cuban cigars be sold in the USA, but it is illegal to bring them into the USA or even to smoke them in the USA. Nevertheless, Cuban cigars are still rated by CIGAR AFICIONADO in their non-USA locations. So the obvious question is how good are Cuban cigars?
Cigars made in Cuban were once the best cigars in the world. Prior to the year 2000 every cigar rated 95 or higher (out of a perfect score of 100) was from Cuba, but after 2000 less than 20% of these top-rated cigars are Cuban in origin. In the last ten years, only once has CIGAR ADICIONADO’s “#1 Cigar-of-the-Year” been made in Cuba! So what happened? During the last few decades most of Cuba’s great cigar makers took their Cuban seed and left Cuba. Now, instead of working for a dictator they now own the company! By far the best cigars are primarily now made in Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, while a much smaller percentage are from Cuba and Honduras. To date, no other country has a cigar that has received a 95 or higher rating.
More About Cigar Ratings: The world’s leading cigar magazine, CIGAR AFICIONADO, has been rating cigars since 1992. To date, CIGAR AFICIONADO has published about 23,000 cigar ratings. In the last 33 years, three cigars have received a rating of 98, none higher; one is from Cuba, we offer the other two. Ten cigars have received a 97 rating, three are Cuban; we offer the other seven. Most 96 rated cigars are also not Cuban made and we offer all of them as well. We also offer essentially every cigar rated 95 that is still in regular production and legal for sale. By far the best cigars are primarily now made in Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, while a much smaller percentage are from Cuba and Honduras. To date, no other country has a cigar that has ever received a 95 or higher rating.
The vast majority of mild cigars do not get a very high rating because they cannot deliver enough ‘great’ taste. Essentially every cigar rated 95 and higher has a rich, deep taste profile. By analogy, think of a mild cigar like chicken cooked with little or no seasoning; not likely to score well in a food cooking contest. At The Educated Cigar we attempt to offer many many cigars with a full rich tasting profile, while at the same time staying away from cigars that are just strong or leave a harsh after taste.
In summary, The Educated Cigar offers about 100 flavor-infused cigars, about 100 cigars rated 95 and higher, as well as another 400 high-quality, unflavored cigars.
Written by The Educated Cigar, Richland WA
Cigar Primer: There are several major factors to consider when thinking about cigars.
1) Tobacco length is perhaps the most important factor. All things else being the same, a top-quality cigar will be composed of longleaf tobacco that runs from end-to-end. Inferior cigars are made from chopped tobacco of various sizes that fall apart as the cigar is smoked. Premium cigars are made from longleaf tobacco. The Educated Cigar only offers longleaf cigars.
2) Handmade or by Machine: Premium cigars are always handmade by talented and well-trained individuals. Machine made cigars are usually much inferior. The Educated Cigar only offers handmade cigars.
3) All-Natural or Flavored: Cigars can be made from one or more different all-natural tobaccos. Sometimes these cigars are infused with different flavors; in fact there are probably at least 100 different infused flavors available (such as cherry, chocolate, coffee, honey, rum, vanilla and many more). Most beginners seem to prefer a variety of flavored cigars, while most ‘aficionados’ prefer all-natural (unflavored) cigars. So called unflavored cigars actually come in many different all-natural ‘flavors’ depending on their special DNA sequence, very much like different apples or peppers. The Educated Cigar offers about 100 different flavor-infused cigars and about 500 different ‘unflavored’ cigars. Most unflavored cigars are actually composed of two, three or even four layers of different unflavored (all-natural) tobaccos, in order to make a variety of taste profiles.
4) Size & Shape: Cigars are available that are smaller than a cigarette and many many times larger both in diameter and length. Most cigars have parallel edges with a slightly rounded end cap that needs to be ‘cut’ before it can be ‘smoked’. A small fraction of cigars have one or both ends that are tapered. Actually cigars are not meant to be ‘smoked’ but rather ‘puffed’.
5) Aging & Price: Most cigars are composed of tobaccos that are aged for months. Some have tobaccos that are aged for a year or two, while a very small fraction of cigars are composed of tobaccos that are aged for 5 to 10 years, or even longer. Just like the cost of whiskey depends on the length of time spent in the barrel(s), so will the cost of cigars depend on the time the tobaccos and finished cigars spend in special aging rooms. The quality of the ‘burn’ and smoothness of a cigar depends significantly on the length and nature of it’s aging. In many cases, the price of a cigar is much more dependent on the brand name rather than the rating.
6) Tobacco tasting profile: Cigars have a varying depth of tasting profile normally referred to as mild, medium or full flavor. Typically a light-colored Connecticut grown tobacco is said to be mild and is usually not grown in full sunlight, At the other end of the spectrum, tobaccos grown in full sunlight are much darker (usually referred to as maduro) and have a richer and more full-bodied tasting profile due to their much higher content of pigment development. Then of course there are all the intermediate levels of sunlight exposure; the resulting cigars are often referred to as medium bodied. In addition, varies genetic strains of cigar tobaccos supplement the tasting profile due to sun exposure.
Ideally when you attempt to pair a beverage with a cigar, the rule of thumb is mild with mild, medium with medium and full-strength (or full flavor) with full-strength. If this rule is not taken then either the beverage or the cigar will over-power the other.
7) Cuban Cigars: As a result of the Cuban missile crisis, President JFK initiated the Cuban trade embargo in 1962, making Cuban cigars illegal in the USA. In 2014, President Obama legalized them (with some restrictions). In 2020, President Trump made them illegal (once again). Cuban cigars remain illegal in the USA, but not in essentially any other country. Not only can’t Cuban cigars be sold in the USA, but it is illegal to bring them into the USA or even to smoke them in the USA. Nevertheless, Cuban cigars are still rated by CIGAR AFICIONADO in their non-USA locations. So the obvious question is how good are Cuban cigars?
Cigars made in Cuban were once the best cigars in the world. Prior to the year 2000 every cigar rated 95 or higher (out of a perfect score of 100) was from Cuba, but after 2000 less than 20% of these top-rated cigars are Cuban in origin. In the last ten years, only once has CIGAR ADICIONADO’s “#1 Cigar-of-the-Year” been made in Cuba! So what happened? During the last few decades most of Cuba’s great cigar makers took their Cuban seed and left Cuba. Now, instead of working for a dictator they now own the company! By far the best cigars are primarily now made in Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, while a much smaller percentage are from Cuba and Honduras. To date, no other country has a cigar that has received a 95 or higher rating.
More About Cigar Ratings: The world’s leading cigar magazine, CIGAR AFICIONADO, has been rating cigars since 1992. To date, CIGAR AFICIONADO has published about 23,000 cigar ratings. In the last 33 years, three cigars have received a rating of 98, none higher; one is from Cuba, we offer the other two. Ten cigars have received a 97 rating, three are Cuban; we offer the other seven. Most 96 rated cigars are also not Cuban made and we offer all of them as well. We also offer essentially every cigar rated 95 that is still in regular production and legal for sale. By far the best cigars are primarily now made in Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, while a much smaller percentage are from Cuba and Honduras. To date, no other country has a cigar that has ever received a 95 or higher rating.
The vast majority of mild cigars do not get a very high rating because they cannot deliver enough ‘great’ taste. Essentially every cigar rated 95 and higher has a rich, deep taste profile. By analogy, think of a mild cigar like chicken cooked with little or no seasoning; not likely to score well in a food cooking contest. At The Educated Cigar we attempt to offer many many cigars with a full rich tasting profile, while at the same time staying away from cigars that are just strong or leave a harsh after taste.
In summary, The Educated Cigar offers about 100 flavor-infused cigars, about 100 cigars rated 95 and higher, as well as another 400 high-quality, unflavored cigars.