Everything You Need To Know About Cigars

The beauty of existence is variation, and the land of cigars is brimming with it. The variety of cigar kinds available can make it difficult for newcomers to experiment with and appreciate cigars while searching for their new favorites.

This is why here you will find everything you need to know about cigars, just so this vast world will feel less daunting.

However, before beginning the article - we have some news for you. If you are searching for some quality cigars, then we can give you a good recommendation.

If you head on over to Tabanero Cigars and check out the Maceda Brand, you are in for an undeniably good cigar-smoking experience like never before.

Now, onto the article:

Cigar Shapes

Newcomers to cigars frequently inquire about the relevance of a cigar's form. In actuality, the form of a cigar has little impact. The sole consistent effect of shape is on the rate at which it burns - thin cigars burn faster than thick ones.

Everything else, including the wrapper, tobacco, and filler, determines the flavor, strength, and scent of a cigar. The shapes are simply a means for cigar manufacturers to give their customers a distinctive look and experience.

Parejos

Parejos are cigars with a straight side and an open foot for lighting, which must be cut before smoking. They can be round or box-pressed, with the latter implying that the edges of the cigar were pushed square prior to packing or, in certain cases, by box pressure.

Figurados

Despite the fact that parejos make up the majority of cigars, an increasing number of brands are expanding their portfolios to include more creatively formed smokes. These cigars are known as figurados, and they are any cigar that is not a cylinder with a straight side. The tastes inside cigars vary as much as the cigar maker's renditions of the forms.

Cigar Colors

Cigar wrappers are available in a variety of hues, ranging from light greens and yellows to dark black. There are seven primary color distinctions among wrappers, just as there are seven basic colors that make up the rainbow, with an endless number of shades between each hue.

Wrapper leaves come in various colors due to the various techniques of tobacco processing and the various tobacco strains utilized. Sunlight can also play a role - a wrapper produced in the sun is often darker than a wrapper grown in the shade of the same seed strain.

Cigar Sizes

Because the size of a cigar can vary widely from one brand to the next, it's vital to describe a cigar by its size as well as its form. A cigar's size is determined by a combination of two factors: its length and ring gauge.

The cigar's length is, of course, the distance from end to end. The ring gauge, on the other hand, is measured in 64ths of an inch. Cigars are classified by length and then ring gauge.

There are cigars that are as short as four inches long and as long as nine inches long. Ring gauges, too, vary greatly, ranging from roughly 50 to less than 30.

There's also no relationship between a cigar's size and its intensity. A moderate 8-inch cigar will be mellow, whereas a thin, short cigar packed with robust tobaccos will be full-bodied. Whereas the tobacco used to roll a cigar determines its strength, narrow cigars tend to burn quicker than thicker cigars.

You may find them in a variety of flavors and combinations, so try different ones until you discover one that's right for you!

Appreciating Cigar Boxes

Cigars require highly monitored temperature and moisture levels to stay fresh for lengthy preservation, and you won't be able to maintain them at the appropriate humidity without a humidor.

Here, we shall discuss the importance of cigar boxes and learn more about them to gain an appreciation of something which is considered rare in modern times.

What Is A Cigar Box?

The cigar box - also known as a humidor - is a container for cigar packaging in the form of a box. Cigar boxes have typically been made of wood, cardboard, or paper. For its gorgeous grain, excellent texture, pleasant odor, and ability to keep out bugs, Spanish cedar has been considered as the ideal sort of wood for cigar boxes.

Common replacements include Yellow Poplar and Eucalyptus, which were often scented or dyed to seem like Spanish Cedar. White oak, mahogany, and elm are some of the other common woods used to build cigar boxes. The timbers not so commonly used to make cigar boxes include Circassia, Rosewood, and Basswood.

History Lesson!

Cigars, contrary to popular belief, have a long and fascinating history. Following their finding, cigars have been around for over millennia. In the 10th century, the Mayans produced cigars by rolling tobacco in plantain leaves or on their palms.

It is now a tightly wound bundle of tobacco set ablaze so that people who smoke can pull the fumes into their throats. However, no one knows for sure when the Mayans first uncovered the tobacco plant and its ability to be used for smoking.

Cigars were typically tied in little bundles in Cuba before the civil war and then exported to other sales territories. However, as the company's renown increased, it became more challenging to monitor the amount of cigars given out, and the bundles were frequently smuggled among staff for illegal sale.

As a result of this, a rule was enacted requiring cigars to be put in wooden boxes with a stamp stating that the tax had been paid.

A box used to hold some of the highest-end, hand-rolled cigars. The H. Upmann brand in Cuba gets kudos for being the first to package cigars in boxes in the early 1800s.

Cigars were to be packed in wooden boxes in sets of 25, 50, 100, or 250 to get an accurate count of cigars and sales for tax collection purposes.

Uses Of Cigar Boxes

1. A cigar's quality will deteriorate in less than two weeks if it is not properly stored.

1. The flavor of a cigar, on the other hand, can improve with age if stored properly.

1. After six months of cautious preservation, a smaller, paler cigar may be at its maximum flavor profile. In contrast, a bigger, darker, and more durable cigar could be at its optimum after 2 - 3 years.

1. Different cigar boxes, labels, and brands have been turned into works of art.

1. Numerous companies now specialize in cigar boxes, and books have been published about its history, design, and significance.

1. Cigar boxes and the labels that go with them might be considered collectibles.

1. Guitars and ukuleles are increasingly being made out of cigar boxes and other materials that aren't typically used for musical instruments.

If you have an appreciation for cigar boxes - you'll definitely appreciate what these boxes contain. Are you looking for the perfect cigars to store in your cigar box? If so, you have come to the right place.

Check out Tabanero Cigars and take a look at the Maceda Brand for an unforgettable experience and only the most premium taste.

The Background Of The Bonfire

As winter vibes approach, so does the feeling of getting together with a bunch of friends around a big fire, making smores, telling fun tales, having some good laughs, and making irreplaceable memories.

However, is this always what people define a bonfire as? Here, you shall be given a background on what having a bonfire signified to people and what it symbolizes now.

What Is A Bonfire?

A bonfire is a huge, well-managed outdoor fire that is used for either informal disposal of garbage or as part of a special event.

Although bonfires are commonly linked with festivals, backyard burnings, and roasting marshmallows, the bon in a bonfire is unrelated to the French word for "good." Bonfire, on the other hand, comes from the Middle English word bonefire, which simply translates to a fire of bones.

There are a few significant arguments in favor of the etymology of bone fire. To begin with, the construct proposed by early lexicographers would be a strange hybrid - it's difficult to explain why a French word would be combined with an English one.

Second, given the word's origins in the 15th century, we could anticipate it to have evolved into boonfire, as boon is the English equivalent of the French bon.

Third, the word's earliest usage uses the spelling banefyre, and bane is a spelling of bone that has long been popular in Scotland.

What Is A Bonfire For?

Eventually, the term bonfire was used for other huge fires, such as those used to burn yard waste or undesirable belongings.

Bonfires are used to try and get rid of unwanted plant material that cannot be composted on farms, large gardens, and allotments. Woody material, noxious weeds, sick material, and material treated with persistent insecticides and herbicides are all examples of this.

Such bonfires can be relatively modest, but they are frequently built to burn slowly for several days in order to reduce wet and green material to ash by turning the unburnt stuff into the center on a regular basis.

Turf and other earthy materials can also be burned in these bonfires.

The ash from backyard bonfires is a good source of potassium and may help improve the soil structure in some soils, but such flames must be controlled carefully.

Garden and farm bonfires are usually smokey, and if badly managed or lit in inclement weather, they can cause local annoyance.

Bonfires were also lit in honor of saints, giving rise to the term's general definition of an open-air fire where people gathered to celebrate. This type of bonfire is still used to remember events in modern times.

Obviously, when Fall approaches, bonfires and chilly picnics are in order.

Where Should You Hold A Celebratory Bonfire?

A bonfire normally necessitates a large amount of open area in order to handle its huge flames—and people properly.

Choose a location for your bonfire birthday party that allows for plenty of safe sitting (both near and far from the fire), as well as space for guests to mix, mingle, and enjoy any additional activities such as lawn games.

If your backyard isn't big enough, consider hosting at a local beach, open field, or park—ask about rental prices and regulations ahead of time, and make sure you have the necessary licenses.

If you're looking for a fun activity to do with your friends and family during a bonfire, then we have the perfect thing for you. Smoking a high-quality cigar with your loved ones sounds almost as heavenly as the crackling flames of the bonfire.

Tabanero Cigars featured in "History Snapshot: Why Ybor City is known as the “Cigar Capital of The World”

We were recently mentioned in a Florida Insider article highlighting why our beloved Ybor City is known as the "Cigar Capital of the world.

Tabanero are highlighted first on the list for giving "tourists and locals alike their fix of fresh hand-rolled cigars."

Check out the FULL article here. 

Roger Peele just released a new article about the Cigar Apparel world featuring Tabanero Cigars

Check out this awesome article on SELECTING A CIGAR FOR BEGINNERS!

Tabanero Maceda Toro Connecticut Cigar featured on the Cigar Dave Show Podcast!

Study Suggests Cigars Can Prevent COVID-19

French researchers to test nicotine patches on coronavirus patients - Study – which stresses serious health risks of smoking – suggest substance in tobacco may lower risk of getting coronavirus.

The Tobacco Tales

Stories, some true some not, shape who are as individuals and who are as a culture. Think about the bedtime stories you heard as a child. You loved the story and its moral molded your character.  We at Tabanero love a good story too. So we thought we would share some tall tales involving tobacco.

Ancient Myths of Tobacco

The first is an ancient native myth that tells the take tale of how tobacco became a part of people's lives. It begins in a time long ago when there was only one tribe in all the Americas. They lived together following the buffalo wherever they roamed (‘Oh give me a home…’).  To a couple was born a girl who grew up to be beautiful, just beautiful, she was the most beautiful. The original language says the she was ‘powerful beautiful.’ We can only speculate what they meant, but one doesn't have to imagine too deeply to understand the power that beauty can wield.

This child in time had children of her, twin boys to be precise.  One boy had a light complexion with a head full gold hair. The other boy had a ruddy hue and dark brown hair. Everything was perfect, well except no one knew the identity of the father, including our powerfully beauty lady. Right now you're thinking…- but, no. The legend seems to dismiss that whole train of thought. Instead it tells us that two fathers stepped forward - and again you're thinking…but, no. One pronounced himself to himself to be the father of ruddy boy and the other to be the father of the fair boy.

You are probably thinking that the story is going to become one of those paternity fights, but once again, no. The twin boys legitimately had two different fathers.  Umm, just roll with it. The father of the dark haired boy was Earth and he named his son Earth Boy.  The father of the golden haired boy was the Night and he named his son Star Boy (you have The Weekend to think about that one).

Over time the boys grew up, of course they did. When they became older they began behaving differently than the others.  Earth-Boy stopped going out with the buffalo parties and instead stayed among the reeds and flowers.  Star-Boy also stopped following the buffalo.  He would sleep during the day and go wandering at night. One night he discovered a mountain no one had ever found before.  He climbed it and kept climbing until he almost reached the sky. Then he grew faint and fell down.  A silver man appeared to him. It was his Star-Father.

He said, “Son why did you climb up this mountain?”

Star-boy said, “I was trying to reach you.”

The father replied, “My life is spent walking far beyond here and I will not return to this mountain in your lifetime.  As sign of my love I’m giving you a great gift that contains the strength and colors of the sunset.  Keep this plant with you wherever you go and in the springtime plant it wherever you are.  Give great care to this sacred plant and when the stalks are tall harvest them.”

He then plunged his hand into his silver body.  White light burst from his chest and he pulled out a tobacco plant.

“Son this plant is sacred. It will make your people strong and free, but in order to partake they must take them in as family.”  He handed the tobacco plant to Star-Boy and then he was gone.

Star-Boy returned home where he found Earth-Boy.  He told him the story and offered to take him in as family (yeah, we wondered that too – aren’t they already twin brothers?)  

Earth-Boy said, “I didn't need to go to the top of a mountain.  While you were gone my father came to me also.  He taught the secrets ways of the earth and told me to tend all plants save the special star plant. My people will rise with sun and farm the land.  Your people will be wanders after the sunset, but we are brothers.”

To seal their bond Earth-Boy made a pipe from rock and wood and Star-Boy prepared the tobacco plant.  They smoked the medicine pipe together and pledged their love and declared the peace between them.

We are All Family

Here at Tabanero Cigars we affirm the moral of that story: we may have differences but we are family and there should be love and peace between us.  Come on down to Ybor and let’s celebrate what we have in common.

The Vision of Beauty

It was an unexpected gift of beauty. It evoked the old adage: ‘take time to smell the flowers.’ How often do I? Am I aware of the beauty around me? Or do I allow the busyness of each day to hold captivate my attention and keep my focus so inside my own thoughts and concerns that I don't see the beauty around me? 

Beauty Reminders