How to Roll an Authentic Premium Cigar

[post_published]

How to roll an authentic premium cigar

Many times people ask why cigar is so expensive compare to cigarettes. Beyond discussing the quality of tobacco, where there is no doubt that the best plants are use in cigar, one of the main differences that mark the price is its elaboration; quality cigars are entirely create.

And how is a premium cigar create? Today we bring you the answer step by step thanks to the event organized by La Cava de Boadilla (Madrid) together with Habanos, where the master roller from Partagás, Sonia, showed us her secrets step by step.

But let’s go by parts:

EMPLOYED MATERIAL

In order to become an authentic premium cigar roller, a training period of at least 9 months (8h/day) is require.

Every roller requires the following material to carry out his work:

Wood Board

Chaveta knife

Cepo or Casquillo

Guillotine

Apron

Vegetable Resin

Mold

Also, press

THE TOBACCO LEAF

A premium cigar is never roll with a single leaf, but a minimum of 4 different types of tobacco are use. To better explain this point, let’s firstly describe your about tobacco plants.

The plant must reach a minimum of 1.8 meters high to be ‘dedicate’ to produce premium cigars. These are plants that the three different types of leaves can be obtain:

Light tobacco:

These are the leaves located at the top of the plant, being those that give strength to the cigar

Dry tobacco:

These are the leaves located in the middle of the plant and brings aroma

Blown tobacco:

These are the leaves of the lower part of the plant and are the ones that combustion provides

Not all of these tobacco are necessary to prepare the filler of any premium cigar. It largely depends on what the Master Blend looks in each case. To the filler must be add binder, where a softer tobacco is generally use than that of the filler, and wrapper, where cover tobacco is use (plants that grow covered under fabrics to obtain leaves without spots and the softest and most perfect possible) .

ROLLING A CIGAR

Let’s explain, how a “tripa larga” Premium cigar is twist. First of all, know that tobacco ALWAYS needs humidity. Thus, do not leave it exposed for too long, or it will break when you work with it.

But let’s go by steps:

1.BINDER (part 1):

Firstly, the central vein is remove, dividing the tobacco leaf into two
Then, it is place on a table end to end, separating each sheet a few centimeters (without ceasing to be mount one on the other).

2. FILLER:

There are two ways to ‘prepare’ the casing: rolled or corrugated (‘squeezed’ by hand). The corrugate way is the only apply in today’s case.

Firstly, a dry tobacco leaf (always with the tip up) should be taken in your left hand
Then, a blown tobacco leaf should be attach to this side.
A light tobacco leaf is place between the two (the strength of the premium cigars should always be in the middle)
A dry tobacco leaf is add covering the light tobacco, in such a way that this tobacco remains inside a triangle.
With the right hand, the excess is cut under our left hand and add with the tips always facing up (and always leaving the light tobacco in the middle).

3. BINDER (Part 2):

1. The tip of the filler is place on the tip of the binder that we leave prepared on our table.

1. The left hand holds the binder and stretches it. However, the right hand rotates the filler on it.

1. The side is cut with the guillotine creating what the mouth will be (where the premium cigar is smoke).

1. At this time it would be left on a mold until reaching 10 units, stacked aside to 10 full molds (100 cigarettes) and get into the press, applying 10 minutes of pressure on each side.

1. Thus, the ‘beards’ of what will be the mouth is trimm with the “chaveta”.

4. WRAPPER

A covered tobacco leaf is select and opened delicacy
The complete edge of the leaf is cut with the key
Then, the central vein is remove
It’s roll always by the tip and twist
The final part is link with the resine (so that it does not separate)
The ‘handkerchief’ is prepare with the surplus of the cape and puts in the part that will be the mouth
With casquillo will cut what will be the end the cigar elbow and stick with the resine
The definitive cut with the guillotine is given to finish the cigar with the desire vitola size

We already have a ‘perfect’ 100% handmade cigar, it just have to wait 4-5 days within the Humidor to acquire the perfect humidity and be able to smoke it.

Seen the work it carries, together with the time of maturation of the plant, fermentation of tobacco, storage, transport … Who said that pure cigars are expensive?

Thanks to Habanos SA (Mariano Manteca), La Cava de Boadilla (Paquí, María José y Reyes) and, especially, to Sonia for this master class.

AUTHOR: DAVID A. BLASCO DELGADO

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