Tasting Guide: Discovering Cuban Cigars
So you’ve bought your first cigar and it wasn’t cheap.
You’ve learned how to cut it and to light it.
But how do you fully appreciate and enjoy it?
As a new cigar smoker and fancying myself as bit of an “aficionado in waiting”, I needed to be sure of the answer.
I wanted to make sure I was getting the whole experience.
As usual, I proceeded to go “full on geek” and immerse myself in the topic, learning as much about actually tasting as was possible.
I came to learn that you can teach yourself to taste more meticulously, training your palate and brain to identify and differentiate multiple flavour components that previously passed unnoticed.
Through some relatively simple steps you can elevate your initial experience considerably. As your palate and flavour memory evolves, so too will your ability to identify nuance and complexity, which adds real interest to what is ultimately a one to two hour investment of time.
Similar rules apply to tasting anything really, I have found my appreciation for wines and spirits has also improved dramatically.
To truly taste something, is to truly understand it. Only when you truly taste a cigar can you truly appreciate it.
So, let’s begin.
Cigar tasting I’ve come to understand, like any tasting requires focus around a range of standard characteristics. It’s almost the language of cigars, a standardised criteria against which we describe and categorise them.
Much like a drink, a cigar’s profile can be broken down into 3 elements — body, strength and flavour.
Somewhat confusingly all three characteristics are categorised as light, medium or full, but we’ll come to that.
- Body
When describing the body of a cigar, I think of it as an interpretation of the characteristics of the smoke output.
This includes the sensation in the mouth, nose and on the lips.
It also denotes the thickness or density of the smoke. When the density or heaviness of the smoke is pronounced you are experiencing a “full bodied” cigar. A “light bodied” cigar, the opposite.
Body will also include your interpretation of the textural components of the smoke. When words like oily or creamy come to mind your brain is attempting to interpret the textural components of body.
When these components are distinct and varied , this can also be described as adding to the complexity of the cigar and the smoking experience.
Make sense? Let’s move on.
2. Strength
Strength is simply an interpretation of the level of nicotine, nothing else.
It has nothing to do with flavour or sensation. This categorisation is a literal indicator as to whether a cigar will give you a nicotine buzz, or worse, put you on your arse or not.
When people describe a cigar as having a “bit of poke” or “kick”, they’re probably talking about it’s nicotine strength.
There’s a spectrum here, if you don’t feel any physiological impact from a cigar it’s probably low or light strength.
If you’re shaking in a corner and have lost control of bodily function it’s safe to assume you hit the opposite side of the spectrum, this is a high or full strength cigar. You really should have chosen differently or eaten before doing that.
Freshly rolled new cigars can have higher concentrations of nicotine.
As a cigar ages the nicotine tends to dissipate somewhat alongside the flavours mellowing out and becoming more balanced, offering a more subtle and sought after smoking experience.
This is why many experts will wax lyrical about laying down your cigars before enjoying them.
The aging process will, particularly for Cuban cigars, take your enjoyment to a whole new level. Aged Cuban cigars provide pleasure like very, very few other things in life. They are special.
3. Flavour
Flavour is not body and it is not strength, for me this is the most important element of the experience.
Every cigar should max out on the flavour it imparts. All great cigars have a full flavour, it’s not an indicator of strength. This is a characteristic that really tells you if you’re experiencing something special or not.
Flavour is in very large part what taste is all about. The nature and depth of flavour will be identified through your lips, mouth and nose
Yes, I did say nose.
Perception of favour comes as much from smell or aroma perceived by receptors in the nose as it does from the clusters of receptors or taste buds on the tongue.
Don’t believe me ? Ever had a cold?
Taste almost anything whilst plugging your nose, then without. Notice a difference?
This is where retro-haling comes in and why it’s so important in achieving a full experience. Retro-haling is the process of vacating smoke through the nasal cavity and past the olfactory receptors.
Be careful though, I recommend you blow most of the smoke out of your mouth before trying to push out of your nose. This will avoid the hugely unpleasant experience of overwhelming your senses rather than the aim here, which is to enhance perception of flavour.
When it comes to flavour we perceive 5 elements. Sweet, bitter, sour, salty and since the 1980s, umami or savoury.
It is often difficult to perceive individual flavours as a beginner, so you might need to give your brain a little help at first.
Flavour wheels are fantastic reference points to help you begin identifying specific flavour profiles. I have included a standard version below and a quick google search will lead to wheels as complex as you wish, but I suggest just keeping it simple.
Using a reference wheel whilst smoking a cigar can be a good way to begin to better identify individual flavours.
Using the wheel is simple. Start in the middle, its often easier to identify a broad flavour profile such as “sweet” or “nutty” for example. If you are able to identify a broad profile you can then look at the suggested flavours that sit on the outer wheel relating to that profile, this will help you relatively quickly start to identify more and more familiar flavours.
Not all the flavours present will be recognisable to you though, leading to that “It’s so distinct but I can’t put my finger on it” feeling.
Continuing to give your brain more and more reference points or learning really helps. If you don’t know what cardamom or cloves smell like, next time you’re in a spice store take a nibble and a sniff. It will help broaden your perception of taste and aroma, your brain’s understanding of it and therefore your ability to identify those specific flavours.
Balance, Complexity & Finish
The final things to mention are balance, complexity and finish. These are often secondary terms used to add detail when describing specifically how good, bad or indifferent the cigar and overall experience was.
Balance refers to the idea that all the perceptible flavours live together harmoniously with no one flavour obnoxiously dominating to cause imbalance. It’s subjective of course, but certainly outlines the skill of the blender in making the most of the tobacco available for production. Achieving perfect balance in a cigar, as in food and wine is the creation of art, pure and simple.
Complexity refers to the idea that there is enough going on to maintain interest. Multiple distinct flavours and textural components will be present for you to find. Cuban cigars specifically, will clearly transition in flavour throughout the smoke. There is a wonderful element of surprise as the cigar takes you on a journey over the beginning, middle and end of a multi dimensional experience.
Finish simply refers to how long the flavours and textures remain in your mouth after drawing and exhaling and how those lingering elements change or develop.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully that’s helped to (relatively quickly) demystify cigar tasting a little for you.
But do remember, the only way to really enjoy a cigar is the way you like to do it. It can be fun trying, but so what if you can’t perceive every flavour and texture.
Are you enjoying it ?
Ultimately, that’s all you need to know and all that really matters.
On that point, I’ll leave you with the pertinent words of James Woods,
“Aficionado my ass … I just love to smoke cigars.”
So do we James. So do we.
Enjoy.
