A quality cigar consists of 100% tobacco. Tobacco comes from the tobacco plant (Nicotiana tabacum), an annual plant belonging to the nightshade family, a family of flowering plants. Tobacco seeds are so fine that they are first mixed with sand and water before being sown, sometimes with ash. It takes approximately 80 days to grow into a mature plant. Depending on the intended use, the tobacco may or may not be cut, ground, or pressed.

The main tobacco-exporting countries are China, India, Brazil, the United States, and Indonesia. The highest quality cigar tobacco comes from regions around the equator and grows in volcanic, clayey, and humus-rich soil.

In the Netherlands and Belgium, tobacco cultivation and processing are more of a folkloric event than a full-fledged commercial sector. In the Netherlands, traces of past tobacco cultivation can be found in Amerongen with a Tobacco Cultivation Museum and in Gelderland with a Tobacco Warehouse. In Belgium, tobacco cultivation is mainly found in the region around Wervik.

Processing tobacco in a nutshell
Harvesting tobacco leaves is just the beginning of a long production process. The leaves are hand-picked from bottom to top, dried on thin threads in drying sheds, and then fermented. Fermentation is like sweating: the dried and bundled leaves are stacked, causing the temperature in the middle of the stack to rise to about 50°C. This process is repeated until all leaves are uniformly fermented. During the fermentation process, the sugar, protein, and nicotine content also decrease.

After fermentation, the leaves are stripped (veins removed), sieved, and, if necessary, mixed with other types of tobacco. The punched leaves are then sorted by color and length, wound onto bobbins, and prepared for transport.

Finishing the cigar
In Europe, the bobbins are stored in refrigerated rooms. After thawing, the wrapper and binder are pressed together in a binding machine and further shaped using a wooden mold. The cigars are then manually rolled and provided with the typical band and necessary markings:

• Vitola (size and shape)
• Name of the cigar maker
• Date

An important criterion is the weight of the cigar. Cigars that are too tightly pressed and therefore too heavy will allow less smoke to pass through. Cigars that are not pressed enough will easily crumble during smoking. Cigars that do not meet the standards are sold as second choice.

The finished and packaged cigars are best stored in spaces where there is perfect control over the humidity level, between 69% and 75%.