The Fine Cigar

Knowledge, Appreciation and Service Drawn from the Magnums Academy professional training programme, The Magnums Guide to the Fine Cigar takes you from the tobacco field to the ashtray in thirteen short chapters. You will learn what actually distinguishes a fine cigar from an ordinary one; why a Cuban tastes different from a Nicaraguan; what the ligero, seco and volado leaves each contribute; how a cigar is rolled by hand and graded by colour; and why the shape and ring gauge change the flavour in your mouth. You will also learn the practical craft that guests notice: how to offer a cigar from the box, how to judge its condition between finger and thumb, where exactly to cut it, how to light it without tainting it, and what an ash reveals about the roll. There is a chapter on storage and humidity, another on ageing, and a closing chapter on what to serve alongside. At the back you will find a glossary of some seventy terms — from anilla to zafado — so that you can speak with confidence to a cigar merchant, to a fellow enthusiast, or to the guest in front of you. The book is illustrated throughout with photographs and with original drawings prepared for this edition: the primings of the tobacco plant, the structure of a cigar, the growing regions of Cuba, the wrapper colours from claro to maduro, and the five burn patterns and what each one tells you.