Pipes: Final Exam Review

The most popular materials for tobacco pipes are briar and meerschaum.  Briar comes from burls that form on the root system of the Heath tree while meerschaum is a white, clay-like mineral primarily found in Turkey.  Briar pipes are valued by their age, grain pattern, imperfections, and carving artistry.  Meerschaum pipes are known for their intricate carvings and ability to change color.  Both types of pipe will form cake, which is the carbon that develops along the inner wall of the pipe chamber and acts as insulation for the bowl, as well as promoting an even smoking experience.

While corncob pipes are considered the ‘quintessential American pipe’ because they were invented in America, Hookahs originated in India and were popularized in the Middle East.  Hookahs are considered an indirect smoking system because the smoke passes through water before reaching the smoker’s palate.

Accoutrements: Final Exam Review

Torch lighters require butane fuel to work.  While butane gas lighters are flavorless, liquid fuel lighters will taint the flavor of your tobacco.

Butane lighters must be purged before filling to release excess air build up in the tank.  The proper steps to filling a butane lighter are: turn volume down, empty (purge) gas chamber, and then fill with butane.

There are no ’self-sharpening’ cigar cutters.  The most invasive cigar cutter is the ‘cat’s eye’ a.k.a. V cutter.  Double guillotines have two straight blades while single guillotines have one.

A leather cigar case can quickly dehydrate a cigar while a resealable plastic bag can keep a cigar properly humidified for approximately a week.

Humidors can be made of wood, plastic, tin, or glass.  Furthermore, Spanish Cedar is not necessary for a humidor to work properly; it is a matter of preference and/or tradition.  When seasoning a humidor, one should not saturate the inside of the humidor with water as that can lead to extreme expansion which will damage the joints and/or seal.

Propylene glycol is used in reverse osmosis humidifiers while evaporation humidifiers require distilled water to work properly.

The two main types of hygrometers are analog and digital.  Digital hygrometers tend to be more accurate.

FAQ: Final Exam Review

A perfect guillotine cut will leave ample shoulder on the cigar head; it is best achieved by having a firm grip on the cigar shoulder.

The most common method to treat cigars affected by cigar beetles is freezing the cigars.

Ring gauge (rg) is the diameter of a cigar – in America rg is measured in 64ths of an inch.  Typically, thicker ring gauge cigars burn cooler and longer than thinner ring gauge cigars.  A cigar that is burning ‘hot’, or too rapidly will yield a pointed ember after ashing.

A well conditioned cigar (70% relative humidity (rh) & 70° F) can age and develop for a lifetime or more.  Over humidified cigars will produce an acrid and bitter flavor when smoked.

While plume, the crystallized evaporated remnants of cigar oils, can be a desirable trait of well aged cigars, mold is not.

MOLD

 

PLUME

Most cigarettes are not premium tobacco products because they contain RTS (reconstituted tobacco sheet), they are mass produced by machine, and they contain chemicals and additives.

Maduro cigars have undergone a longer fermentation to enrich and sweeten the leaf.

Pipe Tobacco: Final Exam Review

Note: cigar tobacco varietals are considered DARK  while pipe and cigarette tobaccos are LIGHT tobacco varietals.

The 3 main pipe tobacco varietal families are Burley, Oriental, and Virginia;  Cavendish, Perique, and Latakia are types of pipe tobaccos.

Typically, Burleys are air-cured, Orientals are sun-cured, and Virginia pipe tobaccos are flue-cured.  Flue-cured tobaccos are exposed to contained heat and used primarily for pipe and cigarette tobaccos.

Virginia varietal tobaccos are a light tobacco which are very high in sugar content.  They are typically flue-cured and used for both cigarettes and pipe tobaccos.

Oriental varietal tobacco plants have small leaves which are very aromatic.  Their aroma resembles cigar tobaccos more than any other plants.

Cavendish type pipe tobaccos are made from both Virginia and Burley varietals.  They are steamed with sugar and/or flavorings in the water, stored under pressure (pressed), and available in a variety of shades/colors.

Perique type pipe tobaccos are an air-cured Burley varietal that are fermented in oak barrels; this process helps give Perique tobaccos their bold flavor and unique spice.

Latakia type pipe tobaccos are Oriental tobacco varietals which are sun-cured then fire-cured with aromatic woods; this process produces its characteristically rich and spicy aromas and flavor.

The primary pipe tobacco Cuts are Cube, Flake, Plug, Ribbon, and Shag.  Flake and Plug cuts need to be rubbed out for smoking.

History: Final Exam Review

By the time Europeans arrived in America they found the indigenous peoples had been fermenting tobacco and using añejamiento (aging) techniques for thousands of years.
 
John Rolfe was the first N. American settler to cultivate tobacco commercially in Jamestown, VA, in 1612.

Since the discovery of tobacco in the “new world”, punishment for tobacco use has included taxation, imprisonment, spiritual condemnation, and physical mutilation.

In 1676, the “cigar” as we know it today, wrapper, binder, and filler, was ‘invented’ in Sevilla, Spain.  At that time Spain only allowed agricultural production in Cuba, not manufacturing.

The 1700s were characterized by the spreading of tobacco factories throughout Europe.

During the 1800s, the invention of cigar bands and labels helped distinguish what seemed like generic products.  In the process, cigar makers pioneered brand identity, point of purchase and affective marketing.  The introduction of lithography helped cigar makers create cigar bands and labels that were (and are) extraordinary works of art.  Ironically, the quality and attractiveness of cigar bands/labels have little or nothing to do with the quality of the cigars they adorn.

In America, around 1905, there were over 70,000 registered cigar factories and 7 out of 10 men smoked cigars.

By the 1920s, the decline of the cigar industry was precipitated by the cigar rolling machine, financial crash of 1929, and mass production of cigarettes.

The ‘Cuban Revolution’ of 1959 instigated a mass exodus of Cuban cigar makers to the Dominican Republic, Central America, Canary Islands, and the United States of America.