Selecting your Havana is a subjective decision, dependent on personal taste. However, if you want, here are a few cigarashtray guidelines.

There are a large selection of boxes of cigars to choose from, both from different brands and in different sizes. Some people like to buy the same cigar every time, others like to choose a new one on each occasion. We believe it is important to try different brands so that experience can be gained throughout the range of cigars on offer from Cuba.

When you have decided what cigar to look at, ask to view at least two boxes. The boxes will already have been opened to check that their condition is correct. Make a visual judgement initially: they have to look good. The cigars should be of similar colour, with the darkest on the left side of the box and the lightest on the right (this does not apply in the same way to tube cigars and cabinet bundles). There should not be a significant variation in colour. The spiral of the wrapper leaf should lie in the same direction on all cigars.

Next, smell the cigars at the cut end, or take one cigar out and smell the gap where it lay, to experience the bouquet at its fullest. Feel one or two of the cigars. When properly stored they should give slightly when you press between finger and thumb, but then they will spring back to shape. They should feel smooth and silky. If the cigar is very squishy, then it has been over-humidified (or it may be a very recently manufactured cigar), and if it has no resilience, then it may be too dry, due to bad storage.

You will find the best cigars in boxes of 25 or 50, and perhaps the very best will be those in the cabinet bundles of 25 or 50.

Some cigars are sold in aluminium tubes lined with cedar. These will be protected by the tube and so are often bought as single cigars. The tube also offers a limited degree of humidification: the cigars will dry out more slowly. Conversely, if you buy tube cigars, they will take longer to mature. Therefore, when kept in a humidor, they should probably be removed from their tubes.

To identify genuine hand made Havanas, look for the three "hallmarks" burnt into the underside of the box:

"Habanos S.A."
"Hecho en Cuba" (i.e. made in Cuba)
"Totalmente a mano" (i.e. totally by hand)

Avoid Cuban cigars wrapped in cellophane, as these are generally machine made. Bundles of handmade Honduran cigars are sold in cellophane to reduce overall costs.

In the world market, it is generally accepted that London is the best place in Europe to buy handmade Havana cigars.

Havanas are an accessible but luxurious product. Counterfeit cigars, mainly of the most popular brands, are made in Cuba and elsewhere. If you are offered a cheap box, there will undoubtedly be something not authentic about their production. They may contain Cuban tobacco, but it is probably off the factory floor, masquerading as a Cohiba Esplendido! Beware also of famous Cuban names which are made (some handmade) for the US market in the Dominican Republic or the United States - these are not Havanas.

Remember, the choice of cigar you make is subjective, however, we can give you lots of friendly advice, and as you become an aficionado, we accept advice in return.

EMS (English Market Selection) is the guarantee of quality given for Havanas selected for sale in the United Kingdom. The EMS stamp's colour is changed annually.

Wrapper Colours:

Cigar wrappers can be classified into seven basic colours, although there are dozens of possible shades. The factory colour grader (escogedor) sorts cigars into no fewer than 65 different shades.

The darker the colour, the sweeter and stronger the flavour is likely to be, and the greater the oil and sugar content of the wrapper leaf. Darker wrappers will normally have spent longer on the tobacco plant or come from higher altitudes: the extra exposure to sunlight produces both more oil (as protection) and sugar (from photo-synthesis). They will also have been fermented for longer.

There is controversy over the taste a wrapper imparts to the cigar as a whole. Some smokers believe it has very little overall effect on how a cigar tastes and others contest that it is the most important element when assessing taste in the mouth.

The seven grades of wrapper colour are:

Double Claro (also called AMS - American Market Selection or Candela).
A greenish-brown shade, achieved by picking the leaf before it reaches maturity and then drying rapidly. Very mild, almost bland, with very little oil. Cigars with this colour have traditionally been popular in the US, but less so today.

Claro
Pale brown like milky coffee. Found in light-coloured Havanas and Connecticut shade wrappers. The classic mild cigar colour.

Colorado Claro
Mid-brown to tawny.

Colorado
A reddish dark brown, often associated with well matured cigars.

Colorado Maduro
Dark brown, medium strength and rather more aromatic than the Maduro. Usually gives a rich, sweet flavour as found in many of the best Honduran cigars.

Maduro
A very dark brown, almost black coffee colour. A wrapper for the seasoned smoker, and sometimes thought of as a traditional Cuban shade.

Oscuro
Basically black. Very strong with little bouquet. Wrappers of this colour, although once popular, are rarely produced today. They are very unusual in Havanas. They tend to come from Nicaragua, Brazil, Mexico or the Connecticut broad leaf.

We hope you have found these notes useful. Please get in touch with us if you want some friendly advice.