It's not just a wrapper leaf. Many blenders have experimented with using Mexican tobacco as a binder or filler to showcase the versatile range of flavors tobacco from the San Andres valley has to offer.
However, more premium cigar-makers have been embracing Brazilian tobacco in their cigars in the past two decades. There's also been a considerable rise in the use of Brazilian tobacco to make premium wrappers. In the past 5-10 years, Brazil has been beginning to emerge as one of the preferable sources for filler tobacco as well.
If that wasn't bad enough, things were about to get worse.The U.S. under President Ronald Reagan imposed an embargo on Nicaragua in 1984. Like the ban on Cuban cigars, the Nicaraguan cigars industry was decimated by the embargo as it could no longer sell cigars in its largest market.
On the other hand, in the mountainous and extremely windy Talanga Valley, cigar tobacco is grown using the encallado method whereby tents are erected around the crop to protect the tobacco from wind damage.
If you have been reading our cigar-related content, you know by now that we are big fans of the craft. This is why we've come with our list of 10 terms every cigar enthusiast, new or experienced, needs to be familiar with.
