Cigars are made by using three different types of tobacco leaves called wrappers, fillers and binders. The way in which these various leaves are blended are what determines the look, flavor and smoking characteristics of each cigar. Let's examine these in a little more detail and cover some of the more common tobacco leaves.

The outermost leaves of a cigar which come from the widest part of the tobacco plant are called the wrapper. This portion of the cigar is responsible for much of the character and flavor of the cigar. In addition, the color of the wrapper in usually used to name or describe the type of cigar. The following are some of the most popular in order from light to dark.

Double Claro ? extremely light, slightly green in color. These are also called Candela, American Market Selection or jade and the colors are achieved by picking leaves before maturity and drying quickly; often grown in Connecticut.

Claro ? light tan or yellow tint. This is often indicative of shade-grown tobacco.

Natural ? light brown to brown; this type is generally sun-grown.

Colorado Claro ? medium-brown; these are particularly associated with tobacco grown in the Dominican Republic or in Cuba

Colorado ? reddish-brown, these are also called Rosado

Colorado Maduro ? dark brown; these are particularly associated with Honduras or Cuba-grown tobacco

Maduro ? dark brown to very dark brown

Oscuro ? black, these are often oily in appearance and tend to be grown in Cuba, Nicaragua, Brazil, Mexico, or Connecticut

Some manufacturers use an alternate designation:

Lighter colors indicate earlier picking and milder flavor; darker colors indicate later picking, stronger and sweeter flavors due to the presence of sugars and oils, and longer fermenting.

Next, let's take a look at fillers. The largest portion of a cigar is the filler or fillers which are wrapped up bundles of leaves in the middle of the cigar underneath the wrapper. As with wrappers, fillers are used of varying strengths and are blended to create the different individual flavors. In general, the more oils that are present in the tobacco leaf the stronger the filler. Different types of fillers include the light-flavor of the drier Seco, the medium leaf or Volado, and the strongest known as Ligero.

Larger cigars are able to hold much more filler and naturally have a much greater ability to offer a fuller body and more intriguing flavor.

Binders are the more elastic leaves used to hold together the bundles of fillers.