A: In most cases, lighter colored wrapper leaves tend to be milder in flavor. It also depends on where the wrapper is grown and how it’s cured.
For example, one of the great myths is that maduro wrapper is stronger, but there are plenty of mild maduro cigars to choose from. Some that come to mind are CAO Maduro, Macanudo Maduro, and Maroma Maduro, whereas a Colorado-hued Habano leaf grown in Nicaragua, like that found on the 601 (Red) Habano cigars, can be very spicy. Of course, the core blend (filler & binder) also play a big role in a cigar’s strength.
Generally speaking, Connecticut Shade-grown and Sumatra wrapper leaves are the mildest, as found on the Perdomo 10th Anniversary Champagne cigars and Baccarat Sumatra 1997 respectively.
Ecuadorian-grown Connecticut wrappers are also mild. Yet because they are grown under natural cloud cover, not “shade grown” under a tapado. they tend to be a shade darker and offer a little more flavor. Good examples of this would be the Rocky Patel American Market Selection cigars and Value Line Honduran 300.
Executive Editor
Gary Korb has been writing and editing content for CigarAdvisor.com since its debut in 2008. An avid cigar smoker for over 30 years, he has worked on the marketing side of the premium cigar business as a Sr. Copywriter, blogger, and Executive Editor of Cigar Advisor. A graduate of the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, prior to his career in the cigar business, Gary worked in the music and video industry as a marketer and a publicist.
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