If you love smoking cigars, you know each comprises three parts – a wrapper, binder, and filler tobacco. Those who've started smoking recently are more familiar with the natural-light brown or Oscuro-Almost Black wrapper leaves.
However, there's the almost forgotten Candela Wrapper Premium Cigars. These cigar wrappers are green in color, and they tend to have a rich history. That said, would you like to know more about Candela cigars?
1. Candela Cigars' Taste
Individuals who smoked the first candela cigars claimed that their taste was milder than darker leaves. The cigars were sweet and tasted like pineapples. However, later on, manufacturers attempted to make candela cigars with Dominican tobacco, but it delivered a sour taste. Today, these cigars still have a mild taste, which is somewhat grassy, herbal, and creamy when you smoke.
2. JFK Smoked Candela Cigars
If you'd tell an oblivious person that JFK smoked candelas, they'd probably deny it. That's mainly because the photos back then were black and white; so, you can't tell the exact color. However, proof of JFK smoking candelas comes from previous auctions of his belongings. Notably, they included Partagás cigarillos and double claro Suerdiecks.
3. Candela Cigars Were Once the Most Popular Cigars in America
At some point, candela cigars were the most popular among cigar smokers in America. They topped the list of the types of cigars most sold, such that they were referred to as American Market Selection Smokes. However, their popularity reduced in the 1980s because they were replaced by Connecticut-shade. Their popularity especially lowered among handmade cigars.
4. Candela Cigars Popularity Has Somehow Made a Comeback
Undoubtedly, candelas are some of the most unique cigars. As a result, cigar enthusiasts keep purchasing them and they seem to sell more than they did one or two decades ago. However, handmade green cigars are the ones whose popularity has made a comeback compared to machine-made candelas. Some of the renowned manufacturers, including Illusione, have several green cigars.
5. Green Wrappers Can Be Grown Anywhere
Unlike some cigars, candelas are not a tobacco varietal. Instead, their filler tobacco comes from a process. That means that candela tobacco can be made from a wide range of leaves from several countries.
Notably, green cigar tobacco has been grown in Cuba, Connecticut, Florida, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. However, the majority of premium brands prefer that which is grown in a cloudy area of shade-grown.
6. Farmers Prefer Candela Cigars
Farmers prefer efficient and quick processes. And that's why they probably prefer candela cigars because curing the wrapper is much faster compared to traditional tobacco. Consequently, the green cigars go from the farm to the market much faster, translating to quicker pay to the farmers.
7. Maintaining Their Green is No Easy Task
In the fields, every tobacco leaf starts out green. The brown color you commonly see on a cigar comes from harvesting and curing. That is a process whereby green tobacco is hung in a curing barn and allowed to slowly dry for 30 to 45 days, turning from green to brown. To keep the green color, a farmer must speed up the curing process when making candela.
The barn is sealed, and the heat is turned up much higher than in a normal barn, with temperatures ranging from 90 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and as high as 165 degrees Fahrenheit. This keeps the chlorophyll in the leaves, keeping them green. The leaves also become crispy as a result of this process. The leaf becomes supple again after careful rehydration and is ready to be packed into bales. Candela is ready in three days rather than a month or more.
8. Although Candela is Created in Heat, It Needs to Stay Cold
Curing candela requires turning up the heat in the barn to the degrees previously specified. However, after achieving the desired results, candela needs to be kept cool. To keep it cold, you must store it in refrigerated rooms.
9. Brief History of Candela
During the 1940s, the process of making green cigars was developed in Cuba. Light tobacco was in high demand among American smokers in 1948. Only Cuban cigars were sold in the United States back then, so you only had two options: full-bodied or fuller-bodied. Many smokers were on the lookout for something mild. La Corona was one of the most popular brands at the time.
To cater to this market, the company started selling Candela-wrapped cigarettes in the United States. The amount of this tobacco quickly became insufficient to meet the high demand, so instead of curing it completely, they froze the light tobacco to keep it green. They'd then fire cure it to make it as green as possible.
Consequently, this created a huge demand, influencing other Cuban manufacturers to follow suit. However, the popularity of these cigars has since reduced. The green cigars are mostly smoked by older guys who've smoked them for decades.