Guide
Strength vs Body
The two words most often used interchangeably in cigar shops actually describe different things. Getting them straight is the fastest way to buy better.
They are not the same measurement
Strength is nicotine. It is a physical effect — the light-headedness, the warmth, occasionally the queasiness if you smoke something powerful on an empty stomach. It has almost nothing to do with how the cigar tastes.
Body is how heavy the smoke feels and how intensely it carries flavor. A full-bodied cigar coats your palate and lingers. A light-bodied one passes through cleanly.
Flavor is the third axis and the one people actually mean when they describe a cigar as cocoa, cedar, or pepper. A cigar can be intensely flavored and still mild in nicotine.
Why the distinction matters when you buy
Most bad first cigar experiences are strength problems, not flavor problems. Someone new gets handed a full-strength Nicaraguan, feels awful thirty minutes in, and concludes they do not like cigars. What they did not like was the nicotine.
The reverse is also common: a smoker asks for something 'stronger' when what they actually want is more flavor. They get handed something punishing, and still find it tastes like not very much.
If a cigar left you feeling unwell, look for lower strength. If it tasted thin or boring, look for more body — you can have a full-bodied, richly flavored cigar that is only medium in strength.
Rough guide to what sits where
Mild strength, light body: Connecticut shade wrappers over Dominican filler. Ashton Classic, Macanudo Café, Foundation Charter Oak.
Medium strength, rich body: this is where a lot of the best value lives. Drew Estate Undercrown Maduro and Illusione Rothchildes both taste dark and heavy without much nicotine punch.
Full strength, rich body: My Father Le Bijou 1922, Liga Privada No. 9, E.P. Carrillo Pledge. Eat something first, and do not make one of these your first cigar of the day.
Practical advice
Strength accumulates. The last third of any cigar is stronger than the first, because tar and nicotine concentrate as the cigar burns down toward the band. If a cigar starts to turn on you, put it down — there is no prize for finishing.
Food blunts nicotine considerably. The same cigar after dinner and on an empty stomach are two genuinely different experiences.
Smoke slowly. Drawing too often overheats the cigar, which makes it taste harsh and delivers nicotine faster. Roughly one draw a minute is a reasonable pace.