Torpedo cigars are rolled into a shape that sets them apart from the average stogie. “Standard” Parejo cigars have a rounded head. That’s the part that you put your mouth on to draw smoke through, while the (usually open) end that you light is referred to as the “foot.”
Torpedo cigars, instead of a rounded dome-shaped head, have a tapered head. Generally, the sides of the cigar are parallel. A related cigar shape is a pyramid, which has a tapered head, but which continues the taper all the way to the wide foot. Pyramid cigars don’t have straight sides.
Ok, enough of the vocabulary lesson. Where are the tasty torpedoes at?
Well, the good news is that tons of the top cigars are offered in torpedo shapes! These include the 97-point Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series, My Father’s 1922 Le Bijou (the 2015 Cigar Aficionado Cigar of the Year), and others from Ashton, Rocky Patel, and Oliva. Pretty much every outstanding cigar company is rolling up torpedo cigars, which take a fair amount of skill to roll well, compared to simpler shapes.
But why smoke torpedo cigars over other shapes?
The big reason just boils down to simple personal preference. For a lot of cigar smokers, the shape is about what feels comfortable to draw on and hold. Aesthetics can also be a thought as well. Who doesn’t like a handsome cigar if you’re going to be looking at the thing for an hour or more? When it comes to torpedo cigars, the tapered head is very easy to draw on, compared to fat ring gauges or even rectangular box-pressed shapes. It also concentrates the smoke, which some say blends the flavors better than a cigar that has a wide-open head. Obviously, this gets into the nitpicky aficionado-type stuff, so not everyone cares.
One last note. Cutting torpedo cigars is not the same as cutting standard Parejo cigars. First of all, you can’t use a punch cutter – you’re just going to crush the tiny tip. A v-cutter also won’t do you much good, unless you want your cigar to draw like a frozen milkshake from an Eskimo's ice cream shop. So grab your straight cutter and try not to take too much off the top. In fact, some people put their guillotine cutter on the table and put the cigar in, chopping off only what fits into the cutter itself (this could just be a millimeter or two).
The cigar was rolled to have a fairly small drawing opening, so try small and cut more if the draw is too tight as you go along. You can also go for an angled cut if you want to experiment, but if you’re just learning how to cut torpedo cigars, don’t get too fancy.
Please browse our selection of torpedo cigars at your leisure.
