Cigar Primer: Body, Strength, and Flavor

 

(SMO) Smoke a cigar, and it usually doesn't take very long to know whether you like it or not. Sure, a cigar evolves and develops throughout the entire smoke, so it would be quite unfair to conclude you've experienced everything it has to offer in only the first few minutes, but the general impression gleaned in the first few minutes is usually enough to let you know you're on the right track or it is not.
Accurately describing why you feel the way you do about a particular cigar has a lot to do with your level of smoking experience, the sophistication of your palette, and the size of your tasting-related vocabulary. Each of these add layers of perception and expand your ability to quantify what you taste and sense, but at heart it's either a cigar for you or not.
The various ways one can describe a cigar's taste is a process learned both through first-hand experience and the acquisition of knowledge. Once you understand the playing field, it becomes a little easier to grasp why certain cigars strike you as favorable, and others don't. Continued