History of the cigar
Growing and Harvesting
There is no indication as to when tobacco was first cultivated. However, in Central and South America, the regions of origin of tobacco, many tribes undoubtedly have been smoking wild-growing tobacco for centuries.
The spread of the cigar in Europe
The triumphant spread of the cigar began with Christoph Kolumbus discovering America and bringing the rolled up tobacco leaves –which the natives called "Cohiba" – back to Spain.
The Cigar today
The first tobacco plantations were opened in Virginia in 1612 and Maryland in 1631. The tobacco produced was mainly used for pipes, however. After tobacco farming was cultivated and methods of drying and fermentation were discovered, the industry started to produce wrappers for tobacco, which led to the form and quality of cigars we know today. The birth of the cigar as we know it.
