Totally hand made long filler
The hand made Habanos are compose of full length tobacco leaves, a process called in Cuba ¨Totalmente a Mano Tripa Larga¨.
Accordin to the standards laid down by the Regulatory Council for the Protected Denomination of Origin (D.O.P.) Habanos, these are ¨Totally hand-made, long filler¨ Habanos, made with fillers and binders haversted leaf by leaf only in Vegas de Primera -first class fields – situated in Vuelta de Abajo.
Composing the blend
The task of selecting the blends for each brand according to its own recipe starts well before the bales reach the factory.
The blend for each siza within each brand is specified and monitored by the Tobacco Research Insititute together with Habanos s.a. as part of the Regulatory Council to ensure that the quality and taste characteristics of each cigar are respected. The task of the Ligador –Master Blend- in each factory is to make certain that the prescribed criteria are followed.
Checking the work
There are strict quality control tests at all stages of hand making. Cigars that fail will never become Habanos. Everyday the Workshop Manager – El Jefe de Galera- supervises the work of the cigar rollers. At the same time supervisors, who are themselves top grade Torcedores, oversee each brigade of 30 to 40 workers watching their technique and checking the dimensions of the cigars ther are making.
Time to rest
Between making and packing, the cigars are taken to the conditioning room or Escaparate. Here in cedar-lined draweras, they are left to rest while the shed the excess moisture that was gained in the rolling process. After a week the cigars become smokeable but the longer they stay here the better. Conditions are strictly maintained at between 16 and 18° and 60 to 70 percent relative humidity, noticeably cooler and drier than the ambient Cuban climate.
The Escaparate is often referred to as the ´treasury´. It is here that the true wealth of the factory is stored.
