1875? What About 1875?

[JustBen]

I'm still pretty new to cigars--the good ones, anyway--and I have a few questions I'm hoping you guys can help me out with.

1. At some point this weekend I'm lighting up a Romeo y Julieta 1875 Cedros #1. What is this 1875 all about? I see these years on cigars all the time, but I have no idea what that could mean. (I know what it means on wine bottles, but something tells me I'm not smoking 125 year-old tobacco here.)

2. Why the guessing game with cigar sizes? I go to the tobacconist and see a box of cigars...instead of assuming that I'm some kind of expert that can tell what the sizes are, why not just say "Churchill" or "Robusto" somewhere on the label or the packaging? (To give you an example, I have no idea what size this Romeo y Julieta is. Unless I actually bother the clerk to tell me or seek out a knowledgeable friend, I'm never going to know what size it is.)

Thanks for any feedback, help, or chuckles at my expense.

 

[Zeebra]

I believe 1875 refers to the year the brand Romeo Y Julieta was founded.

You'll get to know sizes the more you smoke and get familiar with them. I was totally clueless too, but now I can generally get close in my guess as to cigar sizes when I see one. Just ask someone, cigar enthusiasts are always eager to talk and teach other people about their passion.

 

[bfreebern]

1. Quote from a website I found:

"Developed in 1875 by Inocencio Alvarez and Mannin Garcia, this brand immediately showed its quality by winning gold medals in four universal expositions between 1885 and 1900. But it really took off after its acquisition in 1903 by Jose Rodriguez Fernandez, known as "Pepin." Named for the lovers in William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name (written circa 1596), the brand also is traditionally credited with the introduction of the "Churchill" shape in honour of the British statesman Winston Churchill (note the name of the factory shape for this size: the "Julieta 2."). Fernandez promoted his brand with endless energy and at one time, his Rodriguez, Arguelles y Cia. factory produced upward of 2,000 different cigar bands, personalized for their very best customers. Fernandez died at age 88 in 1954, but his efforts survive him as his full-flavoured Romeo y Julieta brand is one of the most widely known and appreciated in the world today."

2. The boxes should state what size they are.

 

[Brickhouse]

Not sure if this'll help on the sizes or not but.....


Churchill: Traditionally, the churchill is held to be a larger cigar made popular by Winston Churchill. Normally it is 7 1/2 inches long with a 50 ring gauge.

Cigarillo: A small cigar around the size of a cigarette.

Corona: Traditionally this cigar is 6 inches with a 44 ring gauge.

Culebra: Three cigars of any size braided together form this shape. Yes you pull them apart before smoking!

Double Corona: A larger, but not quite double, corona cigar that is 7 inches long with a 50 or more ring gauge.

Esplendido: Made popular by the Cohiba, this size is about 7 1/2 inches with a 50 ring gauge.

Figurado: Any shaped cigar such as a torpedo or perfecto.

Giant or Gigante: A huge cigar 8 or more inches long with a 52 (or more) ring gauge.

Longsdale: A longer thinner cigar that is 6 inches by 42 ring gauge.

Panatela: A long thin cigar that is 6 1/2 inches by 28 ring gauge.

Perfecto: A classic shape that has a 48 ring in the middle and tapers on both ends.

Presidente: A larger cigar that is 8 1/2 inches long and a 52 ring gauge.

Pyramid: A cigar with a larger ring gauge end that uniformly tapers to a small ring gauge end.

Robusto: A short fat cigar about 5 inches long and with a 50 ring gauge.

Rothschilde: A short version of a robusto, usually 4-4 1/2 inches with a 50 ring gauge.

Torbusto: A new shape that combines the torpedo, toro, and robusto shapes. Made to date only by Altadis.

Toro: A new shape that is 6 inches long with a 50 ring gauge.

Torpedo: The bulk of the barrel is a larger ring (often 50+) that after 3/4 of the cigar tapers to a point.

But maybe you're just asking about a box of unopened, in that case I think it does say on most.

Not sure if this is what you were getting at.

Got this from justforhim.com

Edited to give website referrence

 

[JustBen]

Okay, that makes sense. I'm looking at open boxes in the humidor case, so I don't see the tops of the boxes. Thanks for the background on Romeo y Julieta, but is that what a year usually means in a cigar name? Thanks for the big list of cigar sizes, too. To be honest, I'm not very good spatially and not so good at estimating inches or ring sizes. I guess it will just take time.

 

[CasaSoho]

Not sure if this'll help on the sizes or not but.....

Churchill: Traditionally, the churchill is held to be a larger cigar made popular by Winston Churchill. Normally it is 7 1/2 inches long with a 50 ring gauge.

What was a Churchill named before Sir Winston?

 

[OutlawD]

What was a Churchill named before Sir Winston?

Looks like they were called Julieta's

Link

 

[jabba]

1. Quote from a website I found:

"Developed in 1875 by Inocencio Alvarez and Mannin Garcia, this brand immediately showed its quality by winning gold medals in four universal expositions between 1885 and 1900. But it really took off after its acquisition in 1903 by Jose Rodriguez Fernandez, known as "Pepin." Named for the lovers in William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name (written circa 1596), the brand also is traditionally credited with the introduction of the "Churchill" shape in honour of the British statesman Winston Churchill (note the name of the factory shape for this size: the "Julieta 2."). Fernandez promoted his brand with endless energy and at one time, his Rodriguez, Arguelles y Cia. factory produced upward of 2,000 different cigar bands, personalized for their very best customers. Fernandez died at age 88 in 1954, but his efforts survive him as his full-flavoured Romeo y Julieta brand is one of the most widely known and appreciated in the world today."

2. The boxes should state what size they are.

Pepin lived til 88... WOW! what was the life expectancy in the 1950s, 65-70 years old for a male? And they say smoking kills you... How the #$%@ do all these guy live til their late 80s and 90s while smoking 10 cigars a day? (guaranteed that guy smoked 10-15 a day easy)

 

[Wurm]

1. Quote from a website I found:

"Developed in 1875 by Inocencio Alvarez and Mannin Garcia, this brand immediately showed its quality by winning gold medals in four universal expositions between 1885 and 1900. But it really took off after its acquisition in 1903 by Jose Rodriguez Fernandez, known as "Pepin." Named for the lovers in William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name (written circa 1596), the brand also is traditionally credited with the introduction of the "Churchill" shape in honour of the British statesman Winston Churchill (note the name of the factory shape for this size: the "Julieta 2."). Fernandez promoted his brand with endless energy and at one time, his Rodriguez, Arguelles y Cia. factory produced upward of 2,000 different cigar bands, personalized for their very best customers. Fernandez died at age 88 in 1954, but his efforts survive him as his full-flavoured Romeo y Julieta brand is one of the most widely known and appreciated in the world today."

2. The boxes should state what size they are.

Pepin lived til 88... WOW! what was the life expectancy in the 1950s, 65-70 years old for a male? And they say smoking kills you... How the #$%@ do all these guy live til their late 80s and 90s while smoking 10 cigars a day? (guaranteed that guy smoked 10-15 a day easy)

Maybe all the guys who are dropping dead early aren't smoking ten cigars a day... hmmmm I guess I need to now go convince my wife I found the perfect way to live longer and see if she will let me stock up on my favorite smokes :whistling: