How to Hand Roll Cigars
Hand-rolled cigars are pure tobacco and the choice of cigar lovers around the world. When you hand roll your own, you control every detail, from the strength of the filler to the flavor of the wrapper leaf. With a little bit of practice, you'll be able to fill your humidor with your own creations.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Tobacco leaves for filler, binder and wrapper
- Guar gum, pectin or egg white
- Sharp knife or scissors
- Flat surface
- Cigar former or mold
Instructions
-
Gather and Prepare Tobacco and Supplies
-
1
Choose your filler, binder and wrapper tobacco. If your local tobacconist doesn't carry whole-leaf cigar tobacco, you can purchase it (along with many of the other supplies you'll need) from an online retailer like Otoa Cigars (see Resources below).
-
2
Shred filler leaves with scissors or leave whole. Smooth folds from whole leaves. The filler determines the cigar's strength, and you may need to mix different types of leaves and/or cuts to find a blend you like.
-
-
3
Prepare the binder leaf or leaves. Remove the middle rib with scissors if it's still there, and smooth out all the leaf folds. Depending on the size of the cigar you want to roll, you may need to use more than one leaf.
-
4
Prepare the wrapper leaf. Remove its rib, then smooth the leaf with your hands or press it lightly with an iron.
Hand Roll Your Cigar
-
5
Lay out the binder leaf on a flat surface and bunch your filler leaves together on top of it. It is important to bunch the filler leaves neither too tightly nor too loosely.
-
6
Spread a small amount of the adhesive on the edge of the binder leaf and wrap it around the filler. Roll it into cigar shape, then trim away the excess leaf on ends.
-
7
Trim the wrapper leaf to its proper size and roll it around the cigar. Secure the wrapper with a small amount of adhesive on the edge.
-
8
Use the adhesive to attach a small piece of the wrapper leaf to one end. Leave the other end open.
-
9
Enjoy the fruits of your labor by smoking your hand-rolled cigar (after it has aged properly) or giving it as a gift. When you hand roll your next cigar, try to improve upon the original until you have rolled your idea of the perfect cigar.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Use the best quality tobacco for the wrapper, since the wrapper provides most of the flavor.
Keep binder and wrapper leaves moist while rolling. If they dry out, spray lightly with water and place in an airtight container.
Combine several cuts or sizes of the same type of leaf to achieve the effect of a tobacco blend.
Allow your new cigars to age a minimum of 21 days in a seasoned humidor. Aging will also mellow a cigar if it's too strong.
Go easy on the filler. Cigars packed too tightly won't burn.
Do not rip or tear binder and wrapper leaves while rolling. Rips cause inconsistent burning.
