by David Diaz, Ed.D.

Some time ago, I received an interesting correspondence from one of my Stogie Fresh readers. He told me he purchased a super premium cigar (whose name shall remain a secret) that had an unusual characteristic. It seems that this cigar had many little spots on the wrapper leaf and when burned, these spots turned up on the ash as well. (See photo above).

He wanted to know if this cigar was a fake, or just "irregular," and if I knew what these little bumps were. Well, I scratched my head and said to myself, "Self, I'm not sure exactly what the hell that is." But I knew whom to turn to. I have a friend who works with an experienced tobacco grower. This person has been a tobacco researcher for 40 years and has likely seen it all. So, I forwarded the picture and asked him his thoughts.

He said it was evidence of high concentrations of magnesium and potash levels in the leaf, from fertilizers. It is very common to use magnesium and potash (among other chemicals) to enrich the soil for the betterment of the tobacco, however sometimes the plant leaf apparently stores a bit too much. Especially when you add too much of these chemicals to the soil.

One of the chemicals, Potash, is a "potassium compound commonly used as a fertilizer, and helps the plant resist disease." But the real key in this display of bumps on the leaf is magnesium. Magnesium, is "vital in the formation of chlorophyll, the green "blood" of plants. Without sufficient magnesium, tobacco leaves lose their rich, deep emerald color. It also contributes to the generation of oils in tobacco, the oleoresins that contain the nicotine and flavor. A magnesium deficiency leads to dry, brittle, flavorless leaves; a magnesium-balanced plant displays that silky sheen we all recognize and admire. Magnesium is also important in the combustion of tobacco. A black ash indicates incomplete combustion of the carbon in the leaf, and is a sign of insufficient magnesium."

So anyway, these little bumps or "pimples" are referred to as leaf "grain" and can appear naturally because of the natural levels of magnesium and potash in the soil. An example of this effect as it occurs naturally was sent to me and is seen below.

By the way, some have mistakingly referred to the wrapper in the first photo as simply "toothy." Just be be clear on the difference between "tooth" and "grain." Tooth refers to the sandy bumps on a wrapper, which is a naturally-occurring characteristic of certain tobacco strains (e.g., Cameroon). Grain is the white speckles on the wrapper ash, and is the sign of excessive magnesium and potash. You could have a wrapper that was toothy and also grainy, but you could also have a wrapper that didn't have tooth and yet exhibited grain.

The moral of the story is, if the first photo appears like a cigar on "steroids" it's because essentially it is: the effects are most likely chemically induced by the addition of unnatural amounts of natural chemicals.

So, did these little grains affect the burn or flavors of the smoke? I asked the guy who sent me the original photos that question and he said "The burn and draw were perfect. I think it tasted pretty good but the overall experience was diminished because I was constantly looking at the specs/dots thinking that I was smoking Beetle Eggs."

All in all, it was an interesting lesson and I thought I would pass it along.

David Diaz is the president of Stogie Fresh and the editor of the Stogie Fresh Cigar Journal. He has served as an educator, researcher and writer and has taught in the Health Science field for nearly 30 years. He possesses an earned doctorate from Nova Southeastern University.