Skip to content

Menu

  • Home
  • Cigars
    • Best Cigars
    • Cigar News
    • Cigar 101
    • Cigar Gear
    • Cigar Reviews
  • Editorial
  • Deals
  • Spirits
  • More
  • About
  • Contact

Archives

  • July 2025
  • June 2025
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024

Calendar

July 2025
M T W T F S S
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031  
« Jun    

Categories

  • Best Cigars
  • Cigar 101
  • Cigar Gear
  • Cigar Reviews
  • Deals
  • Editorial
  • More
  • News
  • Spirits

Copyright The BS Lounge 2025 | Theme by ThemeinProgress | Proudly powered by WordPress

The BS Lounge
  • Home
  • Cigars
    • Best Cigars
    • Cigar News
    • Cigar 101
    • Cigar Gear
    • Cigar Reviews
  • Editorial
  • Deals
  • Spirits
  • More
  • About
  • Contact
  • You are here :
  • Home
  • Cigar 101
  • Cigar strength vs. body vs. profile

Cigar News

La Aurora 120 Aniversario Lancero is coming this summer

La Aurora has big news: New Miami warehouse and community mural

Latest ruling on Cohiba versus Cohiba: Judge dismisses General Cigar’s lawsuit

Aganorsa Leaf Aniversario 25 Edición Limitada is available in select stores

EP Carrillo is now Casa Carrillo unified under one name

La Aurora’s Fuerte Sol is the first edition of the Family Creed series and it sounds phenomenal

A quick list of what’s coming to PCA 2025 [Updated]

La Aurora Small Batch Lot No. 7 debuts, crafted in partnership with PCA Alliance

Aganorsa Leaf to introduce a new Supreme Leaf Gran Toro vitola at PCA 2025

Aganorsa Leaf celebrates two decades of JFR with the JFR 20th Anniversary release

Macanudo Cafe cigar on an ash tray used as example of cigar strength vs body comparison.
Written by Briley on March 3, 2025

Cigar strength vs. body vs. profile

Cigar 101 Article

Cigars are as diverse as anything else in this world. There are mild cigars, strong cigars, dark profile cigars, and powerful cigars that span several categories — like the Perdomo Champagne Connecticut, which has a ton of nicotine but in a lighter, brighter profile of flavors. For someone new to cigars, or hell, sometimes even experienced smokers, it’s tough to quantify the difference between the options.

What exactly is a strong cigar, for example? How does it compare to a cigar’s body? What about flavor profile(s)? These are all excellent, burning questions, so let’s explore and burn down that ash.

What is cigar strength?

An H Upmann Heritage by AJ Fernandez cigar resting near a coffee cup and lighter by the pool -- cigar strength vs profile comparison.Source: Briley Kenney / The BS Lounge

It’s easy to mix these qualifiers up, so, depending on who you’re talking to, you might get a different description. The strength explicitly refers to the nicotine content in a cigar. Because premium cigars consist entirely of tobacco, they naturally contain nicotine. Since it’s inherent, and rarely measured, every cigar has a different concentration, some more than others.

Read moreWhat's in a cigar?

A strong cigar has a lot of nicotine, which means, when you smoke it you’ll likely feel the effects. If you’re not prepared, it is possible to get queasy or nauseous, which is called nic-sickness. As an aside, that’s why I always recommend drinking something sweet with your cigars, whether that’s soda, juice, tea, coffee, or something stronger.

What does ‘body’ refer to in a cigar?

Tatuaje Face cigar from the Monster Smash 2024 Sampler with skull and themed decor.Source: Briley Kenney / The BS Lounge

Body refers to the overall content in a cigar, like dense and more potent flavors. The classifications are: Mild-bodied, Medium-bodied, and Full-bodied. The body of a cigar often goes hand-in-hand with cigar strength. For example, typically, a full-bodied cigar is stronger than a mild-bodied cigar. But it’s important to note that’s not always the case.

You can absolutely find mild and medium-bodied cigars that are stronger, since strength is more about the nicotine concentration. Because of this, some people use the terms interchangeably when talking about their cigar experiences, but that’s not quite accurate.

What about a cigar’s profile?

Obsidian Redrum cigars resting in and near a skull whiskey glass.Source: Briley Kenney / The BS Lounge
Read moreWhat are some common flavors you can taste in a cigar?

While more of an auxiliary term, the flavor profile of a cigar refers to the pattern of flavors you’ll taste when smoking. A darker profile cigar, for example, might have flavors like dark chocolate, cinnamon, leather, toastiness or wood and so on. They’re very dark, rich flavors you probably won’t have difficulty discerning. A light or bright cigar has more vibrant flavors, sometimes sweeter, like vanilla, floral notes, citrus, and even some light coffee or milk chocolate.

Some cigars match several categories at once

A variety of cigars arranged in an alternating pattern - for cigar strength vs body comparison.Source: Briley Kenney / The BS Lounge

It’s always possible to have cigars that match several of these categories or classifiers. For instance, mild, flavored cigars can still have a dark profile. Nub by Oliva cigars, for instance, come in a variety of flavors, including dark options like espresso. But by most counts, those are not strong or full-bodied.

The Perdomo Champagne, which I called out above, is an excellent example of this mixing and matching. Funnily enough, people often recommend the Connecticut version as a beginner cigar, which isn’t always superb for newbies. Sure, it’s medium-bodied with a creamy, satisfying burst of flavor, but it also has a lot of nicotine which can be too much for someone that’s not used to smoking stronger cigars. Of course, the Champagne also comes in Sun Grown and Maduro varieties. And those are even stronger than the Connecticut.

Cigar makers and retailers often provide this information, so you always have some idea of what you’re going to experience. However, it takes a lot of trial and error to figure out what’s the best match for your palate.

Cigar strength vs. body: Strong cigars aren’t for everyone

A beautiful image of a JR Pure Origin Gran Vulcano cigar resting on a JR 50th Anniversary ash tray.Source: Briley Kenney / The BS Lounge

Cigars are ultimately about the experience. Yes, the flavors, the strength, and the body all play a part in that experience, but everyone has their own tastes. Don’t feel bad if you don’t enjoy strong cigars or full-bodied cigars. It’s also okay to stick to your sweet spot when you find it. As much as I recommend experimenting to find experiences outside your wheelhouse, there’s no need to force it.

If you light something up, and you’re not enjoying it, put it down. At least, now you’ll have a much better understanding of the difference between all of those near-endless options you have available.

Written by Briley

Briley has over 16 years in the publishing and content marketing business. He's been writing about cigars for nearly half that in various forms. What makes him a tour de force is he also smokes them.

Tags: BS Lounge, Cigar 101, Cigar Advice, Cigars
A direct link to the Visiting La Aurora series editorial on The BS Lounge
A direct link to a comprehensive guide to smoking a cigar on The BS Lounge

BS Lounge on Instagram

Follow Us on Social:

Trending Now:

Techigar website advertisement to read up on the latest tech and gear.

About The BS Lounge

Meant as a cigar companion for the everyman. Here, you’ll find cigar advice, guides, reviews, you name it.

Our goal is not to become the next top cigar mag, like many other media sites. Instead, we just want to be a reliable resource for cigar lovers, just like us.

Surgeon General’s Warnings

Privacy Policy

The BS Lounge animated advertisement

More Cigar Sites

  • Aganorsa Acolytes

More General Sites

  • Techigar
  • Vulgamer

Important Disclosures

Advertising Disclosure:

We may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. Any featured placements will be clearly labeled as such.

Reviews: 

Compensation has never been given to provide a favorable review. Though we may obtain products from brands, we adhere to honest review policies.

Copyright The BS Lounge 2025 | Theme by ThemeinProgress | Proudly powered by WordPress