Three are cigar smokers with a special hobby: collecting the bands or labels of cigars, the paper rings or any other material representing each manufacturer, a brand identity of each cigar.
In Spanish, this band is called vitola. The term vitola also refers to the type of cigar by its length, thickness and shape. Churchill, Robust, Romeo or Corona are examples of vitolas or type of cigars.
Tradition
In the early 19th Century free trade of tobacco was declared. The main Cuban factories, knowing that their cigars were the most desired for their quality and composition, began to export their cigars to Spain with these paper rings so that consumers could tell them apart from others.
Once this practice was extended, they began to see works of art, which caught the attention of collectors worldwide.
Today there are many clubs of collectors, prizes for the best designs and a market for buying and exchanging vitolas similar to the ones for stamps or coins.
In 1949 the Asociación Vitolfílica Española (the main association about this collecting) was established to institutionalize this hobby in Spain. If you want to get started in collecting cigars, the website of Asociación Vitolfílica Española has lots of information on how to start your collection (in Spanish).
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Spanish
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