Tobacco, more than most other plants, can vary widely in flavor depending both on the climate and the soil in which it is grown. While many plants draw only specific nutrients from the soil in they are planted, tobacco will take in almost anything. For this reason, cigar taste can vary quite widely depending on where it is grown. Most cigar connoisseurs have a favorite country of origin for their cigars.

Winston Churchill preferred Cuban cigars, although it is now illegal for a U.S. citizen to purchase or even to smoke a Cuban cigar. Cuban tobacco, like most tobacco from Latin American countries, has a full and rich flavor. It is also considered to possess a certain creamy smoothness in addition to its richness, which is perhaps its distinguishing characteristic.

Dominican cigars from Dominican tobacco, though, are considered to be a good replacement for those who are unable to obtain Cuban cigars, and some consider cigars from the Dominican Republic even to be superior to those from Cuba. Dominican tobacco shares the richness of other tobaccos from the same region, and is generally cultivated from Cuban seed varieties, which means it shares some of the creaminess found in Cuban tobacco. Dominican tobacco is often used in a blend of other tobaccos to add complexity to the flavor.

Honduras and Nicaragua are also justly famous for their cigar tobacco production. Both of these tobaccos are quite flavorful and full-bodied, though cigars from Honduras are generally considered to be mild despite their full flavor — a good combination. Mexican cigars, on the other hand, are flavorful but are sometimes considered a bit spicier than their counterparts. Mexican tobacco is sometimes used as a maduro wrapper, since the tobacco is able to stand up well to the curing process without losing its desirable qualities.

In the United States, Connecticut is the most famous for its tobacco production. The leaf is particularly elastic, making it an excellent material for wrappers, and the dark, almost-black Connecticut Broadleaf is often used as a wrapper for maduro cigars.

Finally, there is Cameroon tobacco, whose distinction is that it is almost totally neutral in flavor. This makes it ideal as a wrapper for cigars whose filler and/or binder material already has a distinct, rich, or complex flavor — a wrapper from Cameroon will not interfere with flavors that are already present.

Bear in mind that most cigars are not puros; that is to say, their constituent parts come from several countries, rather than a single country. Your favorite may end up being the signature blend of a particular brand, rather than tobacco grown in a single country. And of course, the best way to decide which tobacco is your favorite is simply to keep trying new varieties until you find a winner.