I just wrote a post about how the cigar boom of the 1990's changed the many ways people go about describing cigars and it made me think about other changes throughout the history of cigars.

One interesting fact is how the names of figurados have changed. For example, today we use the words torpedo, pyramid and belicoso interchangeably to describe the same size. However, many years ago, each of these was a very different size. For example, a torpedo was tapered on both ends bulged in the middle, basically what is today referred to as a perfecto or preferido. The La Aurora Preferido is exactly the shape that was origianlly the torpedo. If you look at that shape, it actually looks like a torpedo you might find on a naval vessel. Pyramid is the actual terms we use today which means a cigar with a pointed head that tapers from head to foot. This is like the montecristo #2 and most other cigars we refer to today as torpedos. A traditional belicoso also has a pointed head but technically should be on a normal shaped cigar that does not taper but is a standard round parejo.

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Alex Svenson
Chief Merchant
Cigar.com