Culebras: Eye Candy

[Footbag]

Originally Posted by spincycle

Wow! I've never seen cigars bundled like that! I love the share-your-wares form factor as well. Any idea how these are rolled?

But there is something about it's shape which just reminds me of cleaning up after my dog. :S

I've heard a few things about how these are rolled. First, the cigars a bit more loosely filled then would otherwise be, then they are over humidified until they are flexible. The last step is gently braiding and tying.

There are two theories on origin. The first, and best IMO, is that in the rollers in the factories were allowed to smoke 3 cigars a day. They could also bring their allotment home if they chose. At some point, the factory owners feared that the workers were taking more then their daily allotment and either smoking them or selling them outside the factory. The factory owners devised a plan.

By braiding the cigars into bundles of three, they could do a few things. First, the workers could be handed a nice bundle of cigars rather then loose cigars. Second, since the culebras had a distinctive shape, the factory owners could see if a worker was smoking a misshapen cigar. Otherwise, the worker was likely stealing. Third, the cigars given to the workers were not salable on the market, because of their odd shapes.

The second theory on origin is that it was purely a marketing gimmick.

Yeah... the first is a lot better right?