Game · 10 rounds
Name that vitola
Name that vitola is a size game: a cigar is drawn in proportion over a ruler, and you pick its name from four. Ten rounds. Streaks count.
Eleven sizes, ten rounds
Drawn in proportion, not actual inches. Screens differ, so the ruler shows how length compares with width.
Every round, drawn in proportion, with answers
Drawn in proportion, not actual inches.
Which vitola is this?
- Petit corona
- Robusto
- Lancero
- Gordo
Answer
Petit corona: about 5⅛ inches by 42, roughly 16.7 mm across. Slim and short. The corona cut down.
Which vitola is this?
- Corona
- Toro
- Panatela
- Perfecto
Answer
Corona: about 5½ inches by 42. The yardstick size. Not thick, not thin, and the name is Spanish for crown.
Which vitola is this?
- Lonsdale
- Robusto
- Gordo
- Petit corona
Answer
Lonsdale: about 6½ inches by 42. A corona width stretched an extra inch. Named for the 5th Earl of Lonsdale.
Which vitola is this?
- Panatela
- Churchill
- Robusto
- Torpedo
Answer
Panatela: about 6 inches by 38, near 15 mm. Thin and of middling length. Shorter than a lancero.
Which vitola is this?
- Lancero
- Toro
- Gordo
- Petit corona
Answer
Lancero: 7½ inches by 38 in its classic Cuban form. Long and pencil thin, the longest of the slim sizes.
Which vitola is this?
- Robusto
- Lancero
- Churchill
- Lonsdale
Answer
Robusto: about 4⅞ inches by 50, close to 20 mm. Short and thick. Spanish for robust, and it looks it.
Which vitola is this?
- Toro
- Petit corona
- Panatela
- Perfecto
Answer
Toro: about 6 inches by 50. A robusto with an extra inch. Spanish for bull.
Which vitola is this?
- Churchill
- Robusto
- Petit corona
- Gordo
Answer
Churchill: about 7 inches with a 47 to 50 ring. Long and classic in width. Named for Sir Winston Churchill.
Which vitola is this?
- Gordo
- Lancero
- Corona
- Panatela
Answer
Gordo, also called a double toro: about 6 inches by 60, nearly 24 mm. Gordo is Spanish for fat. Fair enough.
Which vitola is this?
- Torpedo
- Perfecto
- Robusto
- Corona
Answer
Torpedo: a parejo with a pointed cap. It names a shape, so lengths vary. The one drawn here is 6 x 52.
Which vitola is this?
- Perfecto
- Torpedo
- Toro
- Lancero
Answer
Perfecto: narrow at both ends, bulging in the middle. A figurado, so sizes vary. This one is drawn 5 x 48.
A vitola is a size with a name
A vitola is a cigar's size and shape bundled under one word. Corona. Toro. Lancero. Each name points to a rough length in inches and a ring gauge in 64ths of an inch. Rough is the key word. Makers nudge both numbers and keep the name.
Read the proportions, not the length
Length alone fools you. A toro and a panatela are both about six inches, and they look nothing alike. The giveaway is how long the cigar is compared with how thick. Divide the length by the diameter in inches and you get a ratio that sticks to each name.
| Vitola | Nominal size | Diameter (mm) | Length ÷ width |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robusto | 4⅞ x 50 | 19.8 | 6.2 |
| Gordo | 6 x 60 | 23.8 | 6.4 |
| Toro | 6 x 50 | 19.8 | 7.7 |
| Petit corona | 5⅛ x 42 | 16.7 | 7.8 |
| Corona | 5½ x 42 | 16.7 | 8.4 |
| Churchill | 7 x 47 to 50 | 19.0 | 9.3 |
| Lonsdale | 6½ x 42 | 16.7 | 9.9 |
| Panatela | 6 x 38 | 15.1 | 10.1 |
| Lancero | 7½ x 38 | 15.1 | 12.6 |
Robusto and gordo sit under 7. Stubby. Toro, petit corona and corona land between 7.5 and 8.5. Churchill, lonsdale and panatela run about 9 to 10. The lancero is past 12, on its own. These ratios are our arithmetic on the nominal sizes, so a real cigar will be close, not exact.
Which sizes get mixed up most?
The corona family. A petit corona, a corona and a lonsdale share a 42 ring and differ only in length, about 5⅛, 5½ and 6½ inches. On a ruler they're easy. In a box with nothing to compare against, they're a coin toss.
Robusto and toro are the other trap. Same 50 ring. The toro is about an inch longer. If it looks like a robusto that kept going, it's a toro.
Torpedoes and perfectos break the pattern
Torpedo and perfecto name shapes, not sizes. A torpedo is a straight cigar with a pointed cap. A perfecto tapers at both ends and swells in the middle. Both belong to the figurados, the family of irregular shapes. Spot the outline first. The numbers come second.
Vitola naming questions
What does vitola mean?
Vitola is the Spanish word cigar people use for a size and shape: a length, a ring gauge and a profile, under one name such as corona or toro.
What is the difference between a corona and a lonsdale?
Length. Both sit at about a 42 ring, but a corona runs about 5½ inches and a lonsdale about 6½.
Is a torpedo a size?
No, a torpedo is a shape. It is a straight cigar with a pointed cap, made in many lengths and ring gauges.
Why does my cigar not match the listed vitola size?
Names are conventions, not standards. Makers stretch or trim a size by a fraction of an inch or a few rings and keep the name.
Where these vitola sizes come from
- Cigar: anatomy, shades, sizes and storage, Wikipedia
- Cohiba (cigar brand): the Lancero, 7½ x 38, Wikipedia
- Inch: defined as exactly 25.4 mm, Wikipedia