Lexicon
Ring gauge
The diameter of a cigar, expressed in sixty-fourths of an inch.
A ring gauge of 64 would equal one inch — ring gauge 50 therefore measures just under 20 millimetres. Together with length, ring gauge defines the vitola: a designation such as “6 × 52” reads as six inches in length by ring gauge 52; with metric measurements the length is given in centimetres while the ring gauge remains the same. It also shapes the smoke — thick cigars tend to draw cooler and foreground the filler, while in slender ones the wrapper’s contribution to the aroma increases.