A cigar is not called a Maduro based on having a dark colored wrapper. Some dark colored wrappers are not real Maduro wrappers, meaning that they have not been produced using the traditional fermentation process for Maduro wrappers. Maduro wrappers come from fermenting tobacco in “pilones” (a covered pile of tobacco leaves) at higher temperatures than regular natural wrappers. The leaves used for this process are usually thicker, so they can withstand the rigor of Maduro fermentation over and over again. Maduro wrappers take longer to ferment but the result is a darker, smooth, rich, sweet tobacco. Beware of tasteless dark tobacco that claims to be Maduro, usually this tobacco has been cooked in very high heat to change the color without the long fermentation process.