Santa Isabel

Firmer and more concentrated than coastal Ecuadorian leaf, with dry cedar, mineral chalk, black tea and a clipped peppery finish rather than the creamy softness of Los Rios wrapper. The high-altitude thickening and the strong light give it more grip and a slightly astringent edge when young, which fermentation and rest largely resolve. It burns well but is too small and too thick-veined to compete as premium wrapper.

Priming spread is compressed by the short high-altitude season, so the practical distinction is between a light lower band and a considerably stronger upper band, with less usable middle than a lowland crop gives.

Andean valley soils of volcanic origin in southern Azuay - stony, mineral-rich and sharply drained, quite unlike the deep humid loams of the coastal plain. Yields per acre are lower and the leaf comes off smaller and firmer.

A dry inter-Andean valley with strong high-altitude light, cool nights and low humidity - the opposite of the cloud-shaded coast. Irrigation is essential, and the ultraviolet load at elevation thickens the leaf noticeably.

Southern Ecuador's tobacco is a much smaller and far less documented story than the coastal wrapper industry, and it has never had the export profile that Los Rios built from the 1990s onward.

Minor and stable - a secondary growing zone whose output is small relative to the coastal plain and poorly reported in industry sources.