Mata Fina

/ MAH-ta FEE-na /
Tobacco & LeafSpanish
Definition
Brazilian tobacco from the Reconcavo region of Bahia, named for its growing area. It is dark, oily, and naturally sweet, fermented long and used mostly as wrapper and as a flavoring filler.
Why it matters
Mata Fina supplies a dried-fruit and cocoa sweetness that is hard to get from Cuban-seed leaf, which is why blenders slip it into otherwise Central American filler.
In context
"The Brazilian Mata Fina wrapper gave the blend a raisin note the Nicaraguan filler could not."