I always said if I smoke again I'm gonna grow my own, but on the side, did grow my own as a test ...and was very disappointed with the mild soft taste ....? how to flavor ...?
Tobacco is very much like grapes/wine.
The environmental conditions play a critical role in the final quality, then the cure is as critical.
I am an avid cigar smoker, some of the cigars I smoke are cured/fermented for as much as 5-7 years, then aged for another 5 years.
Yes, that is a serious time investment and part of the reason why some of these cigars go for $30 each.
Our run of the mill cheap cigar is made from tobacco that is cured for about 2 years, the curing process includes a fermenting of the leaf that eliminates an ammonia content which is undesirable.
Cigarette tobacco is not typically fermented so the curing process is more of a drying and thus less time consuming.
No matter, the flavor is dependent upon the soil, air, water, and quality of drying in addition to the genetics.