Parliament is a brand of cigarette

Cigarette

A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...

s marketed by the company Philip Morris

Philip Morris USA

Philip Morris USA is the United States tobacco division of Altria Group, Inc. Philip Morris USA brands include Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Benson and Hedges, Merit, Parliament, Alpine, Basic, Cambridge, Bucks, Dave's, Chesterfield, Collector's Choice, Commander, English Ovals, Lark, L&M, Players and...

. The brand was introduced in 1931 and is distinctive for its recessed paper filters

Cigarette filter

A cigarette filter has the purpose of reducing the amount of smoke, tar, and fine particles inhaled during the combustion of a cigarette. Filters also reduce the harshness of the smoke and keep tobacco flakes out of the smoker's mouth.-History:...

. In the 1940s and '50s, the brand was marketed for its unique filters, with advertisements reading, "Only the flavor touches your lips", and "Tobacco tastes best when the filter's recessed". The brand also claimed that the recessed filter prevented tar

Tar

Tar is modified pitch produced primarily from the wood and roots of pine by destructive distillation under pyrolysis. Production and trade in tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe and Colonial America. Its main use was in preserving wooden vessels against rot. The largest...

 from making contact with the smoker's mouth, unlike standard filters. The Parliament brand holds a strong market position in Saudi Arabia, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

, Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

, Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...

, Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

, Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

, Montenegro

Montenegro

Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...

, Ukraine

Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

 and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Characteristics

Aside from the signature recessed filters, Parliaments are also noted for their "sharp" and "tangy" flavor. They are also the only cigarettes on the mainstream market to feature a recessed paper filter. Unsubstantiated rumors have circulated that the recessed filters were designed for recreational cocaine

Cocaine

Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...

 snorting, though marketing campaigns by Philip Morris stated that the filter was designed to prevent tar from making contact with the smoker's mouth, thus making them lower in tar content as well as enhancing flavor.

USA Varieties

Parliaments are sold in several different varieties:

• Blue Pack (Full Flavor) Kings - Box
• White Pack (Lights) Kings - Soft and Box
• White Pack (Lights) 100's - Soft and Box
• Silver Pack (Ultra Lights) Kings - Box

Menthol

• Green Pack (Menthol Full Flavor) Kings - Box
• White Pack (Menthol Lights) Kings & 100's - Box
• Silver Pack (Menthol Ultra Lights) Kings - Box

Market

Parliaments represent a small market, making up only 1.7% in Philip Morris sales figures, in stark contrast to the corporation's leading seller, Marlboros, which represent 41.1% of all Philip Morris sales. Nonetheless, Parliaments are purportedly popular among smokers in their 20s in the United States and predominantly Russia. The brand is one of the leaders among premium-segment brands in Russia, but is fairly unknown in most of Europe. Actor Charlie Sheen

Charlie Sheen

Carlos Irwin Estevez , better known by his stage name Charlie Sheen, is an American film and television actor. He is the youngest son of actor Martin Sheen....

appeared in ads for Parliament in the 1990s.

External links

• Parliament Cigarettes packs from Encyclopedia of Cigarettes
• http://www.euro-cig.com/gallery.php?id_cap=104 from Euro-Cig.com
• Parliament Cigarette Prices