The Super Bowl has plenty of cigar tie-ins. In fact, for a brief few days in the run-up to the big game, Indianapolis might have been the center of the American cigar scene.

Ron Jaworski hosted his third annual cigar party to support his charity. A celebrity poker event hosted by Devin Hester and LeSean McCoy at the Indianapolis Zoo featured Punch cigars. Anther charity fundraiser offered guests El Tiante cigars. And revelers at the Rolling Stone party were treated to a pairing featuring Bacardi rum and cigars (La Gloria Cubana or CAO La Traviata).

But really there’s only one cigar every fan and player wants to smoke at the Super Bowl: a victory cigar. As a New Yorker and a Giants fan I was  lucky enough to get to light up a victory cigar after this year’s game. (I’m also a Mets, Knicks, and Rangers fan, so celebrating championships is a rare thing indeed.)

For my celebratory smoke I fired up the last of my Cohiba Behikes and poured a glass of fine bourbon. The cigar tasted great, even though in the past I’d always found the Behike 54 to be a little underwhelming, especially for the $50 pricetag.

But then that’s the point. A cigar tastes better when you’ve got something to celebrate, and the bigger the celebration the better. Birthdays, weddings, and championships are all prime time for a fine cigar. And while those events may be few and far between (especially for Mets fans), there’s a lesson in there that’s applicable to everyday life. The most under-looked aspect of whether a cigar will be enjoyable or not is the mindset of the smoker.

So find something (even if it’s small) to celebrate every time you light up a cigar, and you’ll find the cigars taste better.

-Patrick S

photo credit: Winston Churchill Gallery

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Years ago, I overheard a gentleman make a wise statement in a cigar shop that has stuck with me ever since. “The best cigar is the cigar you like the best,” he said.

What a wonderfully simple (and true) declaration. So many people choose to smoke cigars that are new or expensive because they think those sticks will make them look cool. Others only choose cigars that have received the highest ratings, or those that are made by the trendiest cigar makers. Still others only smoke the biggest, the boldest, the darkest, or the thickest. And others hunt for certain flavor profiles.

But at the end of the day, the only thing that matters is that the cigar you choose makes you feel great and provides a pleasant experience. There’s no right answer when it comes to picking your cigar or deciding when, where, or how to smoke it. As long as enjoyment is the end result, you’re doing it right. Keep up the good work.

And if you have an all-time favorite cigar, well that’s fine too. I applaud your ability to narrow down the massive field to one supreme smoke, whether you’ve deemed that smoke supreme for its sentimental value or its physical attributes. Just don’t be shocked when I tell you I don’t have a favorite.

I often get asked what my favorite cigar is, and I think people are surprised—and sometimes disappointed—when I don’t have an answer. The truth is, I don’t have a favorite all-time song either. The music I listen to depends on a lot of different variables, not the least of which is my mood. Results can vary across genres that are completely dissimilar. If I could name a favorite song, it would change so often that it would render the act of naming a favorite completely meaningless.

That said, I do have a dozen or so songs that I would consider consistently among my favorites, some because they have sentimental value, some because I just really like the way they sound. The same could be said for cigars. Maybe I should have a “top five” answer prepared for the next time I’m asked what my favorite cigar is. Or maybe it’s enough to say, “I like too many cigars for too many different reasons to pick a favorite.”

No, I don’t think you have to have a favorite cigar. But I won’t hold it against you if you do. If you have a favorite, feel free to share it in the comments below, and feel free to mention why it’s at the top of your all-time best-of list.

-Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

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As is customary each January, seemingly everyone is making their list of the top cigars of the previous year. We haven’t published such a list in the last few years, but we did create a best-of list to send out to subscribers of our newsletter two years ago.

Such lists are fun, as you compare your preferences with the list author’s. And sometimes you’ll realize there is a cigar you’ve wanted to try but haven’t, or maybe an old favorite that you’ve gotten away from for no particular reason.

But creating a best-of list (or at least a good one) is problematic. For starters, you need to determine criteria that will result in a meaningful list.

Will only new cigars be considered? Is smoking just a single enough to to fairly evaluate a cigar? (If you review cigars like we do, is a full review required?)

Once you’ve determined which cigars are eligible, how exactly do you determine the best? Should price be a factor? Cigar Aficionado says they re-review all top-scoring cigars blind (but if they get different ratings one must wonder if the ratings are at least a bit arbitrary). Others, I’m sure, just reflect on what they’ve written or said, mostly relying on memory.

One of the best ways to determine your favorite cigars of the year is to consider the cigars you bought and/or smoked most regularly. This method is used the least. (Under that criteria, the Tatuaje Petit Cazadores Reserva, 7-20-4 Dogwalker, CroMagnon, and the Illusione Singulare LE 2010 Phantom would be my top smokes of 2011.)

But then some hidden gems that I didn’t get to smoke as much as I might have liked would miss the list (Humo Jaguar, Grimalkin by Emilio Cigar, San Lotano Oval, Crowned Head’s Four Kicks, and the E.P. Carrillo LE 2011 “Dark Rituals”).

Ultimately, I think the best part of making a best-of list isn’t the final list but thinking back on what you smoked last year, what you enjoyed, and what you wish you smoked more of. Whether you share your personal “Best Cigars of 2011” list with others (feel free to do so in the comments if you want) or not, what’s important is that you reflect about your favorites from the past. Doing so will make for better smoking in the future.

-Patrick S

photo credit: Flickr

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Back in 2003 when New York City passed a smoking ban in all bars and restaurants, critics said it was only the beginning of the new expanded nanny state powers. Despite such pleas while the law was being debated and enacted, few non-smokers joined the battle against the smoking ban, leaving the battle to tobacco-using adults, bar owners worried about their businesses, property rights advocates, and retailers and manufacturers in the tobacco business.

Now, nine years later, a look at the many laws in New York shows that smoking was just the beginning. In the time since then, a ban on selling food cooked with trans fats has gone into effect, and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has also gone after sugar-rich sodas. Bloomberg has pushed for reduced salt in prepared foods and the city council even proposed a complete ban on restaurants cooking with salt. And now the New York Post reports Bloomberg has his nanny-state sites set on alcohol.

In other words, smokers were just the beginning of the paternalistic crusade that now impacts everyone who eats food cooked with salt or trans fats, smokes in bars, drinks soda, or wants a glass of wine or a beer. If Mayor Bloomberg gets his way, good luck getting a rum and coke, or a margarita with salt, let alone a fine cigar to enjoy with them.

It’s an important lesson to remember the next time a non-smoker says that, although they don’t think the government should stop a bar owner from allowing smoking on their property, they still won’t oppose the smoking ban because they don’t like the smell of smoke on their clothes after a night out.

When they tell you that (as I’ve been told many times), remind them that smoking bans are not the end, but just the beginning. Remind them that once you start encouraging government to restrict people’s choices in the name of “public health” it will inevitably be used to restrict their choices. New York’s smoking ban was once an anomaly, but since it’s become the model for countless smoking bans elsewhere.

Fat, salt, sugar, tobacco, alcohol…they are all targets of the nanny state, and sooner or later everyone will be affected. Just ask the citizens of New York City.

-Patrick S

photo credit: Flickr

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Tomorrow, Clemson and West Virginia will face off in the Orange Bowl, but freedom already lost when anti-tobacco lobbyists and three U.S. senators successfully bullied the Orange Bowl into canceling their three-year sponsorship deal with Camacho Cigars.

In early December, Camacho Cigars, a subsidiary of premium cigarmaker Davidoff of Geneva, announced their partnership with the Orange Bowl to be a “corporate partner” of the game for the next three years and for the BCS Championship game in 2013 when the site of the Orange Bowl would host the biggest game in college football. The deal included cigar lounges at the site of the game, and Orange Bowl officials praised the deal saying, “We pride ourselves in affiliating with quality brands, especially those with strong South Florida ties, like Camacho Cigars.”

But the praise didn’t last long. Anti-smoking lobbying groups got wind of the new partnership and quickly began complaining: “The association of cigar smoking with one of the nation’s top collegiate sporting events sends the wrong message to impressionable young fans and helps market cigars as athletic, masculine, and cool,” the groups wrote in a letter to the Orange Bowl Committee and the NCAA.

Soon, anti-tobacco politicians were piling on. Three Democrat senators (Dick Durbin, Frank Lautenberg, and Richard Blumenthal) wrote to demand the game drop Camacho as a sponsor, writing, “Tobacco has no place in sports, and the promotion of cigars at the Orange Bowl sends the wrong message to young fans.”

Faced with this professional PR campaign and the implicit threat of three powerful senators, the Orange Bowl caved and canceled its sponsorship with Camacho, which it had so proudly announced two weeks earlier.

The whole incident shows the hysteria and propaganda that the are the basis of the anti-tobacco movement. Take a look at some of the other sponsors and you’ll be unable to come to any other conclusion:

No one blinks an eye at the fact that Bacardi and Bud Light are sponsors, apparently “promoting” alcohol towards minors by being sponsors. Meanwhile, Orange Bowl partners Taco Bell, Frito Lay, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and Coca Cola are “promoting” horrible health that kills millions who suffer from obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.

Then there’s Bank of America, perhaps the most offensive sponsor of the game. They took billions in tax dollars for a bailout after helping ruin the American economy by significantly contributing to the mortgage crisis, but no one is clamoring for the Orange Bowl to drop them.

And yet, according to these zealots, “tobacco has no place in sports” and “cigars are just as harmful to [one's] health as cigarettes.” Even though both claims are demonstrably untrue.

Ultimately, that’s the difference between us cigar smokers and the anti-tobacco crazies. We just want adults to be able to have the choice to enjoy a cigar if they want to. They lie and threaten to stop adults from having that choice.

-Patrick S

photo credit: Flickr

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OK, I guess this officially marks me as an old fogey or whatever the proper term is these days. But I believe that words matter, and I cannot understand the current trend of naming cigars with distasteful and sometimes offensive names. I also can’t help but worry that it’s a dangerous trend.

The latest to catch my eye and prompt this screed is the Molotov from Quesada, intended to “create awareness of the dangers increased government and taxation…” I have no argument with them promoting their views. But why use a name associated with a deadly device that, while sometimes used in noble causes, such as the Finns and Hungarians, has also been used by terrorists to maim and kill?

Similarly, there’s My Uzi Weighs a Ton, named, I’m told, after a rap song with which I’m unfamiliar. (I read the lyrics online, but I’ve got to admit it still didn’t mean much to me.) Again, why link a cigar with an instrument of war and death?

And that brings me to Hammer & Sickle. I can only guess that there’s some sort of irony intended rather than a celebration of one of the world’s most corrupt and murderous regimes. If there’s irony in the name Donkey Punch, it’s even harder for me to see. Sick, misogynistic, distressing. Again, that’s what I want associated with a cigar?

I can only assume that these sorts of names are intended to make the cigars more appealing to younger smokers. That worries me because I believe it plays into the hands of anti-smoking forces who want to lump all tobacco together and use the fear of youth being corrupted to achieve their goals.

It’s hard to argue that the makers of premium cigars aren’t targeting youth when someone points to names like these. They fit right in with the machine-made, adulterated cigars that, frankly, do appear to be aimed at teens. Don’t be surprised when someone shows up at a smoking-ban hearing with a Donkey Punch or My Uzi as Exhibit No. 1.

Now, I’m not suggesting manufacturers shouldn’t be allowed to call their cigars whatever they want. I’m about as close to a First Amendment absolutist as you’re likely to find. But exercising a right doesn’t mean you escape the consequences. And in this case, I think these marketers are doing the industry and its customers a great disservice.

We say over and over again that premium cigars are for adults and aren’t marketed to kids. Actions need to be as strong as words.

-George E

photo credit: Google

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This week there was another development in the Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA) push to regulate cigars. The agency announced it was extending the public comment period on it’s proposed regulation of cigars.

No reason was given for extending the comment period, but the extension gives cigar smokers another chance to register their opposition to FDA regulation. Cigar smokers got a hint at what regulation would mean in a recent Daily Caller article on the subject.

In the article, an FDA spokesperson said that under an FDA regulation regime cigars “would be subject to general controls, such as registration, product listing, ingredient listing, good manufacturing practice requirements, user fees for certain products, and the adulteration and misbranding provisions, as well as to the premarket review requirements for ‘new tobacco products’ and ‘modified risk tobacco products.’”

Such regulation would be devastating to the cigar industry, and in particular to boutique cigars and the creation of new blends. And “user fees” is just a bureaucratic term for more taxes on cigars, which are already at record high rates.

The FDA spokesman’s quote also shows a complete misunderstanding of the handmade artisanal nature of premium cigars.

“Ingredient listing” would be nearly impossible beyond “100% tobacco” since blends are regularly tweaked to provide consistent flavor from one year to the next. Further, even if blends aren’t changed, the chemical composition of tobacco leaves changes from harvest to harvest, meaning any disclosure of “ingredients” beyond tobacco would be either completely stifling or totally meaningless.

Similarly, by forcing new cigars to go through a costly FDA approval process, the now constant stream of new cigar blends would grind to a halt. Suddenly, instead of releasing small batch blends, cigar makers would be forced to focus on large runs that they think would have mass appeal after a time-consuming approval process.

All this should worry everyone who enjoys premium cigars. Fortunately, there are two important actions that can every cigar smoker can take.

If you haven’t yet registered your opposition, or even if you already have, please do so here by submitting a comment. Also write your Senators and Congressman today and ask them to support the “Traditional Cigar Manufacturing and Small Business Jobs Preservation Act of 2011,” which would repeal the FDA’s authority to regulate cigars.

-Patrick S

photo credit: FDA

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In this issue of “Random Thoughts from the Humidor” I pontificate on an odd cigar name, a Honduran puro, a legal victory for cigars, and a new supporter of Cigar Rights of America.

Would you smoke “The Gagger”?

I’m a big fan of K.A. Kendall’s 7-20-4 cigars. I’ve enjoyed both the original and the new line, and I think the “Dog Walker” size is not only a good little smoke but also clever branding. (Even non-dog owners can relate to a cigar that’s just large enough to enjoy on a short walk.) I can’t say the same for his newest size, “The Gagger.” I honestly can’t think of a worse name for a cigar. Maybe that’s what he’s going for, but personally I don’t see it working. Then again, I’m not a big fan of 60-ring gauge cigars, so I’m probably not the target audience.

Humo Jaguar

Speaking of cigars with unique names, I was skeptical when I was first told about Humo Jaguar, named after the Honduras cigar festival of of the same name. The cigar, which is distributed by Miami Cigar & Co., is a Honduran puro made by Placensia and was the winning blend at the 2011 festival, where cigars by various Honduran makers were tasted blind. It happens to be a fantastic cigar, one of my favorite from the recent IPCPR show, with depth, plenty of body, excellent construction, and quintessential Honduran sweetness. As someone who generally reaches for Nicaraguan and Dominican smokes and not for Honduran smokes (especially puros), it reminds me how good Honduran cigars can be. To that end, it certainly achieves its goal.

Free Speech for Tobacco Companies

While I’m not a lawyer, the recent federal court decision striking down the new graphic warning labels for cigarette packages strikes me as particularly important. Finally, a judge stood up for the First Amendment rights of tobacco companies by saying that they cannot be forced to put propaganda on their products. While courts haven’t always recognized it, the graphic warning labels clearly are not about providing facts to smokers so they can make an informed decision, but are designed to persuade people not to smoke. As someone who worries about the artistry of cigar boxes being ruined by similar anti-tobacco propaganda, it’s good to see a judge standing up to government attempts to force companies to propagandize their customers.

Altadis USA Steps Up

Kudos to Altadis USA for signing up with Cigar Rights of America and also making a “significant contribution” to IPCPR. Up until they signed on a few weeks ago, Altadis, one of the largest premium cigar makers, was the one missing cigar company from CRA’s list of supporters. Now that they’ve stepped up, all of the largest cigar makers are represented with CRA.

-Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

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The quest for the perfect cigar does not always end in riches, but sometimes the accomplishment is in the journey itself. I rolled into Mexico last week with my wife and a couple of friends for eight days of R&R at a resort on the island of Isla Mujeres, off the coast of Cancun. Being in a tropical paradise and a country where Cuban cigars are legal, I obviously set out to find the perfect cigar. In the end, it was the experience of the adventure and the search for the cigar that yielded more enjoyment than the cigar itself.

The first stop was the duty free-shop in the Cancun airport. I encountered the usual Cuban staples: Partagss, Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta. Three-packs and five-packs, most in the $50 to $100 range. A total rip-off. Are they even real? They had the hologram and the seal from Habanos, but I knew those were easy to fake. I decided to give it a chance though— given that I was in a duty-free shop and not talking to some vendor on the street, I figured the odds were slightly in my favor. I bought a three-pack of Romeo y Julieta No. 5 cigars for $25.

Motioning for the attendant to unlock the glass case, he smiled and asked, “¿Habla Español?” I held my thumb and forefinger an inch apart. “Un poquitito.” Just a tiny little bit. “¿De donde?” He asked. Where are you from? “Minnesota.” “Ah,” he nodded. “Venezuela.”

“No,” I waved a hand. “Mnnesota.” I pointed to my baseball hat and quickly realized I’ve just pointed to the red and white Minnesota Twins TC embroidered on my hat, surely confusing the poor gentleman. He’ll never connect TC to Minnesota, I thought, so I quickly explain, “The Twin Cities.” He nodded and smiled and I’m not sure how much he understood, or how much he cared, because the next thing he did was point me to the cash register. I paid for my three-pack and the girl bagged my stogies in plastic and secured them with a twist tie. I passed through customs and an hour later, my party and I were on Isla Mujeres.

I knew the island would be filled with cigars and vendors pushing them on every corner and after five minutes I knew that even if these Cubans were real, I wouldn’t want to touch them. The vendors cared for their cigars the same way I care for my dirty laundry. If there was a bin they could have used to toss these cigars in for their store for display, they would have used one. I saw boxes of cigars arranged outside on the steps leading into a shop, probably boiling to death under the 90-degree sun or sopping under the 90-percent humidity. I saw wrappers cut and wrinkled like the cigar had been carried in someone’s pocket. I saw gnarly, makeshift variety-packs where a Cohiba shared a box with a pair of cheap Montecristos and a handful of nameless mix-and-match cigarillos. The prices weren’t bad but these cigars were so unattractive that I was happy I brought a six-pack of Sancho Panza Double Maduros from home.

I shared the Romeo y Julietas with the couple we traveled with, giving one to the husband, another to the wife, and keeping the third for myself. This would be the first cigar either of them had smoked and they needed a quick seminar. I cut their ends and demonstrated how to light it, and how to puff on the stogie. “Don’t pull too fast,” I warned them. “You don’t want to hotbox it.” “Do I inhale?” asked the wife. “No,” I said. “Just enjoy the taste.”

We sat on a cliff overlooking Mexico’s easternmost point, watching and listening to the waves, smoking Cuban cigars. After 15 minutes of peace and solitude unknown to the American hustle-bustle, it was time to move on. “How do you put it out?” they asked.

“You don’t,” I told them as I gently placed my smoldering nub on the edge of the cliff. “Just let it go out on its own. Respect the stick. Leave it here, and let it be.” They did, and we walked back to our golf cart and began the journey back to our hotel.

On the way back we passed a small baseball stadium with a capacity of probably 5,000. There was a bronze statue of a baseball player outside but we passed it too quickly for me to read the name. Then I realized, they have their own baseball heroes in Mexico. Their own great games, their own legendary moments. Mexican baseball was a whole new universe, and one where I could happily spend a lifetime.

When we got closer to our hotel, the vendors appeared with their calls to Cuban cigars. But aside from the Romeo y Julietas, the Sanchos were all I smoked. Sure, the vendors are constantly pointing to their, “Cigars! Cuban cigars!” They think that since you’re a guy, you’re going to jump all over them but these guys are clearly marketing to the cigar-ignorant, and based on the volume of product available, this is a market that thrives.

Sadly, I never found the perfect cigar. Sure, the cigars from the airport were good, but I was hoping to try an authentic Cohiba Behike. All I encountered was the bottom of the bargain bin. As I stared into the blue water I realized that every quest does not end in glory, especially the quest for the Holy Grail. My crusade would have to continue on another trip, to be resumed on my next journey overseas. Until then, I could only relish in the excitement of the search and the anticipation of another adventure.

-Mark M‘s latest project is a comic anthology called Germ Warfare.

photo credit: Stogie Guys

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[Editor's Note: "Cigar Face-Off" is a new feature where we compare and contrast cigars that share at least one important attribute. Please let us know what you think about the new feature in the comments below, and feel free to suggest two cigars for a future Face-Off.]

Here’s a face-off between two thick Cuban cigars. Each has a ring gauge of 54 and sells for around $20. They both also happened to be featured in the September selection of the Diamond level of Canadian Cigar Company’s cigar-of-the-month club. (All their recent cigar club selections can be seen here.)

Montecristo Open Eagle

I didn’t have high expectations for this cigar, which was introduced a few years back as a premium Cuban for new cigar smokers. For that reason, I had avoided the entire Montecristo Open line until I smoked this 5.9-inch cigar.

What I found was pretty much as advertised: a mild smoke, with pleasant flavors and flawless construction that would probably suit a beginner nicely. Even though the flavors were a bit mild for my tastes, it had excellent balance and sweet cedar notes, and towards the end it added in some characteristic Cuban earthiness. Think of it as a tamer version of the Montecristo Edmundo.

Romeo y Julieta Duke EL 2009

Without a doubt, this is one of the best looking Cuban cigars I’ve seen in awhile. It has a dark, oily wrapper and perfectly squared triple cap. The 5.5-inch smoke was generally well-constructed,  except for needing multiple touch-ups to keep the burn even (which is disappointing for a cigar that can cost in excess of $20 each).

As for its flavors, the cigar reminded me of the 2007 Romeo y Julieta Escudos, with coffee, oak, and cocoa notes all apparent. Unfortunately, there was also a sourness that came and went throughout the cigar. Still, there was much to enjoy in this medium- to full-bodied Cuban.

Conclusion

The Montecristo Open Eagle was better than I thought, but ultimately I don’t like the Open blend as much as the regular Montecristos (the Petit Edmundo and classic Monte No. 2 both offer more flavor for less money). Meanwhile, the Romeo y Julieta Duke demonstrated some real potential and more interesting flavors, but was held back by the sour notes and inconsistent construction.

I fully expected to come out of this cigar face-off proclaiming the Duke the unanimous victor, but my ultimate conclusion isn’t so clear-cut. Ultimately, with some age, I think the Romeo y Julieta Duke will be the far superior cigar (particularly if you prefer a fuller-bodied smoke). Right now, though, the Montecristo Open is slightly better due to its balance.

-Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

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