Smoking cigars isn't a status thing anymore it use to be back in the day. Smoking cigars are more if a joy a relaxation thing. It is a way to decompress from the stresses of the day with a nice glass of bourbon. The other beautiful thing about cigars is I don't have to have one like people crave cigarettes. This is mainly because cigars are pure leaf they don't have things mixed in them to keep you there. Smoking cigars is a great way to celebrate also. Your team won the big game, a wedding, a child is born and a promoting at work. Look at athletes that usually celebrate with a cigar after a win. The Canadian Woman's Hockey team did it in 2010 after they beat the US 2-0. Are some cigars expensive? Yes they are, but that shouldn't stop you from trying. There are a lot of reasonably priced cigars out there that are a great starting point. Cigars has become more of a community than an industry. There is a lot of good conversations that happen while smoking cigars. I myself am part of several cigar clubs that have herbs (meeting) via zoom and it is just talking about the day, cigars, spirits, sports or whatever the topic maybe. It's like an extended family and most of us have never met except during these herfs. It's a great way to network and learn some things.

Cutting your cigar is again a personal preference and a lot of people only like one type of cut or like me depending on the cigar size and how I'm feeling depends on what type of cut I go with. The type of cuts are as follows Guillotine Hole punch V Now there are different things you can do with some of the cuts which will change the flavor and tasting notes. Here are some things that are done with a V cut to allow more flavor. You can use the V just as a single V or make multiple cuts and it looks like a crown. With a punch it works great for smaller cigars as it funnels all the flavor through that hole. You can do some designs with a punch like a figure 8 which is one above the other. You can also do a 4 leaf clover which is 4 punches that overlap and look like a 4 leaf clover. These are all things you as an individual can play and experiment with and see what you like best.

So up until this point we have discussed mostly personal preference things with cigars. Let's talk the anatomy of a cigar. A cigar is made up of three layers of tobacco, but there are other parts to the cigar besides the tobacco. Here are the other parts of the cigars Barrel: The whole cigar. I almost never hear any ody use this term, but it happens on occasion. Foot: Is the end of the cigar you light. Body: Is basically the middle third of the cigar. Head: The final third of the cigar. Shoulder: Which is the part that is between the head and the cap. Cap: The end of the cigar you cut and smoke from. Ring guage: This is the circumference of the cigar The next thing we have are the thirds of the cigar. You will hear someone refer to the cigar in thirds as they smoke it. The the 1st third is basically the foot of the cigar and extends a third of the way down the cigar. The 2nd third is right after that basically the body of the cigar and the final third is the head of the cigar. As someone smokes a cigar you pick up on notes and flavors from the cigar. Those tasting notes and flavors don't always stay the same through the whole cigar so that's where you hear a lot if talk about thirds. A lot of times as you finish a third and start a new third the flavor will change slightly and maybe pick up different tasting notes. This you will develop over time smoking cigars.

Let's start with this cigars and pipe tobacco are personal preference and just because someone likes a specific cigars or tobacco doesn't mean you will. Let's go over some misnomers about cigars. 1. The darker the wrapper the stronger the cigar. This is not always true. Just because the wrapper which is the leaf on the outside of the cigar is dark doesn't mean it is going to be strong. A lot of the strength and flavor comes from the filler and binder. Don't be afraid to try a cigar with a dark wrapper because of it being dark. What you really need to find out is the filler Leaves. Always ask questions from the people at the shop/lounge to get an idea about a cigar you want to try. 2. You have to keep cigars at 72% RH and 70°F. This also is not 100% true. There are some cigars that smoke better when they are on the dryer side like 63% to 65% RH. I recently found out from a customer that you can keep them even dryer and they are perfectly fine. This is again a personal preference and people tend to keep their humidors at different ranges. Let's get into the meat and potatoes of cigars now. A cigar consists of three main parts. 1. Wrapper 2. Binder 3. Filler Let's start with the filler because that is the base of the cigar that everything is built off of. The filler can consist of multiple tobacco leaves it generally isn't just one type of tobacco. The filler is where you get most of the flavor and strength in the cigar comes from so it is important to know what is inside the cigar. Next is the binderwhich holds the filler shape and starts the forming of the cigar. After the filler is combined the binder is wrapped around it and it is placed in a mold so as it dries it holds the cylindrical shape. Finally is the wrapper the finishing step of the cigar. The wrapper gives the cigar the finished smooth look. After the cigar is removed from the mold the wrapper is applied. The wrapper give the cigar not only the finishing look, but the finishing flavor. The wrapper is generally a somewhat delicate leaf.

I go by The Cigar Buddha, Buddha or Cigar Buddha and yes there is a story about it. I enjoy cigars and pipe tobacco and own a mobile cigar lounge in Illinois. I started smoking cigars when I was 18 and continued until my early 30's. I quite for awhile as my wife at the time didn't like them. I got back into cigars about 2017 and started collecting and finding new cigars. 2021 a buddy and I started The Cigar Buddha Lounge and currently trying to finish the renovation on the RV. We do events with our tents and can do things like wedding and parties. Our end goal is to get a building and have a proper Cigar lounge in our area. I figured my first post would be more of an intro to understand where I come from and my background with this industry. I will post things as far as education of tobacco and cigars and events we are at. If you have questions don't hesitate to ask and introduce yourself.