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Cigarette smokers usually puff away during breaks at work, drives to the grocery store, or yard work at home. Whereas cigarette smoking is typically a pastime, cigar smoking is a culture. People usually smoke cigars during special occasions, whether it is to celebrate a first child, seal a business deal, or enjoy a night of poker with one's buddies. Further proof of how firmly entrenched cigar smoking is in the American culture is the fact that Red Auerbach lighted a ceremonial cigar after his Boston Celtics won yet another basketball championship. Then, there's the wide circulation of cigar magazines like "Cigar Aficionado" in newsstands. These periodicals include features such as cigar ratings, international tobacconists, and cigar-friendly restaurants. Considering how popular cigar smoking is, it is, thus, only fitting to pay homage to cigar cutters in much the same way tobacco aficionados pay their respects to the almighty Cuban. After all, cigar smoking begins with a cigar cutter's snip of the tobacco product.

Cigar Hall of Fame

One reason cigar smoking has become more popular than ever could be the possibility that compared to cigarette smoking, cigar smoking is less dangerous to one's health. The reason is that when one smokes cigar, one does not inhale its smoke. Perhaps this explains how comedian George Burns, a lifetime cigar smoker, reached the ripe old age of 100 years! Other famous personalities who have become icons due in part to their cigar smoking include:

* Larger-than-life British leader Winston Churchill, after whom a cigar size was named.
* Austrian Psychiatrist Sigmund Freud, who often smoked during sessions with his patients.
* American author Mark Twain, who claimed that he smoked whenever he was awake.
* Comedy actor Groucho Marx, who often smoked a short, thick cigar.

Cigars Have a Past (And a Future)

Comedian George Burns, who used cigars to time his routine, served as the unofficial face of cigar smokers. While that face has become much more diverse in recent times, the essence of cigar smoking has remained unchanged. Cigars are often linked to celebrations of good luck and little triumphs. While they have historically been considered as a rich person's pastime, cigars have increasingly become more common in modern culture. Also, you have probably heard of the phrase, "close, but no cigar." Do you know where this expression comes from? The origin of the saying is the practice of saving a cigar as a good luck charm, in hopes of winning a bet made.

Cigar Characters

Other cigar legends involve people rather than activities. For example, English King Edward VII loved smoking cigars despite opposition from his mother. One story reveals that after his mother passed away, King Edward regally announced to his male guests, "Gentleman, you may smoke." It should be noted that they probably used knives rather than cigar cutters. In King Edward's honor, an American brand of cigars was named after him.

Another cigar legend is shown in the American sitcom show "Seinfeld." A character, Kramer, is frequently shown smoking a cigar. In the 1992 movie "Scent of a Woman," Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade orders his assistant to purchase a particular brand of cigars, which he knows will be hard as nails to find.

Making the Cut

The variety of cigar cutters available creates a legend of its own. Cigar cutters vary in size and color, ranging from portable to desktop, and from red to blue. Other cutters have multiple functions, and are paired with other tools such as key rings, portable knife sets, or money clips. When choosing cigar cutters, it is wise to first consider your needs.

In many respects, cigars have become as common in modern culture as the Internet and reality TV. Choosing the right cigar cutters further adds to the style and experience of cigar smoking.

About the Author - Bradlley Mckoy

Sure, cigar smoking or any kind of smoking is bad for health. But cigar smokers are a different community and enjoy every puff of their cherished cigar much like their life is stuck in it! As a novice cigar smoker there are many things you’ll need to learn. While you can learn about most aspect of choosing and smoking a cigar here, there will be some things that you’ll be able to learn with experience. An important thing to keep in mind is that when determining the quality of a cigar, you’ll need to involve all your senses in the process.

From the leaf to the color of the ash, from the burn rate to tasting the smoke for flavor and richness – there are plenty of parameters that differentiate a good cigar from a bad cigar and quality is the key word when choosing a cigar.



Appearance: inspecting the cigar wrapper for smoothness, some oiliness, and an overall satisfying impression and checking for cracks or ripples will help you choose a good cigar. Ensure that the cigar wrapper is free of any large veins and flaws. It should feel smooth, silky, oily, or grainy, or bumpy when touched depending on the cigar brand. The cigar shouldn’t be too hard or too soft, so feel the cigar for springiness. You can smell the cigar for aroma as well.

Taste: as an inexperienced smoker, you must taste as many cigars as you can. If you enjoy the cigar then it is a good cigar; you can start with mild cigar and go on to bold cigars as you start differentiating between the undertones and complexities of flavor.

Choosing: Every cigar brand has its own unique taste and character. Cigars are made worldwide and with different curing, rolling techniques, and tobacco flavors, each element contributes towards the taste and flavor of each and every cigar based on the brand and type.

Here are very general typifications of cigars that can help you differentiate between mild cigars and
bold cigars.

* Jamaican cigars are mild
* Dominican Republican cigars are mild to medium
* Honduras and Nicaraguan cigars are strong and heavy
* Cuban cigars are the richest and creamiest of ‘em all!

Finally, remember that if the diameter is large, the cigar will be richer and offer full-bodied flavor and if it is long, the smoke will be cooler. As a new smoker, you can start with any Macanudo orArturo Fuente brand cigar.

Smoking a cigar is more than a pastime to the smoker, to something compared to a way of living. To the cigar smoker, cigar can be considered a way of a special merry making or a happy moment of communing with friends or of making like-minds meet like-minds. The practice of smoking cigars has been deeply entrenched in the minds of most Americans and there are many adverts, cigar clubs or pubs have been created, all in honor of smoking cigar. If smoking in itself is very important, then we should also consider the importance that ought to be attributed to the cigar cutter. The cutter is more than an accessory, to part and parcel of the cigar and the process of the cigar smoking.

With cigar cutters, scarcity has never been a problem. The cutter is highly available in all assortments and it is usually provided in a pack of key holders, knife sets and other day to day household or everyday kits.

The main function of the cutter is to remove that cap or cover of the cigar before actually lighting it. The cigar cutter is available in the V Cut, the Hole Punch and the Straight Cut. Therefore, what you have should be dependent on your personal choice and the size of cigar you have or aspire to have. What is usually very available is the Straight Cut and it is most preferable to use with small ring cigars.

The Straight Cut cutter can exist as a single blade guillotine or a double blade guillotine. But the double blade guillotine should be preferable because of the cleanliness with which the cut is made on the cigar. The Straight Cutter is also very convenient to carry about and it costs as little as nothing compared to the price of the cigar and the satisfaction you intend to get from the cigar.

The V Cutter is just like the guillotine cutter but it produces a wedge-shape at the top of the cigar.

The Hole Punch cigar cutter is peculiar in that it creates a hollow at the tip of the cigar. But this hollow should be created to be wide enough for smoke to freely pass through.

What should be borne in mind is that although simply a cutter, the cigar cutter is what adds importance to the manner in which you will enjoy smoking.

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Like a fine glass of wine, a cigar also tastes fine. Cigars are subject to taste as is wine. Cigars have companies that try to copy them just like cigars. When you find something that meets your taste, you will wan to continue to have that taste. That does not mean you cannot taste others, but some connoisseurs are stuck famous cigars that they will only smoke.

Some of the famous cigars that top the list when people are asked about what cigar they prefer are by far disturbing to some:

Trinidad
Romeo Y Julieta
Bolivar
Cohiba
H. Upman
Montecristo
Ramon Allones

Cuban cigars are famous cigars and still make their way into the country, but they are contraband. The only reason they are famous is because of the controversy. Because it was banned, everyone labels them as famous cigars and ignore the rest. Because of the embargo against the Habanas, the United States have made the cigar more popular than before. Most new smokers do not have the opportunity to smoke famous cigars like the Cuban cigar, but that does not detour them from coming connoisseurs of cigars.

Cuban cigars many feel need to be enjoyed and have a slow burn to last for the full advantage of tasting the cigar. The older cigar smokers realize that two things make cigars truly famous cigars, the quality of the filler and the brand name. Because Cuba has the reputation of excellence in cigars because of the training that goes into producing these cigars, the reputation surpasses them. Cuban cigars are also made by hand as some other famous cigars are made by machine.

Many people display these famous cigars as a way of showing what kind of taste they have in excellence. It is not uncommon for top executives to hand these out after a finalized business deal or at an after dinner party. Although when asked the first thing that people say when asked what famous cigars do you know, they repeat the same thing every time. The Cuban Cigars are the famous cigars. For more info see onlinecigarsource.com/Cuban_Cigars_2 on Cuban Cigars.

Now that you do not have a Cuban cigar, try these famous cigars listed here and you will have just as much taste and flavor needed without the uppity Cuban cigars. Some believe smoking famous cigars bring prestige; they need to smoke famous cigars for taste not prestige, even at men’s clubs, you find other cigars than the Cuban Habanas.

About the Author - You can also find more info on Online Cigars and Buying Cigars Online. Onlinecigarsource.com is a comprehensive resource to know more about Cigars.