“A cigar is smoked not only with the mouth but with the hand, the eyes and with the mind.”
Zino Davidoff
The word cigar originally derives from the Mayan Sikar that is ‘to smoke rolled tobacco.’ In 1400, Columbus discovered tobacco first in Cuban. By 1600, Cigar started being created. Then in the 1800s, Cuban’s Cigar Industry started. But do you still know how to hold a cigar?
A cigar is rolled with fermented tobacco bundled inside it. Cigars come in many shapes and sizes.
Now cigars are used as a luxury item due to their high price and quality. The most luxurious tobacco brands have their cigars handmade.
HOW TO HOLD A CIGAR PROPERLY: All The Approaches You Should Know
For someone who is starting off having a cigar, it is very important to look at some cigar etiquette required to follow when you have your cigar. While there isn’t a perfect way to hold your cigar, it can say a lot about you and your style, personality, and attitude. Let’s learn how to hold a cigar properly with this guide.
The Pinch
Generally, cigars are held in between your thumb and index. This is known as “the pinch.” Here, your thumb holds the cigar, and your middle finger supports it. This is the most common way of holding a cigar as it shows a positive personality that you possess. If you hold your cigar like this, that means you are a very sensible and respectful person.
The Triple Support
Sometimes a cigar smoker also holds his cigar with three fingers: the middle, ring, and thumb finger, known as “the triple support.” The middle and thumb finger mostly provide extra support to the cigar. Check the complete guide on Things Cigar Smokers Should Never Do.
The Respectful
Some people also hold their cigar with all of their fingers, where the thumb holds the cigar and the rest of the fingers give support to it. As the name suggests, this is considered as “the respectful” way of holding your cigar, showing the honorable side of yours in this way of holding your cigar exhibits that you are showing respect to the makers of the cigar.
The Pool Cue
Another way of holding the cigar includes gripping the entire cigar with your index finger by encircling your finger around the cigar and supporting it with the thumb finger. This way of holding a cigar is known as “pool cue.” It portrays that you have a very strong personality and also excellent leadership qualities.
Additional Information on Holding Cigars
Never hold your cigar between your middle and index figure. It does not fall under cigar etiquette. Rather, this gives a very wrong conception of your personality. It shows that you are disrespecting the cigar and the hands used in making the cigar.
Once you are holding your cigar properly, go ahead, and slowly take a puff. Never hurry while having a cigar. Take your time and keep out distractions. Focus on having your cigar. Only then you will be enjoying the rich flavor of your cigar to the fullest.
Dos and Don’ts of Smoking and Holding a Cigar
Dos
- Light your cigar in a clean and butane-based fire to prevent any interruption in experiencing the flavor of the cigar.
- Try to maintain a rhythm so that the temperature of the cigar is maintained and you get the experience of the right flavor.
- Keep the cigar in your hand slowly, take puffs, and again keep it back in your hand.
- Once you are done having your cigar, keep it aside and never smash it; smashing the cigar will give out a lot of smoke, and an unpleasant sour smell will fill that place. Let the cigar burn out with respect.
Don’s
- Do not take puffs frequently. Taking frequent puffs might make the cigar taste bitter. Always keep a certain time gap between two gaps but do not slow completely, then your cigar might burn out
- Do not hold the cigar in your mouth. Keep it in your hand and take puffs. Holding a cigarette in between your lips or biting the cup of your cigar is not a part of cigar etiquette.
- Do not speak with a cigar in your mouth. It is totally against the etiquette of having a cigar. If you are busy, avoid having cigars but working and talking while having a cigar is a total disrespect towards the expensive tobacco of the cigar.
Conclusion
Thus these are some of the ways you can hold your cigar and have it. When I first started smoking cigars and was a newbie, I made a lot of mistakes.
I was not able to enjoy the flavor, aroma, and richness of the cigar. With time and experience, there are a lot of cigar etiquettes which I have learned; in fact, I am still learning and passing it down to the people who have just started smoking cigars.
I hope this article on how to hold a cigar will be of great help to the readers, and the next time you smoke a cigar, remember to be respectful to the makers and hold it the way which is most suitable for you.