How to enjoy a good cigar according to Terry?

Bliss and meditation

We often compare how we taste a cigar to how we taste wine. There is, in such moments, a search for bliss. Savouring a good cigar might be a form of meditation expressed by the poetry of wisps of blue smoke that we quietly puff out of our mouth.

Cautionary Remark

Terry makes a fundamental distinction between “smoking” and “savouring” a cigar. “To savour a cigar, you need to keep the smoke in your mouth a few seconds and taste all the flavors and aromas that emanate from it. You should never inhale the smoke! You don’t smoke a cigar, you savour it! If I like to taste the flavors and smell the aromas, I hate to inhale the smoke!”

The primary steps to savour a good cigar

To give a good cigar its full due and take full advantage of its pleasures, you need to:

1. Sharply cut the cap that covers the head of the cigar with a cigar cutter, a knife or a sharp blade.
2. Light the cigar with a good lighter or with a wooden match. To ensure you don’t alter the taste, never use short matches or a gas lighter.
3. Warm the tip of the cigar before lighting it.
4. Light up the cigar without inhaling the smoke.
5. Gently blow on the cigar tip to ensure it is well ignited.
6. Draw the smoke into your mouth and keep it in a few seconds to discover all of its subtilities and flavours.
7. Never inhale the smoke of a cigar into your lungs.

FAQ

How to Choose a Cigar as a Beginner?

It’s advisable for a beginner to opt for a cigar made of mild tobacco, which can be recognized by its paler color. Cigars made from dark tobacco are much more robust. Choose a cigar of medium length, with an average diameter, and a smoking duration of about forty minutes.

According to Terry Pomerantz, “A good cigar that suits beginners well is the Davidoff Signature No 2. This cigar measures 15.2 cm with a diameter of 1.5 cm. The Signature No 2 unfolds flavors of flowers, cedar, and caramel. Other cigars that beginners also enjoy include

• the Montecristo No 3
• the Cohiba Siglo 1
• the Romeo y Julieta Short Churchill.”

Smoking a cigar is about discovering how to appreciate all its flavors and enjoying the color of the tobacco and the texture of its wrapper. Only quality cigars reveal these subtle harmonies. That’s why beginners should avoid smoking a flavored industrial cigar like Backwoods, Prime Time, or Colt, advises Terry Pomerantz.

How to Cut a Cigar?

At the head of the cigar, you will find the cap, easily identifiable by the small seams that distinguish it from the wrapper. Cut the cap with a cigar cutter, leaving part of the cap so that the wrapper does not fray.

How to Cut a Cigar Without a Cigar Cutter?

If you don’t have a cigar cutter, use a sharp kitchen knife or even your incisors.

Terry Pomerantz describes the method: “With your incisors, gently nibble the cap while regularly rotating the cigar in your mouth. This will detach the sealed end of the cigar from the body, making it easier to light.”

How to Properly Light a Cigar?

To light a cigar, it’s best to use a cigar torch or a match. Avoid lighting a cigar with a Bic type lighter as it emits a faint smell of gasoline.

• Heat the foot of the cigar without the torch flame making contact with the tobacco.
• Gently rotate the cigar to light the end evenly.
• First heat the edge by lighting the wrapper and binder.
• Gently blow on the end to ignite it.
• Place the cigar in your mouth to finish lighting it.

How to Smoke a Cigar in Multiple Sessions

 If your cigar goes out for some reason, trim the ash and relight the cigar without putting it in your mouth.

If you plan to finish your cigar after a good night’s sleep, trim the ash and place your cigar back in its case or a plastic bag. When you relight it, purge the cigar by blowing through the foot.

However, if you leave your cigar in the ashtray overnight and relight it the next day, all the natural aromas will have vanished, leaving you with a harsh tar taste.

Do You Inhale the Smoke of a Cigar?

For both taste and health reasons, a cigar smoker does not inhale the smoke. Instead, they keep it in their mouth, roll it around, and savor it much like one would with wine. With experience, one can discern various flavors such as earth, peat, leather, and spices. The quality of the smoke is appreciated through its density, uniformity, and when exhaled, the color and shape of its clouds.

Dreaming of a better world

Terry lights a Montecristo, draws the smoke into his mouth, savours it for a few seconds and exhales. In the cloud that slowly rises above his head, there are dreams of a better world for the disadvantaged children that the organizations supported by the Pomerantz Foundation are trying to help.