The heavenly experience of Swisher Sweets cigars comes at a click of the mouse

Author: Article Manager

The explosion of cigar websites has meant that now cigar lovers can order their favorite Swisher Sweets cigars all at a click of the mouse. Right from within the confines of their own homes, they  can now go online and enjoy the simple and gratifying experience of purchasing one of the most sought after brands of cigars known as Swisher Sweets.

Smoking cigars becomes a passion

With the advent of online stores for cigar, the lovers of Swisher Sweets cigars can now acquire their favourite cigars for celebrating special occasions such as weddings, child births and birthdays. Swisher Sweets cigars contains tobacco from the world's best plantations. They are manufactured skilfully by a group of highly experienced torcedors; entrusted with the task of making the cigars for each of the different product lines they carry.       

Passion for cigars has reached a pinnacle as merchandisers leave no stone unturned when trying to reach out to their clients. Websites now do everything possible within reason to enable clients to select from the hottest and most popular brands of cigars. A good majority of them even package a number of diverse cigar types together in what is called a cigar sampler package. This allows them to try to entice the users to try new flavors in order to keep the die hard cigar lover interested in new products and thereby asking him to keep on coming back for more.

Choices galore from Swisher Sweets

Manufacturers of Swisher Sweets promise to take your passion for smoking cigars to the next level. And with their popular brands such as Sweet Coronellas and Tip cigarillos Swisher Sweets finds new products all the time that make them win accolades and awards in the heavily competitive cigars industry. To further add to it, the heady blend of enticing aromas and flavors such as tequila, wine, grape and strawberry further help attract new cigar smokers who might not have decided on their favourite type of cigar they enjoy. Only the high popularity of Swisher Sweets allows them to offer these flavored cigars without risking the loyalty of their customers.

Wet your appetite for exceptional cigars anytime, anywhere

Easy availability of Swisher Sweets cigars in packs of varying quantities has meant a cigar lover can smoke his favorite cigar anytime, anywhere. With every cigar possessing excellent quality and flavor, a cigar lover on every occasion will end up enjoying the beautiful taste and aroma which he hadn't felt anytime before. This will leave him with an experience he won't be able to forget for a long time to come.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/sales-articles/the-heavenly-experience-of-swisher-sweets-cigars-comes-at-a-click-of-the-mouse-4583281.html

About the Author
Buy Cigars online from Gothamcigars.com offering cigar samplers, humidors, filtered tubed cigars accessories and cigar tobacco. Find all major brands like CAO, Cohiba, Gurkha, Ashton, flavored, and more. Buy Arturo Swisher Sweets online from GothamCigars.com at discount prices.

The Greatest Cigar Book Evaluation

Author: Karl Finley

Cigar smoke is not supposed to enter your lungs, and if it does it can be hazardous to your well being. Inhaling deeply doesn't strengthen the flavor anyway. Ultimately, smoke with good friends. When it might look silly, a good cigar gets to be a great cigar when smoked in the provider of close friends, and a fantastic cigar, effectively, turns into phenomenal.

Are you pondering of becoming a member of the at any time increasing group of men and women who appreciate to smoke very good cigars? Or, are you already an avid cigar smoker hunting to learn extra about the pastime you've grown to enjoy? No matter whether you're new to the superb world of cigar cigarette smoking, or a seasoned skilled, The Greatest Cigar Guide by Richard Hacker gives you a prosperity of knowledge on cigars that any cigar smoker can appreciate.

In The Ultimate Cigar Guide, Hacker researches and testimonials all types of non-Havana cigars, by describing creation exterior of Cuba. If you're an American seeking for a useful book on cigars, the non-Cuban strategy Hacker makes use of is confident to demonstrate handy. As all superior American cigar smokers know, it's difficult to come across a cuban cigar that isn't illegal to have. Authentic tricky. In essence, it's the cigar's version of Florida.

While several cigar retailers have room sized humidors, a walk-in humidity closet wherever patrons can shop for cigars, when buying a humidor for personal use the dimensions doesn't need to have to be equivalent: you don't have to have to turn your spare bed room into a humidor, changing your bed set and angering your partner. A little wooden or glass humidor box will suffice, holding a handful of dozen cigars, retaining them at the fantastic temperature and assisting them to increase older gracefully.

Humidors all incorporate hygrometers, a equipment used to keep an eye on humidity amounts. This can help cigar lovers to continue to keep their humidors around the ideal humidity of 65 to 70 %. When the humidity in the humidor falls previously mentioned or below this degree, the hygrometer will tell you, as if tapping you on the shoulder with its thermometer. Ideally, it is really ideal to fill the humidor as a lot as doable, packing in the cigars to the quite best: the far more empty space the more most likely a drop in humidity. And, extra importantly, the more empty space the much less cigars in your collection.

Humidors are manufactured with wood that is specifically beneficial for aging cigars it's like wrinkle cream for the tobacco earth. Built with Spanish-cedar, this wood holds in additional moisture, sheds its magnetic aroma onto the cigars, and repels tobacco beetles, small bugs that consume the tobacco, probably ruining cigar collections and furnishing an undeserved luxury to the insect entire world.

As soon as a humidor is purchased, it ought to be prepped prior to use, placing your cigars in also quickly will result in a waste of time and a waste of tobacco. To prep the humidor, get a damp cloth or towel and eliminate any dust by wiping down the interior. Upcoming, location a modest bowl of h2o inside of the humidor and make it possible for it to remain there for twelve hours with the lid to the humidor closed. Just after twelve hours, if the vast majority of the h2o has evaporated, fill another bowl of drinking water and keep it within the humidor for 24 hrs.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/the-greatest-cigar-book-evaluation-4978433.html

About the Author
the writer has been in the tabaco business for 5 generations. He presently runs retail outlet stores throughout the region. A Cedar Chest for My Cigar Box Guitar, Your Initial Cigar Humidor

Be An Aficionado - Tips To Cigar Smoking

Author: Bett Steinburg

Grab your best cigar, your cigar lighter, and all of the other accessories that make you a sophisticated cigar smoker. It is possible to set yourself apart from the casual smoker by demonstrating your taste and high standards when it comes to enjoying cigars. Turn your habit into a lifestyle by embracing the culture and class that can be associated with a fine cigar.

Start with the cigar itself. The construction of the cigar is necessary for getting a good taste and pleasing aroma. Look for a cigar that is firm and resistant, and burns evenly. It should be filled with tobacco that tastes good when you smoke it. You should not taste any harshness or bitterness, and it should not give you any heartburn when you inhale. Some people enjoy rolling their own cigars, which is a practice that requires skill, patience, and detail. Once you find a brand or two that you really enjoy, keep plenty on hand so you can offer guests a good cigar when you are enjoying their company.

Find a cigar lighter that is a durable, functions well, and has an aesthetic quality to it. There are lots of lighters on the market, and you can choose from different metallic finishes. Let your personal preferences show by carrying a cigar lighter that is engraved or otherwise unique. You will find it can be a great conversation piece when you use it to light your own cigar, and the cigars that others are smoking. Make sure you have several available to you, so you do not end up grasping for matches or asking to borrow the lighters belonging to others.

Incorporate additional cigar accessories into your collection. A serious smoker will have cigar ashtrays, cigar cutters, a cigar case, and perhaps a humidor. Ashtrays come in many different styles and some models have a cutter attached to them. Cigar cases will store your cigars for you when you are on the move, protecting them from damage and keeping them easily accessible to you. A humidor will keep your cigars waiting to be smoked at a perfect temperature, maintaining constant humidity that will extend their lives, and make them even more pleasant to smoke.

Some people smoke cigars just as an alternative to cigarettes and pipes. Others really enjoy the taste and aroma of a cigar, and would not ever be able to smoke anything else. If you want to turn your cigar smoking habit into a serious recreational activity that complements your lifestyle, step up the way you approach your cigar smoking. Choose a good tobacco, a classy cigar lighter, and other unique accessories, and make a statement about who you are and what you know about cigars.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/collecting-articles/be-an-aficionado-tips-to-cigar-smoking-5336586.html

About the Author
Please visit our website here for more information or visit our blog. Thank you.

The Cigar Boom: What It Was (And Is)

Author: Garson Smart

As the 1990s dawned, few industries seemed deader than cigar sales and manufacture.

From its height in the 1850s - when Cuba alone exported 356.6 million cigars - the cigar had fallen into virtual moribundity. Its market had been conquered by cheap, ubiquitous cigarettes. Its image was tarnished in the United States by, among other things, the persistent (and not entirely unfounded) popular association between cigar smoking and the "fat cats" of the Gilded Age - a picture wedged into its place in the popular consciousness by the work of crusading editorial cartoonists.

By the late 1980s, the industry was flatlining, with an aging customer base and few new customers drifting in: the classic example of a product reaching what marketing experts call "old age." That's not to say "senility."

But in 1992 something changed. (Not a bad year for it - with voters decisively rejecting Ronald Reagan's vice president at the polls and heavy metal yielding to Nirvana, it was a year for change.) The number of imported cigars wafted gently upward during the fourth quarter of the year, yielding a four-percent increase over 1991. The following year, imports rose by ten percent.

The industry was elated. But no one was prepared for what came next - 12 percent growth in 1994, 33 percent growth in 1995, 36 percent first-quarter growth for 1996, shops unable to keep product on the shelves, backorders of 55 million units in 1996, retailers buying shopping-carts full of cigars from distributors and paying retail price just to keep their stores stocked. Women, for the first time, began smoking cigars in large numbers, and prices rose at a fast clip - the $2 premium cigar more or less disappeared over a three-year period. Cigar bars proliferated.

Cigar-friendly restaurants, well, came into existence.

What happened? One observer, Norman Sharp of the Cigar Association of America, told the New York Times in 1996 that the new prevalence of cigar bars goes back to a single Boston restaurant. "It started in the '80s, when the Ritz-Carlton in Boston hosted a cigar dinner."

In the same story, Sharp also gave credit to what he called "political correctness," the all-purpose rhetorical villain of the 1990s. "People are saying they're tired of being told what to do - or in this case, being told not to use tobacco - and turned to cigar smoking as a way of flipping the bird at well, somebody.

Other observers give some credit to Cigar Aficionado, launched in 1992, a quarterly glossy publication that improved cigars status in society. In Cigar Aficionado, alongside cigar reviews and industry news, you can also read up on new luxury goods, while enjoying interviews with prominent cigar smokers from Jack Nicholson to Whoopi Goldberg. As Runner's World did for the nascent jogging movement of the 1970s, Cigar Aficionado transformed thousands of isolated cigar lovers into an interest group, simply by addressing them as one.

For another explanation, consider the growth in coffee consumption during the 1990s - the years when Starbucks conquered America. The new prominence of this old, almost stodgy beverage (not unlike the cigar in its public image) could be, and was, traced to the explosion in average working hours during the decade, when a centuries-long trend toward shorter working weeks ground, in the US though not in Europe, to a halt. Bedroom communities grew, while deep social ties grew frayed. American white-collar workers desperately needed something, some small pleasure or indulgence to take the sting out of their epic workweeks. Why not cigars?

Cigar Fox provides the finest cigars that include brands like Cohiba, Montecristo, Gurkha, Macanudo, Rocky Patel, Romeo, Drew Estate, and many more. Other cigar products include cigar humidors, cigar boxes, and cigar accessories like Zippo Lighters. For more information, please visit http://www.cigarfox.com.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/food-and-beverage-articles/the-cigar-boom-what-it-was-and-is-419373.html

About the Author
CigarFox provides you the opportunity to build your own sampler of the finest cigars that include cigar brands like Montecristo, Romeo & Julieta, H Upmann, Macanudo, Cohiba, Gurkha and many more. Choose from more than 1000 different brands! Other cigar products include cigar humidors, cigar boxes, and cigar accessories like Zippo Lighters.
 

What Do You Do With a Moldy Cigar

Author: Garson Smart

Even the most solicitous and devoted cigar aficionado occasionally runs into a little trouble. Taste spoliation; a cigar humidor dial gone wonky; an infestation of tobacco beetles; mold; even the occasionally badly-made cigar from a generally reliable premium cigar factory--any and all of these little mishaps can blight the cigar stashes of even very careful and attentive premium cigar smokers. In these situations, as in so much of life, information is key, and an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Let's take some relatively common problems one at a time.

Uneven burn or poor construction. Of course, the best way to avoid these is to order premium cigars from a reliable source. But let's assume you're already doing that, and that your supply--not to mention your taste in smokes--is not what's at issue. Even excellent cigars, carefully shipped, need tender loving care.

When new cigars arrive, take a good look at them. (If you order by the box, this is especially easy to do--just grab one out of the box.) Two things to look out for at this point: excessive dryness; excessive moistness. If a cigar seems a little parched, or, on the other hand, a little moist, the solution for both situations is the same: make sure your humidor is set to its proper sixty-nine-to-seventy-four-degrees-with-seventy-percent-relative-humidity default, and let your new cigars settle for a week in the cigar humidor. That's their home, after all.

Another thing to keep in mind: if you're keeping your cigars in the humidor over a long period, it makes a lot of sense to rotate them every few months. Moisture doesn't diffuse itself perfectly, and every humidor will have places where the dryness is greater than normal. Make sure no one cigar has to bear being in one of these "dead zones" for too long. Also, avoid packing them in too tightly--they need air--and try not to allow any big fluctuations in the humidity level of your cigar humidor.

All of these practices will help to avoid problems setting in with the filler tobacco, which is where the taste comes from, and with the binders and wrappers, which keep the cigar together. An ideally-rolled cigar is firm with a bit of give, too moist to taste parched when you smoke it but too dry to develop mold, and ready to burn evenly. Cigars that are well-taken-care-of will stay this way.

Mold. You don't hear a lot about cigar mold, but it does happen--and unlike uneven burn or weak construction, it's something that can happen to any cigar no matter how brilliantly-made, because it has much more to do with the way the cigar is stored and kept than with the way it's originally put together. Let's say you've bought a great sampler of discount premium cigars: some Camachos, some Macanudos, a Montecristo, an Alec Bradley Maxx, even a Gurkha or two. You've given proper thought to the selection of the cigars you smoke--but for whatever reason you didn't exercise the same care in selecting a humidor, and now, when you open it up to find a good evening's smoke, your favorite Cohiba (the pick of the litter!) has little whitish spots. (Cigar mold, like most forms of common household mold, tends to vary between white, off-white, blue, green, or some combination thereof in terms of its color.)

Here's the first thing you do: take that moldy cigar and take it out of the humidor. It's a bad influence now. Mold spreads quickly. Now, after verifying that none of your other smokes are moldy, find out how humid your humidor is. (If your humidor doesn't come with its own hygrometer, one of these can be bought separately.) Any reading over seventy-five percent relative humidity is too much, and you need to dry out the humidor by adding a half-and-half mixture of Propylene Glycol plus water to the sponge that keeps the box humidified. Toss the bad cigar, and stow the other ones when your humidor reaches seventy-four percent humidity or lower. (On the other hand, don't let that figure dip underneath sixty-seven percent, either.)

But now here's the good news. Premium cigars have also been known to secrete a grayish, granulated substance that some cigar aficionados take for mold, but which is actually known as plume, and is totally harmless. It's given off by the oils in the tobacco leaves. If the cigars in your sampler of fine discount premium cigars are developing plume, it actually means they're aging well, and will give off a fine, tasty plume of smoke whenever you get around to smoking them.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/gardening-articles/what-do-you-do-with-a-moldy-cigar-929707.html

About the Author
CigarFox provides you the opportunity to build your own sampler of the finest cigars that include cigar brands like Montecristo, Romeo & Julieta, H Upmann, Macanudo, Cohiba, Partagas, Gurkha and many more. Choose from more than 1200 different cigars! Other cigar products include cigar humidors, cigar boxes, and cigar accessories like Zippo Lighters.

 

Cigar Store Trends and Tastes

Author: Garson Smart

It happens to the biggest premium cigar aficionados out there: things start to get a little stale.

Not "stale" in the sense of dried-out. That can happen, of course, but it's not likely to, if your humidor is set at the standard sixty-seven to seventy-four percent relative humidity range, and as long as the air temperature inside the box is between sixty-nine and seventy-four degrees. (It is, isn't it?) No, this kind of stale has more to do with you than it does with the cigar. You feel like your premium cigar habit is in a bit of a rut, and you think it's time to try something new.

Luckily, cigars come in all sorts of shapes, sizes and tastes, so if you've had enough of sweetish, almost-chocolaty oscuros you can move to the other end of the taste/color scale and try the pale-khaki-colored, dry, delightfully astringent tastes you'll find there. If you've gotten into the habit of smoking long cigars that usually take around the same amount of time, every time, switch it up with some panatelas or cigarillos. If you're in bad enough rut, it might even be time to make your own premium cigar sampler, going out of your way to pick cigars that don't fit your usual taste profile.

But as above, so below: the premium cigar industry itself occasionally finds itself in the same sort of predicament. The standard shapes, sizes and tastes are already hitting their popularity plateau, and no one's sure what the next breakthrough possibility is. At these times, makers of premium cigars often turn to one of the most reliable sources of business and cultural innovation: the past.

In the 1990s, when the premium cigar industry rebounded from a case of terminal stagnancy and even became, for the moment, somewhat trendy (while inspiring something of a late-1990s backlash as well), such a turn to the past for new ideas happened with the chocolaty, oily oscuro cigar mentioned above. These dark cigars occupy one extreme of the taste-color continuum--the informal rule by which light-colored, tan cigars are the driest and bitterest (features for which cigar aficionados prize them, as bitter hops make certain beers a once-in-a-lifetime experience), while, as cigar wrappers darken, the taste contained inside tends to get sweeter. The oscuro is like the bottom key on a piano, the lowest bass note on a guitar. It denotes how sweet and how dark a cigar can get.

But by the time of the so-called early 1990s "cigar boom," oscuros were unpopular and very hard to find. This probably has more to do with an overall contraction in the market than with the oscuro itself, a kind of cigar that can be delightfully well-made as any other. With fewer people overall smoking cigars, flavors that had always been acquired tastes even among cigar fans were less likely to sell, and premium cigar makers stopped rolling them.
By the mid-1990s, though, you could find oscuros again--just as you can today, with the premium cigar industry continuing to function at a level far exceeding that of its 1991 state.

More recently, another nearly-extinct species of cigar has been recreated and is in the midst of repopulating cigar shops and online stores near you. The Salomon--a big cigar that comes in between perfectos and diademas in terms of its size--is tapered at both ends, and has always been popular in Cuba. Its unusual shape means that premium cigar makers have a difficult time finding rollers with the requisite talent and experience to make Salomons. But that hasn't stopped La Flor Dominicana and Rocky Patel from adding new Salomon-sized models to their premium cigar lines--or from making quite an impression on taste-panelists and Cigar Aficionado (and other industry) reviewers alike.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/cigar-store-trends-and-tastes-935658.html
About the Author
CigarFox provides you the opportunity to build your own sampler of the finest cigars that include cigar brands like Montecristo, Romeo & Julieta, H Upmann, Macanudo, Cohiba, Partagas, Gurkha and many more. Choose from more than 1200 different cigars! Other cigar products include cigar humidors, cigar boxes, and cigar accessories like Zippo Lighters.


 

Guide to a Cigar Lighters

Author: lizlivetech

Cigar lighters are not like any other fluid filled lighter, or match, which could potentially destroy your fine hand made cigar.

A fluid filled lighter for cigarettes can contain fuel which will contaminate your cigar as it will leave a taste upon the end of your cigar which will be sucked through the whole of the cigar damaging the tastes and aromas of the cigar from the beginning to the end.

It’s important to use proper cigar lighters as these contain purely triple filtered or even higher Butane. Butane is a gas which is odourless and tasteless. This means that it is specifically used in cigar lighters as when you light up your cigar with this lighter it will not affect the taste and aromas of the cigars.

It is also important to make sure that you do not use a match to light your cigar. This will again ruin the aromas and tastes of the cigar as a match is dipped in sulphur to help it spark up, which when breathed in will contaminate the whole of the cigar. Also lighting a cigar with a match will almost always mean that the cigar will be lit unevenly.

It is particularly important to use real cigar lighters to light up your cigar as a cigar is a finely produced product, which will have gone through different tobacco curing techniques to produce different aromas and tastes. A fine cigar will also have been hand rolled by someone who can roll hundreds of identical cigars a day. Also a cigar may have then been further matured in a special wooden box for years to produce its final aromas and tastes. Lighting a cigar without a cigar lighter will ruin the cigar and make this fine process worthless.

The best cigar lighters have a double, triple or torch flame. This will mean that that flame will be intense and a colour of blue or green. An intensive neat flame will ensure that when lighting the cigar, you will achieve an even light. When you light the cigar with your cigar lighter slowly turn the cigar while drawing in the air slowly. The cigar lighter will ensure that the cigar is not spoilt by unwanted tastes or odours, leaving you to enjoy your cigar to its full potential.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/guide-to-a-cigar-lighters-1564894.html

About the Author
Cigar Choice Guide provides a further guide to cigar lighters, and why it is important to use one. To buy cigar lighters to light your cigar properly, and enjoy its full potential check out UKTobacco.

Cigar Humidor 101 For The Cigar Beginner

Author: Walter Gibbs

Every day, we make ways to keep our lives in order. We follow steps and rules to make sure that everything works properly. Whether it be our cars that need regular oil changes, running the virus scans on our computers, or seasoning a cigar humidor; without the proper attention and time, these expensive investments will not last.



Cigar humidors are one of the most expensive investments a cigar enthusiast can spend on. Although lots enthusiasts have this expensive accessory, only a few of them truly know how to season them the right way. Most of them end up destroying these fine pieces of cigar accessories.



Cigar humidors are a good gift to cigar enthusiasts; especially those who are only beginning to appreciate cigars. However, receiving this gift can be a problem, as not all of them know how to use them and, what's worse is that, it does not come with instructions on how to properly season it. Properly seasoning a cigar humidor is important to keep your cigars fresh. If you own a cigar humidor and dont know how to properly season a cigar humidor, you will end up with cigars you would rather throw in the garbage instead of smoking them.



Spanish cedar or mahogany is used to line the interior of cigar humidors as they are known to absorb moisture well and hold the humidity within it. They are also known to repel fungus. But before these woods are used, manufacturers must first dry them up; this makes them more sensitive to humidity. If you encounter these kinds of wood in your humidors, and you don't know the proper way to use them you will end up with too much moisture in your cigar humidor and will end up destroying them. One of the key tricks in cigar humidor is using only distilled water. Distilled water is important because it will not cause buildup in the humidor; you will also need a brand new sponge.



Here are the basic steps to seasoning a cigar humidor



The first step is to soak a sponge with distilled water and wipe down the insides of the cigar humidor. It is important that all the surfaces in the interior are wiped well. The next step is to fill up the humidification device according to the specifications of the cigar humidor and soak the sponge for a second time. Place the sponge inside it and let it sit for 24 hours.



After 24 hours, take the sponge out of the humidor and wipe its interiors once again. The last step in seasoning your cigar humidor is to refill the humidification device. Once you have properly seasoned the cigar humidor the interiors will retain the humidity and will keep your cigars as fresh as the day you bought them.



Now you know how to keep the humidity in your cigar humidor, the next thing you should know is why you should control the humidity.



One of the biggest myths in humidity in the cigar humidors is that the lower the temperature will ensure a higher humidity level inside it and vice-versa. However, this is not true.



This myth claims that if you are maintaining 70% humidity at 70 degrees in your cigar humidor and the temperature falls by 5 degrees, then you should increase the humidity level by 5% to compensate the loss. The reality is that regardless of the temperature drop or increase, the humidity level should be definitely kept at 70%.



The reason why the humidity needs to be controlled is because a cigar needs just enough water to keep its tobacco fresh but not so much as to soak it with moisture. Whatever the change in temperature is, it is important that the level of humidity is kept at the same level. This is because the humidity the hygrometer is reading is not the level inside the cigar but the moisture level inside the cigar humidor. The reading on the hygrometer should be kept at 70%.



Knowing the proper way of seasoning a cigar humidor is the only way to preserve your precious cigars. Once you know the proper way, you can start enjoying your cigar smoking experience.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/cigar-humidor-101-for-the-cigar-beginner-1985941.html

About the Author
I have been involved in the cigar industry for over 20 years and I have written extensive guides on such products as the Boveda Pack, a quality humidification product, and the Cigar Caddy. Also, see some of my latest guides on how to choose a Cigar Holder

Newbies Excellent Guide to Cigars

Author: EdgarMoreno

When starting out in cigars there is one place that many newbies go wrong. Often times they do not put enough research and money into their cigar accessory purchases. Everybody seems to be overly concerned with what type of cigars to try and purchase that they do not realize that to truly make this a worthwhile hobby that they enjoy, they really need to have quality cigar accessories. The importance of quality cannot be overstated when it comes to your accessories because at the end of the day that is what is going to keep your cigars fresh and keep you enjoying them the way that they are meant to be enjoyed.

One of the most important cigar accessories is a quality cigar cutter than give a nice razor sharp cut to your cigar. They are a wide range of different types and qualities of cutters including punch cutters, guillotine cutters, and V cigar cutters. But perhaps the best quality cutter currently in existence is the Palio cutter. The Palio cutter is known for its exquisite craftsmanship and its lifetime warranty. It is slightly more expensive than your typical run of the mill cheap cutter but the quality is worth it. Every cut is precise and excellent and the cutter lasts forever.

The second most important cigar accessory that one should possess has to be a quality humidor to store one's cigars. Humidors are temperature controlled boxes that help to keep cigars in pristine shape and condition so that each cigar can be enjoyed the way the manufacturers intend. There a wide range of different types of humidors from less expensive models all the way up to humidors than can cost tens of thousands of dollars. The important thing to remember about a humidor is that you should purchase a quality one from a trusted manufacturer in a price-point that is comfortable for your hobby. Just remember that this is not the accessory that you want to skimp on because the ultimate enjoyment of your collection of cigars will be largely dependent on the quality of your humidor.

The last cigar accessory that is a necessity for those new to cigars is a quality travel container. Whether you intend to take your cigars with you on vacation of to the golf course, you will want to travel with a proper way to store them so that they do not get damaged. There are a couple of good options for travel containers with one being a cigar tube or plastic container approximately the length of a cigar that generally has a cap on one end. These are good for single cigars or sometimes they are sold to hold 2 cigars. The other option is a travel humidor container that is larger and can hold multiple cigars and keeps the cigars secure and fresh.

These 3 accessories are the minimum that a new cigar smoker should look to purchase in order to enjoy cigars the way they are meant to be. It is important to truly enjoy the fine art of cigars that you are well prepared and have all of the necessary means for caring for your new and expensive hobby. The extra effort you put into being prepared with yield hours of enjoyment into this timeless hobby.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/newbies-excellent-guide-to-cigars-3882355.html

About the Author
Learn where to buy a great Humidor Humidifier or even lean about buying a proper Guillotine Cigar Cutter at these sites.
 

Cigars for Dummies

Author: Tom mackniskas

How to Pair Cigars and Alcohol

The cigar has long been viewed as a luxury of the wealthy and potent. Photos of nicely-to-do guys puffing on a stogie and swirling a glass of excellent brandy have been properly documented and memorialized in films and Television. If you are just getting to be interested in cigars and would like to loosen up with a stogie and drink following a prolonged day's operate, here are a couple of recommendations to get you started out.

Traditionally, the cigar has been paired with a solid drink. Well-liked spirits contain rum, brandy, or whiskey. Some argue that a good cigar need to usually be paired with a powerful drink that has a hint of sweetness. Certainly, cigar smokers have extended loved these well-liked pairings. For many years, the notion of pairing cigars with beer has gone overlooked. But why forget about beneficial old beer? Just lately, the trend has been to pair cigars with numerous types of beer. It appears to be that as cigars have entered the mainstream, it has been democratized and popularized. What better way to appreciate a puff of this recently popularized treat than to pair it with beer?

Pairing a very good cigar with a great beer is not an effortless feat, but when completed, it is nicely worth the energy. Significantly of the pairing has to do with your knowledge degree. If you are a novice, you will almost certainly will need aid in pairing your distinct cigar with an proper beer. If you have a more skilled palate, and you know what you like, you can most likely make connections involving selected varieties of cigars and beers.

Since cigars are so strong and flavorful, 1 of the problems in pairing is to uncover a beer that complements the intensity of most cigars. Most cigars will pair properly with a very good barely wine or a single malt scotch. If your cigar can be described as woody, spicy, with hints of cedar, try pairing it with a barley wine. The fruity hint of barely wine need to complement properly with the spicy taste of your cigar. The combination of a spicy cigar with a somewhat fruity beer can develop an all round creaminess that enhances the flavors of every drastically.

If you have no clue as to what flavor combinations may perform, experiment. 1st, come across a cigar that you take pleasure in. Attempt to identify the traits that you get pleasure from about it. Then, come across a beer whose flavors you consider may well 'match' or complement the cigar. Several outstanding discoveries have been produced in much this same way.


A Brief Background of Cigars and Tobacco

Have you at any time wondered exactly where cigars were initial developed? It is broadly believed that cigars were very first created in Spain. But prior to cigars became all the rage in Europe, tobacco was required to make them. Tobacco is indigenous to the Americas, wherever native peoples have produced it for hundreds of years. It is believed that the Maya of Yucatan peninsula in Mexico and parts of Central America cultivated tobacco, and even smoked it! Tobacco use spread to other tribes, the two north and south. It is thought that its very first use in the United States was possibly amongst the tribe along the Mississippi. It wasn't until finally Christopher Columbus sailed his well known voyage to the Americas in 1492 that the rest of the world arrived to know tobacco.

It is stated that Columbus was not impressed by tobacco or its use amongst native peoples, but several sailors grew discovered of the peculiar plant. Quickly it rapidly caught on in Spain and Portugal. From there, it spread to France, where by the French ambassador Jean Nicot lent his identify to the scientific title for tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum). The origins of the word tobacco alone are still suspect, while several think it is merely a corruption of the phrase Tobago, which is the name of a Caribbean island. Nonetheless others feel it arrives from the word Tabasco, a location (and now state) in Mexico.

The first tobacco plantation in the United States was established in Virginia in 1612. Additional tobacco plantations followed in Maryland soon immediately after. While tobacco became a well-liked crop, it was only smoked in pipes. The cigar was not introduced to the United States till the late 18th century. Israel Putnam, an army basic who had served in the Innovative War, is credited with introducing the cigar to the United States. He had traveled to Cuba right after the Groundbreaking War and returned with a box of Cuban cigars. Their recognition swiftly spread, and soon plenty of cigar factories had been established in the location of Harford, Connecticut, exactly where Common Putnam resided.

In Europe, cigar manufacturing and consumption did not attain widespread recognition till after the Peninsula War in the early 19th century. British and French veterans returned to their homelands after years of serving in Spain with their tobacco pipes in tow. Among the prosperous and fashionable, the favored technique of taking tobacco was the cigar. Cigar smoking remains a behavior affiliated with the wealthy and discriminating of upper society.



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The Fundamentals About Cigars

Author: EdgarMoreno

Smoking of cigar is actually a complicated art. 1 is needed to have a thorough information of cigars to enjoy it totally. For a beginner, it can be incredibly essential that he selects the best kind of cigar and learns about that distinct cigar to be able to appreciate it to the fullest. You'll find so several sorts of cigars offered inside the market that he finds it challenging to create a selection. They're so over awed by the big varieties of cigars accessible that they just obtain any cigar from the shop or place an order on the web. Due consideration need to be given to numerous cigars just before making a final choice.

First thing which is noticed in a cigar is its color. The color in fact refers to the wrapper's color and leaves of tobacco utilised. The wrapper implies cigar flavor which typically indicates the origin of the country of cigar. These wrappers are of several colors. Light colored wrappers have mild taste. Dark colored wrappers are sweeter and have full flavor. Cigar wrappers are of following colors -

(a) Light tan (Claro) - It has dispassionate flavor.

(b) Greenish (Claro Claro) -It is slightly sweet. Leaves are plucked just before they mature and are dried right away.

(c) Reddish brown (Colorado) - It has rich essence and delicate fragrance.

(d) Dark brown (Maduro) -The wrapper is oily and silky. It has strong essence and mild fragrance.

(e) Black (Oscuro) - They're typically black and present an oily look. Their colors are the darkest. Leaves aren't plucked from the plants for a lengthy time and are given adequate time to mature. These are grown in Cuba, Brazil, Mexico and Nicarague.

Cigars are of numerous dimensions. The length and size of cigar establishes the excellent of taste and smoke. Its size is determined by the length and diameter of the ring.

Cigars are commonly of the following sizes:

(a)Panatela - 6.5 x 35

(b)Corona - five.75 x 42

(c)Lonsdale - 6.75x 42

(d)Double Corona - 6.5 x 48

(e)Churchill -7.25 x 48

(f)Robusto - 4.5 x50

Cigars having larger ring gauge have composite flavors. They produce extra smoke. In larger ring gauge, cigar makers are in a position to blend various sorts of tobacco leaves in such a manner that it gives varying smoking expertise.

Cigar's length is important. Longer cigars are generally not rolled properly and add to inconsiderate smoke. Immediately after choosing a specific cigar as per your taste, make sure you ensure that it truly is fresh. 70 % humidity is ideal for keeping cigars fresh in shops. You need to check cigars for their freshness. Maintain it in hand to feel if it is difficult or soft. The soft cigar ought to be selected as the smoke produced by it'll not be quite harsh and will generate a delicate flavor. There is a lot for new cigar smokers to find out to be able to constantly have that perfect cigar at hand but having a small analysis and most importantly some experience, practically everybody can get pleasure from and grow to be knowledgeable about cigars.
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Cracking Down on Cigar Counterfeiters

Author: Marcelino Christian

In addition to the damages, the counterfeiters were ordered to recall their complete item line such as promotional and packaging substance and supply it to Altadis for destruction. The participants in the two companies are also completely enjoined from using graphics that are confusingly identical to trademarks within the Altadis cigar line.
The cigar boom of the late 1990's brought with it two significant problems - the first was the proliferation of sub-par cigar lines and the second was the elevated circulation of counterfeit cigars. Sub-par cigars have, for the most component, been filtered-out with the quick decline in consumption that occurred between 1997 and 2001. Businesses that did not have a robust foundation in superior were pressured out of business enterprise. Now, it appears like, main businesses are eventually stepping up to weed-out the proliferation of counterfeit cigars.
In the 2005 United Says cigar current market, you would be tricky-pressed to obtain a person who would disagree with the truth that there are far more higher-top quality handmade cigars accessible at superior selling prices than ever before ahead of. To ultimately do severe harm to the counterfeit cigar market place, it will consider the efforts of Altadis redoubled and spread all about the globe. But now that the counterfeiters are currently being used to endeavor, maybe we can all have the self confidence that we get what we fork out for.
If you have an unwell-taken care of cigar humidor, likelihood are, it is sitting on 1 of your shelf gathering dusts and waiting to be disposed at any granted time. But taking away your valuable cigar humidor to obtain one more a single would not solve your dusty dilemma mainly because most in all probability, after some time, your new cigar humidor could possibly also stop up sitting on an individual shelf and gathering dusts.
Why is there a require for cigar humidor?
Cigars and created from tobaccos. These tobaccos are grown from several countries in the equatorial areas and tropical nations. You could recognize that cigars from countries this kind of as Honduras, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Indonesia, and in particular Cuba are the most properly tasting cigars in the globe. These countries manage a great climate for excellent cigars. The humidity in these countries may make cigars to mature and keep moist perfectly. But once cigars are manufactured and left these nations, the excellent tends to degrade. As the cigars are delivered from one particular region to a different, they undergo several climate variations and humid shifts. This exercise would make very poor maturity that destroys the taste of the cigars for the reason that only in a controlled surroundings do cigars can thoroughly mature.
This calls the need for cigar humidor. A cigar humidor a box, generally created from wood, that retains the cigars moist. With the help of the humidifer, the cigar humidor maintains the relative humidity within the box and in flip assists cigar to sustain its appropriate moisture to protect its flavor.
Employing cigar humidor for the to begin with time
Most folks commit the popular mistake of putting their favored cigars right soon after the buy their cigar humidor. This is incorrect. Why? Since cigar humidors do not have the proper humidity essential on the initial use.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/cracking-down-on-cigar-counterfeiters-4940097.html

About the Author
the author has been in the tabaco enterprise for 5 generations. He currently runs retail outlet shops throughout the region. cigar

The World of Cigars

Author: Walter Gibbs

Like superior quality of wine, essence and savor of cigar are influenced by the soil of that nation. Sunlight and different conditions of soil influence qualities of leaves of tobacco. It is important to understand what makes smoking of cigar an exclusive event. A peep into the best regions in the world for cigar is provided below.



Well known cigars of the world are produced in Southern and Central Asia, Mexico and Cuba. Cigars produced in Cuba are the best in the world. It produces a large variety of most famous brands. Even after surviving cold war, the industry has been flourishing well. It has huge land for cultivation at central islands. The conditions here are most suitable for producing the best quality of tobacco and it really shows in the quality of the cigars. Absolute quality control of the fields is exercised by the government. Despite a legal ban on storage and sale of Cuban cigars by United States, the cigar industry has done extremely well. The actual legal ban has been amended in recent years to a more liberal interpretation and has grown the sale and popularity of the cigars to epic proportions.



Indonesia also produces world class cigars with a vast variety of flavor. Besuki TBN shade -grown leaf is used for production of bulk of cigars. Shade green is a technique utilized for controlling the quantum of sunlight that falls on tobacco leaves. Nets made of muslin are specially used in Indonesia for protecting the tobacco leaves from sunlight.



The plants grown out of Sumatran seeds are used for manufacturing of cigars by the industries in Indonesia. These seeds have special flavor which gives prominence to the filler. Connecticut valley is famous for yellow cigars which are manufactured using shade green method. These medium size cigars are known as Connecticut shade and are the most expensive cigars.



Mexican cigars are milder and have a sweet smell. There is a wide range of cigars available in Mexico. Their best cigars are manufactured at San Andres Tuxtla. This regions climate allows tobacco leaves to achieve the finest quality. Aromas de San Andres and Santa Clara are the best cigars of Mexico.



Honduras region is ideally suited for production of cigars. Cuban expertise helped in the growth of this industry after 1960. Many Cuban experts moved over to Nicaragua and assisted the cigar industry by providing funds, expertise and tobacco seeds.



Brazil is also famous for cigar production. It has assisted many countries in production of cigars. Brazilian tobacco is procured by many nations for producing cigars. The cigar industry of Brazil is working hard to achieve international standards. It is thought that in the coming years, Brazil with further develop into one of the top countries in the world for cigars.



Cigar industry is growing rapidly because of sweet smell and flavor of its exclusive cigars. Their unique essence and savor represent history and culture of parts of the world of their origin. Cigar lovers can gain knowledge about the region by tasting its best cigars.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/the-world-of-cigars-4967566.html

About the Author
I have been involved in the cigar industry for over 20 years and I have written extensive guides on such products as the Travel Humidor, and the Palio Cutter. Also, see some of my latest guides on how to properly choose a Cigar Holder

Cigar Accessories What You Should Know

Author: Walter Gibbs

Once upon a time, cigar smoking was considered as a status symbol; only the rich and esteemed have access to cigars. However, as time passed, cigars have become more accessible to the common man. This is due to the fact that over the years, more and more entrepreneurs are selling cigars and accessories, and at the same time, prices have become more affordable. Because of this, the number cigar enthusiasts have increased immensely. It is no longer extremely expensive to smoke cigars or to acquire cigar accessories.



The significant increase in the interest on cigar accessories has prompted cigar stores and websites to provide more information about cigar smoking culture. In fact, it has become easier for people to gift enthusiasts with accessories as there is a lot of information available. Gone are the days where friends are clueless as to which is the right accessory to give to their friends. There are many kinds of accessories to choose from, but the basic items an enthusiast needs are lighters, humidors and cutters. Regardless of the brand, knowledge about these accessories are vital so that anyone can find the right accessory for their needs. There is a wealth of information available about cigar smoking and cigar accessories in general.



Cigar humidors are the most important accessory because they are the ones that maintain the flavor of the cigar. Nowadays, a lot people prefer portable humidors, so that they can enjoy fresh cigars wherever they go. A humidor is essential because they are the ones that maintain the cigars taste through the right humidity and temperature. Some brands are much more expensive than the others, but this does not necessarily mean that they keep the cigars fresher than the cheaper ones. Like anything else, there is a huge variety of choices to fit almost any budget.



Another kind of accessory, a more popular one, is the cigar pipe. There are many designs and styles of cigar pipes, so you are sure that you will find one that will suit your personality well. These designs and styles are only for aesthetic purposes, and do not affect the purpose of the pipe itself. What you need to consider is the quality of the material of which the cigar pipe is made. Apart from the material, you should also be wary of the fact that the cigar pipe should be hand and have a nice holder.



Another important accessory is the cigar cutter, and you should definitely check it before purchasing it. A good cigar cutter creates a smooth cut on the cigar cap. If there are no clean cuts on the cigar, you wont have the full flavor of the cigar. This could perhaps be one of the most important accessories you purchase so it is advisable to take considerable care when choosing the proper cigar cutter.



Last, but not the least is the ash tray. This accessory is cheap but important; the ash tray keeps the surroundings clean and ash free. Much like the cigar pipe, ash trays come in many designs and styles that suits just about any personality.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/cigar-accessories-what-you-should-know-4997668.html

About the Author
I have been involved in the cigar industry for over 20 years and I have written extensive guides on such products as the Travel Humidor, and the Palio Cutter. Also, see some of my latest guides on one of the best cigar accessories, the Cigar Caddy

Cigar Smoking - The Art of Smoking a Cigar

Author: Walter Gibbs

Selecting your first cigar might be as difficult as choosing a particular ice cream from the large number of varieties available in the shop. I did not face this problem, being accompanied by a cigar smoker who gave me proper guidance. He thoughtfully explained to me the qualities of various cigars and their main characteristics. Similarly, I would prefer to guide you correctly so that you could make the right choice and enjoy cigar smoking



It is advisable not to place order for cigar online until you gain full knowledge about it. You should actually select an exclusive shop that stocks only cigars, Briar and pipe tobacco. It would be nice to have a few friends who could join you in enjoying cigar smoking.



Cigars vary from being mild to strong. You should start smoking a cigar which is hand rolled and mild. Royal Jamaica, Romeoy Julieta and Macanudo are the known cigars which are mild. Good quality cigars cost between $8 and $11.



While selecting a cigar you should first look at their length and shapes. Caronas length is 5 and is mild. Double Carona is twice its length. Robusto is a cigar which is thick and short. These are the famous brands. Carona could be your first choice. You should get the cigar cut at the shop itself or procure a Guillotine cutter costing $2.



Unless you are familiar with the method of lighting a cigar, it could be complicated. Wooden match stick should be used for lighting of cigar. After putting the cigar in the mouth rotate it slowly in such a way that just the tip of cigar touches flame. After taking slow puff for a few seconds rotate the cigar and see that complete surface becomes radiant red. If some parts are not bright red, the process should be repeated.



Cigar should not be kept between the teeth. It should be kept between the lips. Sip gently as in the case of a glass of wine. Have long draws slowly and permit the smoke to stimulate the taste buds. You should not breathe in smoke. Smoking is not done in a hurry. Gap of 45 seconds is given between puffs to make it enjoyable. This makes the smoke in the mouth smooth and cool. Cigar should be allowed to settle for a few minutes, if it gets heated up close to fingers.



Cigars last for three to five minutes. It should not be lit after a gap of 25 to 45 seconds. It is likely to cause bitter taste. Cigar ash should not tapped on the ashtray till it builds to .5. When tapping your cigar, you should only tap ever so slightly so as not to disrupt the taste.



If you follow the given instructions you would certainly relish the delicate fragrance of cigar. You should taste various types of cigar and try and compare them to understand their worth. Just make sure that you always preserve your cigars with appropriate preservation techniques such as a quality humidor or at the very least with some form of cedar trays.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/cigar-smoking-the-art-of-smoking-a-cigar-4998780.html
About the Author
I have been involved in the cigar industry for over 20 years and I have written extensive guides on such products as the Travel Humidor, and the Palio Cutter. Also, see some of my latest guides on one of the best cigar accessories, the Cigar Caddy

How To Store Cigars

Author: Mike Keesling

Cuban cigars originate from the Caribbean, which has a tropical climate very different to Europe. As a natural product, your Havana cigars need to be kept carefully. They are used to being in a warm climate with a relatively high humidity.

Therefore they will need to be protected from extremes of temperature and humidity (particularly low humidity). This is particularly difficult to achieve in air conditioned and centrally heated buildings, where the air tends to get de-humidified and cigars can dry out very quickly. Some cigars come in aluminum tubes which can help preserve them in dry climates, however they tend to mature at a much slower rate than 'naked' boxed cigars.

Maintain a temperature of 16 C to 20 C and a relative humidity of 65% – 70%.

In the UK you will need a humidor to maintain the humidity of your cigars at various times of the year:

Humidity

At the least, keep your cigars in a tight fitting cupboard, drawer or box, away from radiators and other sources of heat. Pick the coolest indoor spot in your house. Leave the cigars in their original boxes as this will help preserve them, stop them from being damaged, and prevent any cross-tainting of flavours between different varieties of cigars stored in the same area. If the humidity in your make-shift humidor is low, a damp sponge in a cup will serve as a basic provider of humidity.

When you purchase your cigars from Tomtom, they will be packed in an airtight zip-loc bag, which will maintain the humidity of your cigars while you transport them from the shop to your humidor. These bags are a very efficient short term humidor, however we would not recommend that you leave your cigars sealed in these bags for more than one month. Although humidity will be maintained, cigars also need to be exposed to some fresh air to allow them to 'breathe' and age correctly.

A variety of desk-top and travel humidors can be purchased (see 'Accessories') and are an essential item for the dedicated cigar smoker (more information below).

Temperature

The danger of excessive temperature (combined with too much humidity) is that the cigars can either go moldy or be damaged by weavil attack. If cigars go moldy, this is generally not a problem, as long as it is spotted reasonably soon and the mould (or bloom) only appears on the wrapper leaf. The mould can be removed with a soft brush (e.g. a badger shaving brush) and then the cigar can be returned to store in the correct conditions. If mould gets into the end of the cigar, we recommend that you do not smoke it. Weavil, or tobacco beetle, is a more serious problem. If you see any small holes in your cigar, you should take immediate action. Please call Tomtom for further advice. Never store cigars near direct sunlight or for long periods exposed to sea breezes (salt will not enhance your smoke). The lower the temperature, the higher the humidity required to compensate.

Desk-Top Humidors

There is a very wide selection of these humidors on the market. The basic design requirements are that they are sealable (and generally lockable!), but allow the cigars to breathe. This is normally achieved by leaving the base of the box unvarnished: and no portion of the inner cedar box should be laminated. The box contains a fitting, which provides the humidity: this is normally a pad containing a sponge or chalk, which can be dampened. The box may also contain a dial showing humidity and temperature.

As a rule of thumb, the smaller the box, the harder it is to maintain a steady level of humidity within its confines. These humidors do not regulate temperature. The price range starts from about 125 for a plexi glass humidor, which will hold approximately 50 cigars to 2000 and above. A comprehensive selection is shown on our accessory page. Fabulous humidors can also be created out of antique boxes which many families have inherited as writing slopes or medal cases and which have since become redundant. This is a very cost-effective way of storing your cigars in a unique and personal humidor.

Travel Humidors

Ranging in price from 100 upwards. These are not suitable for long-term storage of cigars, however they are essential if you are moving about: the wrapper leaf on a handmade cigar is very thin and delicate and will easily damage. The safest way to prevent this is to keep the cigars in their original box, in tubes or in a purpose-built travel humidor.

Cigar Cases

Generally these do not offer humidification systems built in, but will protect your cigars if you take them in your pocket for the day. There are some metal tubes with hermetically sealed screw tops that will act in the same way as a cigar tube and seal in moisture. The majority are made from leather and offer protection from damage as well as limited protection from fluctuations in humidity and temperature.

Reviving Dried-Out Cigars

This is not an exact science and not always successful. Dry cigars need to be rehumidified very slowly and with care. We suggest you speak to us

Footnote

We do NOT recommend that cigars are kept in a refrigerator for storage. It is likely that the cigars will be dried out by this process and irretrievably damaged.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/advice-articles/how-to-store-cigars-65645.html

About the Author
Mike Keesling is a freelance writer and cigar afficiando. His favorite cigar emporium is Ceniza Lounge in Pasadena, California.

The History (And Value) Of Cigar Bands

Author: Garson Smart

For many cigar smokers, the small paper band encircling their stogy is just a piece of trash, to be discarded along with the shrinkwrap around the box. But for others that cigar band is a bit of history - a collectible that adds immeasurably to the romance and mystique of smoking.

What is the cigar band, and how did it become so important? As is so often true when it comes to cigars, the story begins in Cuba - early-19th-century Cuba, to be exact, when that island nation had already come to be recognize as the cigar capital of the world. At that time cigar packaging was minimal - often no more than a wooden barrel or box, with the manufacturer's name inscribed. The cigars themselves were generally left blank. This situation, not surprisingly, created a cheat's paradise, in which cheap European cigars were bundled in boxes with "Cuban" markings on them and sold, domestically, to unsuspecting customers who thought they were getting fine imported Cubans.

Gustave Bock, a Dutch immigrant who owned a cigar factory in Cuba in the 1830s, is credited with being the first to place a paper band around his cigars. (Bock's "cigar band" was just a paper ring with his signature on it.)

Many other makers adopted this practice, to the point where, by 1855, most Cuban cigar exporters were using them. These bands cut down on instances of counterfeiting while giving cigar manufacturers a way to increase name recognition and loyalty.

The practice spread from Cuba to cigar makers everywhere, and its popularity was encouraged by breakthroughs in printing technology, which developed alongside changes in the economy of Europe and the Americas that favored cigar smoking. Specifically, cheap color printing (through chromolithographic processes developed in Germany) was made widely available during the latter part of the century, and paper-embossing followed in the 1880s.

Between the expansion of the cigar industry and the new possibilities developed by the printing industry, a "Golden Age" of cigar advertising was almost guaranteed, and that's what followed. Cigar makers began working not only to manufacture their cigars, but to differentiate their products from others. The late 19th and early 20th centuries featured elaborate, distinctive cigar box and cigar band artwork, often produced by highly-regarded commercial artists. These well-wrought bands featured images of famous figures of the day, historical figures, nationalistic imagery, nature scenes and animals. As with today's postage stamps, special bands would be made to commemorate special events.

And, also like stamps, the bands had that combination of ephemerality and workmanship that so often draws collectors. While they were often well-made, they weren't intended to last - so they gave collectors a challenge, as baseball cards, comic books and cheap children's toys would later in the 20th century. And they always gave off a whiff of nostalgia, reminding dedicated smokers of good times shared with a cigar and a friend.

Children also found these bands attractive, since they were often left discarded on streets during the height of cigar-smoking's popularity. Manufacturers even made "albums" with blank pages in which a person's cigar band collection could be displayed - the forerunner of those plastic display sheets that every sports-card collector knows so well.

Adding to the boom in band collecting, some cigar makers gave premiums to customers who turned in a certain number of bands - everything from a set of children's silverware (50 bands) to a Scientific American subscription (600 bands) to a baby grand piano (180,000), according to the American Cigar Co. catalog of 1904. (Those of you who used to collect Marlboro Miles during the 1990s should be feeling deja vu right about now.)

After World War I, cigars fell in popularity relative to cigarettes. Cigar makers stopped putting as much energy into the production of attractive cigar bands, as it became more necessary to cut costs. Cigar bands - at least in the US - grew generic, boring. The cost cut wasn't enough - many thousands of cigar companies closed up shop for good in the US during the '20s and '30s.

Band collecting continues in the US among a hardy group mostly consisting of old-timers and nostalgia buffs, but in Europe it remains a thriving hobby, and cigar makers there continue to print colorful but cheap bands, some of which come as part of a series (again like stamps), others of which are created specifically for collectors.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/food-and-beverage-articles/the-history-and-value-of-cigar-bands-419380.html

About the Author
CigarFox provides you the opportunity to build your own sampler of the finest cigars that include cigar brands like Montecristo, Romeo & Julieta, H Upmann, Macanudo, Cohiba, Gurkha and many more. Choose from more than 1000 different brands! Other cigar products include cigar humidors, cigar boxes, and cigar accessories like Zippo Lighters

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Coolidor - the Cheap Alternative to a Cigar Humidor

Author: Walter Gibbs

The coolidor is becoming a very popular method of storing one's cigars because the truth of the matter is that not all cigar enthusiasts can afford the expensive cigar humidors. Cigar humidors are expensive and a lot of enthusiasts are looking for ways to save up on a few bucks without sacrificing the quality of the cigar preservation. The internet offers do it yourself alternatives to cigar humidors, one of which is the coolidor.

The first item you would need in a coolidor is a cooler. The size of the cooler depends on the number of cigars you are planning to store. The size of cooler really doesn't matter, the most important thing is that you choose a cooler that has a tight seal. An airtight seal ensures that the humidity inside your coolidor will be regulated.

The next item would need to build a coolidor is a device that can control the humidity within the coolidor. Any humidification device can be used to control the humidity. One of the more popular solutions to humidity is humidification beads. There are a lot of stores on the internet that are selling these beads. If you are considering these beads, you must keep in mind that they maintain 65% - 70% humidity in the cooler. To keep the beads at a good level, use only distilled water. The beads are clear when the humidity level are high, if they turn white it means that it is time to you refill it with distilled water. Humidification beads are a cheap and easy way to regulate humidity.

Although humidification beads offer you a way to measure the humidity in the coolidor, these are not enough. You need an accurate measuring device to know the exact level of humidity in your coolidor. This is why you need to buy a good hygrometer. You can buy a hygrometer for around $20.

Once you have these three items, you can now start seasoning your coolidor and, soon enough, storing your cigars. Cigar enthusiasts sometimes keep their lighters matches, cigar cutters and other cigar accessories in the coolidor with their cigars.

Cigar humidors use cedar wood to line the interiors because they absorb moisture well and, as an effect, regulate the humidity in the coolidor. By using cedar wood, you are ensured that excess moisture and humidity will be absorbed by the wood and will keep your cigars preserved. You can buy empty cigar boxes made of cedar wood from your local tobacco shop.

Once you have all your equipment, then it's time to start preparing your coolidor. The first step is to clean your cooler. It is best that you avoid strong chemicals when cleaning the cooler as they may leave residue and smells that can leave an unwanted taste in the cigar. Once you have cleaned the cooler, then you can start placing your cigar boxes in the cooler. Remember to save a space where you can put a small dish that contains your humidification beads. Place the beads at two sides of the cooler to ensure that the moisture is evenly spread within the cooler. Check the humidity after two days and ensure that the hygrometer reading is at around 65-70%. The temperatures should preferably be under 70 or low 70s max.

Once you have ensured that the humidity levels in the cooler are regulated, you can now start storing your cigars in the boxes. By making your own coolidor you can save a lot of money from spending on expensive cigar humidors.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/coolidor-the-cheap-alternative-to-a-cigar-humidor-1766665.html
About the Author
The author is a cigar enthusiast and has written extensive guides on such products as the Coolidor, an inexpensive way to store cigars, and tips on making the best Homemade Humidor. Also, see some of his latest guides on the Palio Cutter

Best Cigars Online Review

Author: Derek

Cigar ratings are based on a number of factors. Most are blindly tested because a lot of cigar flavors are relative to the smoker doing the rating. There is not one specific top cigar brand that would be suitable for every cigar smoker in the world. When it comes to choosing a cigar there are many factors that come into play. Simply put, a cigar's aroma and flavor is taken into consideration when pairing with food, drink, occasion, and even mood.

There are certain qualities and characteristics each cigar brand has that make it superior to others. One must consider a few important factors before selection. First, the appearance of the cigar. Next, you should consider the flavor and the aroma. The perfect balance is always your preference. Many factors affect the flavor and can make the same cigar taste different to the same smoker under different conditions. Aging cigars in a cigar humidor is one way you can control or improve the flavor of a cigar. And finally, the construction of the cigar. This will determine the way it burns and how it smokes. Some cigars burn quickly while others consume more slowly, allowing the enjoyment of flavor and aroma.
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Although everyone's preferences and tastes are different, the starting point to selecting the right cigar is the size. Although size does have some effect on flavor, it has more to do with personal preference and the time factor. Here's what I mean by time factor, a cigar for after dinner could be up to six inches and ideal because you'll have plenty of time to relax and enjoy it. However, a smaller diameter five-inch cigar would be more ideal if you just want to light up for a quick smoke. With regard to cigar sizes, the length is measured in inches and the "ring" is the diameter measurement. You should always consider the body of your cigar choice. The strength should never be overwhelming, but tasty and enjoyable.
In reviews and discussions of cigars, very rarely is the most important about cigar smoking mentioned. The finish. The finish is the taste that stays with you long after the cigar is extinguished. A good quality cigar will leave you with a savory finish and a feeling of satisfaction, smoothness, joy, and the feeling of quality consumed. How we remember a cigar brand and its experience are largely due to the ‘finish' which stays with you for days.

Find out which cigar brands have the most savory and best finish, go check them out here.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/quit-smoking-articles/best-cigars-online-review-4279559.html

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