THE BEST WAY TO LIGHT A CIGAR....WHAT I’VE LEARNED THE HARD WAY

[cigaraholic]

I learned very early that you don’t lite a cigar like you light a cigarette, warm the head and toast it before you puff on it. The first puffs on a cigar can tell tell you if your going on a magical ride or a bumpy one. This was years before torch lights were around. Many...many years later after my bypass surgery I found that the first puffs were so strong I was coughing. So I had to toast the foot and purge the cigar before taking a puff. If you want the best first taste of a cigar that’s the way to get it🌈

[El Presidente]

I like sitting with  my Cuban mate Jose Candia when he lights a cigar. 

There is gentle toasting followed by a windmill (full arm extension) rotating of the cigar + some more gentle toasting...some blowing on the cone...another windmill rotation. It is a full 2 minutes. I love the ritual but I don't do it myself 

 

[mprach024]

I use whatever is convenient, a torch, matches, dumpster fire.  I never puff while lighting, I have zero scientific basis, I just assume butane or propane or whatever is fueling my fire would get pulled into the cigar. Just a mental thing.

[nKostyan]

This is a beautiful ritual and it is amazing because it requires less thermal energy compared to a turbo lighter. With the right technique, a cigar match is enough to light a cigar.

[Habana Mike]

30 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

I like sitting with  my Cuban mate Jose Candia when he lights a cigar. 

There is gentle toasting followed by a windmill (full arm extension) rotating of the cigar + some more gentle toasting...some blowing on the cone...another windmill rotation. It is a full 2 minutes. I love the ritual but I don't do it myself 

 

I've also noticed many Cubans do the same while lighting.

Some more subtle with circular hand motions. I have also seen the more exaggerated motions as well.

I've found myself doing the slow rotation on light. My guess is it helps with a more even light so less unevenness down the road.

Cool story

[Bijan]

I usually use a butane lighter as I normally smoke outdoors and that works best. But an odorless candle works really well, and I don't have to worry about sulphur smell or burning my fingers as with matches or cedar respectively. First got the idea from that "former" Nazi smoking a cigar on the day of his daughter's wedding in the movie The Sorrow and the Pity.

[La_Tigre]

3 hours ago, El Presidente said:

I like sitting with  my Cuban mate Jose Candia when he lights a cigar. 

There is gentle toasting followed by a windmill (full arm extension) rotating of the cigar + some more gentle toasting...some blowing on the cone...another windmill rotation. It is a full 2 minutes. I love the ritual but I don't do it myself 

 

Would love to see a FOH video on this and other techniques. Could even be a thread with videos of each member lighting their most prized cigar. 

[KavalanWhisky]

2 hours ago, Bijan said:

I usually use a butane lighter as I normally smoke outdoors and that works best. But an odorless candle works really well, and I don't have to worry about sulphur smell or burning my fingers as with matches or cedar respectively. First got the idea from that "former" Nazi smoking a cigar on the day of his daughter's wedding in the movie The Sorrow and the Pity.

great idea, would be funny if you tried to light your cigar during a kids birthday party and they were waiting to blow out the candles...

[Nino]

4 hours ago, El Presidente said:

I like sitting with  my Cuban mate Jose Candia when he lights a cigar. 

There is gentle toasting followed by a windmill (full arm extension) rotating of the cigar + some more gentle toasting...some blowing on the cone...another windmill rotation. It is a full 2 minutes. I love the ritual but I don't do it myself 

 

Seen this technique used a lot in Cuba by cigar sommeliers and/or waiters/bartenders.

I've used it when lighting a cigar for either ladies or a good friend smoking for the first time and it works very well but never use it for myself. My beloved Prince PB-207 is enough.

[djrey]

Surprised nobody tagged Ken yet! He is the model to follow for perfect lighting 😬🤣

[El Presidente]

10 minutes ago, djrey said:

Surprised nobody tagged Ken yet! He is the model to follow for perfect lighting 😬🤣

a picture is worth a thousand words .....

 

Ken's technique

 

[Buffalo]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsuEd9xpCfM

(Obviously imitating a Rob and Ken review session.)

 

[djrey]

 

1 hour ago, El Presidente said:

a picture is worth a thousand words .....

 

Ken's technique

 

I crack up every review as you ask him to show the audience proper lighting technique. Never gets old. 🤣

[smbauerllc]

I use whatever is convenient, a torch, matches, dumpster fire.  I never puff while lighting, I have zero scientific basis, I just assume butane or propane or whatever is fueling my fire would get pulled into the cigar. Just a mental thing.

Lol.
Same here.
Almost always just use a plain old Bic lighter since I'm not allowed to have butane for my torch lighters here.
Pretty annoying, but rules are rules.
Usually no trouble getting a good, even light with the Bic after lots of practice.
Do get the occasional uneven burn from it though.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[djrey]

Cant go wrong with a bic. I have 30 scattered all around in jackets, cars etc. Lose or give one away, who cares. Even my torches never cost more than $15 and they have been with me for about 8 years now. 

[smbauerllc]

Cant go wrong with a bic. I have 30 scattered all around in jackets, cars etc. Lose or give one away, who cares. Even my torches never cost more than $15 and they have been with me for about 8 years now. 

They do get the job done as long as there's no wind. Just have to be well practiced and checking on the light as you go to avoid uneven light and burn.

I think my 2 torches were about $20 for the 2 and they worked great, especially since Wyoming always has some amount of wind. Wish I were still able to use them.

They worked in the wind and were easier to get a good, even burn going

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[joeypots]

The Vertigo lighters are fantastic. Inexpensive and long lasting, there're much better than lighters I've had that cost ten times as much. I toast the foot of the cigar until I have it evenly lit and puff out a bit at first. I've learned not to tell people how to light a cigar. It never ends well. Some of the looks.....

[Fuzz]

Use a piece of cedar to light your cigar....

[djrey]

47 minutes ago, joeypots said:

The Vertigo lighters are fantastic. Inexpensive and long lasting, there're much better than lighters I've had that cost ten times as much. I toast the foot of the cigar until I have it evenly lit and puff out a bit at first. I've learned not to tell people how to light a cigar. It never ends well. Some of the looks.....

I have a few of those. They are fantastic for the price. I think triple flames are overkill but still nice. I mostly use vertigo single flame torches now or of course the bic.

[Bijan]

50 minutes ago, joeypots said:

The Vertigo lighters are fantastic. Inexpensive and long lasting, there're much better than lighters I've had that cost ten times as much. I toast the foot of the cigar until I have it evenly lit and puff out a bit at first. I've learned not to tell people how to light a cigar. It never ends well. Some of the looks.....

I have the Colibri Firebird which is roughly the same design, and you can see how much fuel is left (I can't tell if that is a feature of this vertigo as well).

[Nino]

43 minutes ago, Fuzz said:

Use a piece of cedar to light your cigar....

That is just as brilliant as smoking Fonsecas with the paper band around them and bitch about the horrible paper aftertaste ... 🙂

[djrey]

46 minutes ago, Bijan said:

I have the Colibri Firebird which is roughly the same design, and you can see how much fuel is left (I can't tell if that is a feature of this vertigo as well).

Yup same with this Vertigo. They have a few different colors. Some are completely clear and this one is the smoked version but still quite translucent. 

[Chibearsv]

I guess we all have our ritual which kind of adds to the smoking experience but isn't the mission to get the foot to glow....and that's about it?  Aside from adding unwelcome flavor with a pungent fuel like oil or sulfur, is there really a measurable taste difference in how the cigar is initially lit?  Does anyone say, "boy if it hadn't been for the way I lighted that cigar it would have been a 93 but instead I give it an 89"?

[Bijan]

Just now, Chibearsv said:

I guess we all have our ritual which kind of adds to the smoking experience but isn't the mission to get the foot to glow....and that's about it?  Aside from adding unwelcome flavor with a pungent fuel like oil or sulfur, is there really a measurable taste difference in how the cigar is initially lit?  Does anyone say, "boy if it hadn't been for the way I lighted that cigar it would have been a 93 but instead I give it an 89"?

Some people do. There's a whole theory on lighting the cigar before cutting it. Watching it done it seems like it takes 5 minutes to scorch the end in that case but the theory is that uncut the initial smoke won't get into the cigar.

[mprach024]

2 hours ago, smbauerllc said:

Lol.
Same here.
Almost always just use a plain old Bic lighter since I'm not allowed to have butane for my torch lighters here.
Pretty annoying, but rules are rules.
Usually no trouble getting a good, even light with the Bic after lots of practice.
Do get the occasional uneven burn from it though.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
 

I use a bic a lot when I travel, can’t take torches on airplanes.  There’s a learning curve but can be done successfully!