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Ralph Dinkel
Cigar Accessories: Vital to the Perfect Smoke
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Cigar Accessories: Vital to the Perfect Smoke
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Cigar Accessories: Vital to the Perfect Smoke
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nee andy
Cigar Accessories: Vital to the Perfect Smoke
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By Eric Piras
Once upon a time, smoking (even cigarette smoking) was the epitome of chic and sophistication. The growing use of tobacco in the 20th century created a strong demand for accessories designed to facilitate smoking, which became objects of consumption in their own right.
The universe of cigars is also and mostly a world of etiquette: selecting the correct cigar for the right time, the cutting and lighting “ceremonies”, choosing the appropriate ashtray…
Cigar Accessories: Vital to the Perfect Smoke
The cigar world has extended its sophistication to its accessories, which can reflect their owners’ sense of style as much as their choice in cars or clothes.
From basic to high luxury, from widely available to tailor-made, the choice of cigar accessories just expands exponentially as time goes by, with a high number of brands on the market, catering to various budgets. Every aficionado has their own favorites and staying at the forefront of cigar accessories fashion can be an expensive game… but it’s a game that seems widely played around the cigar lounges of Asia!
Aficionados love to source the craziest, most unusual or hardest-to-find accessories and their ever-growing collections are amazing. Those of you who constantly lose or regularly “misplace” your lighters or cutters might might as well carry only branded cigar cutters, lighters, or matches, reasoning that they will contribute to the brands’ exposure wherever they are forgotten!
ALSO: The best places for accessories in Hong Kong and Macau
Humidors are probably the most visible and possibly the most expensive of cigar accessories. Though this column is not sufficient to cover them all, some famous names instantly come to mind.
The first would probably be Elie Bleu, French brand created almost 40 years ago, who claims to be the Haute Couture of cabinetmaking. Their much-coveted humidors have gained strong following from connoisseurs since the 1990s and come in a wide range, from the classics to the most eccentric designs. Think portrait of The Che, leopard-prints, skulls… the choice is quite impressive and their quality absolutely impeccable.
Fashionable yet timeless, Davidoff proposes a large accessories selection of the highest quality. The centerpiece of their range is the humidor and their latest offerings are quite exclusive: French furniture maker Daniel Clément has collaborated with Davidoff on 10 limited edition pieces of its Géant Humidor in glass marquetry. One month is needed to create each piece, with each of its 800 glass fragments cut by hand. This exclusive Davidoff Humidor Géant by Daniel Clément stores 190-250 cigars and is only available at Davidoff Hong Kong in Asia.
Another limited edition is Davidoff Cave de Paille: in collaboration with straw marquetry specialist Lison de Caunes, this series of three Davidoff Dome humidors were created to mark Davidoff’s partnership with Art Basel. Using the art of straw marquetry and seeking inspiration from the patterns of time and the life of a cigar, each humidor season illustrates the journey a cigar makes, from the growing of a tobacco leaf to the enjoyment of a cigar. Some 50 to 60 cigars can be stored in this exclusive piece, and only one piece of the Saison II humidor is currently available at Davidoff Hong Kong stores.
Slightly more affordable, the Zino Graphic Leaf humidor, a contemporary interpretation of the classic line, is offered in bright and dynamic colours with a tobacco leaf pattern to celebrate the ingredient at the heart of a cigar. It stores 50 to 60 cigars and is available in Davidoff Hong Kong stores from November.
Created in 2003 by the Pacific Cigar Company Ltd, the official distributor of Habanos in Asia-Pacific, Siglo Accessory offers products of good design, good quality, and good value. The famous piano finish and Spanish cedar wood interior make their humidors one of their most sought-after products. Individually handmade by a small team of 15 woodcrafters, each humidor receives 10-15 layers of paint and clear lacquer to obtain a glossy and even surface. Siglo is now available in over 20 countries.
The Vibrant Series Humidors from Siglo offers a choice of trendy colors such as siren red, sunny yellow, tangy orange, lime green, cobalt blue, royal purple, ivory white, and burnt gray.
Aficionados who already possess classic or funky humidors can now opt for technology and impress their friends: with a capacity of 100 cigars, the latest Siglo Biometrico is a masculine humidor that can be opened by pressing your fingertip on the sensor.
Moving on to the strong pleasure of enjoying a cigar: each aficionado seems to have his preferences when it comes to cutting the tip of their cigar. Whether you opt for a bullet cutter, an oval cutter, a slim cutter, or even cigar scissors, Adorini has it all. Available in Macau at The Wall of Cigar, Adorini accessories are an excellent incentive to visit this well-stocked and welcoming cigar shop-cum-lounge.
The Zino Z9 Punch Cutter is a modern addition to the cigar aficionado’s accessory collection. Available in various finishes and in all Davidoff and Acanta stores around Asia, the Z9 Punch Cutter has a 9.9mm blade that fits all cigar sizes ranging from a 38 to 70 ring gauge.
A stylish punch cutter can also be found in the Davidoff Escurio Accessories Collection. Davidoff Escurio accessories bear the radically different colours and identity of the recently-launched Brazilian cigar line Escurio.
In the same vibrant collection inspired by the colourful nights of Rio de Janeiro is a lightweight lighter bearing a large trigger and the playful moon crescent green and yellow logo of the Escurio line.
Developed by leading engineers and manufacturers of luxury smoking products and designed to fit the hand perfectly, Lotus lighters show excellent craftsmanship work, are reliable, beautiful and fairly affordable. They are also available in The Wall of Cigar in Macau.
Providing numerous surfaces, cigar accessories are also an ideal branding platform. As says Tony Hyman, who has collected one of the most comprehensive collection of cigar memorabilia, “cigar boxes were designed by the pioneers in point-of-sale package design and used by the pioneers in modern marketing. Their use of cutting-edge technology materials combined with an uncanny response to customers’ wants paved the way for modern advertising.”