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I enjoy the occasional cigar with coffee over chit-chat sessions with a good buddy of mine, as well as light doses of tobacco smoking from a couple of tobacco pipes. I maintain a healthy stash of cigars and tobacco at home, and habitually take some with me when I leave the house. I often buy new sticks faster than I can smoke them, and the cigar collection amounts to a fair bit at any given time.

The BIG BEN Bora from Holland

The STANWELL Zebrano from Italy

For tobacco, I alternate between two different tobacco pipes – a straight stem Big Ben “Bora” from Holland, and a bent Stanwell “Zebrano” from Italy (previously from Denmark). They are both made of briar wood with different finishing and style for the bowl, each with its own smoking characteristics. While a bent stem allows for cooler smoke and can be more easily held in the mouth without holding with the hand, a straight stem provides a smoother draw and is easier to clean and maintain. Both take a standard 9 mm filter and sit well on a flat surface without need for support. I find myself going for the Big Ben more often simply because of ergonomics and ease of maintenance.

The Devon Buy Collection of Cigars and Tobacco Products

A freshly opened brand new box of Romeo y Julieta Petit Coronas 25 waiting to be savoured! Some will be transferred over to my humidor pictured behind right.

The collection is divided into only two categories: Cigars and Tobacco. The cigar and tobacco products presented below are what I currently have at the moment. I store most of these in my own home-made humidor, the construction of which I have outlined here. To maintain the relative humidity within, I use Madelaine Propylene Glycol Solution.

CIGARS

From Tubos to Boxes, from Corona to Robusto, from Cuba to Switzerland, here are the cigars with the brand names in all caps and the country of origin in parentheses.

DAVIDOFF Club Cigarillos (Dominican Republic)	DAVIDOFF Nicaragua Diadema (Dominican Republic)	MONTECRISTO No.3 (Havana, Cuba)
HOYO DE MONTERREY Epicure No.2 (Havana, Cuba)	HOYO DE MONTERREY Flor Extrafina 25 (Havana, Cuba)	LA AURORA PRINCIPES Short Robusto 25 (Dominican Republic)
ROMEO Y JULIETA No.1 Tubos (Havana, Cuba)	ROMEO Y JULIETA No.2 Tubos old (Havana, Cuba)	ROMEO Y JULIETA No.2 Tubos new (Havana, Cuba)
ROMEO Y JULIETA Petit Corona 25 (Havana, Cuba)	PADRON Natural 6 Corticos (Nicaragua)	ARTURO FUENTE Curly Head Deluxe (Dominican Republic)
DANNEMANN Speciale Sumatra (Germany)	DANNEMANN Sweets Premium Cigarillos (Germany)	DANNEMANN Tubes (Germany)
DON DIEGO Coronas No.3 (Dominican Republic)	JOSE L PIEDRA Nacionales 5 (Havana, Cuba)	GUANTANAMERA Cristales (Havana, Cuba)
DOMAZAN Burgundy Line Petit Corona (Nicaragua)	QUORUM Classic (Nicaragua)	QUORUM Shade (Nicaragua)
HANDELSGOLD Gold Label Classic No.1 (Germany)	HANDELSGOLD Gold Label Classic No.7 (Germany)	HANDELSGOLD Gold Label Classic No.9 (Germany)
J CORTES High Class Sumatra Blue (Belgium)	VASCO DA GAMA Corona No.2 (Holland)	VASCO DA GAMA Port Wine (Holland)
VILLIGER Export (Switzerland)	VILLIGER Gold Mini Special Edition (Switzerland)	VILLIGER REd Mini Vanilla (Switzerland)
VILLIGER Premium Coffee (Switzerland)	VILLIGER Premium Honey (Switzerland)	VILLIGER Premium Vanilla (Switzerland)
VILLIGER Mini Sumatra Classic (Switzerland)	VILLIGER Premium Tubo (Switzerland)	BALMORAL Corona Tubos (Dominican Republic)
AL CAPONE Sweets Cognac Dipped (Honduras)	CAFE CREME Italian Macchiato (Holland)	NEOS Chocolate (Belgium)
PANTER Small (Holland)	PANTER Short Corona (Dominican Republic)	PANTER Corona (Dominican Republic)
PANTER Mignon De Luxe (Holland)	RITMEESTER Corona Delecta (Holland)	RITMEESTER Half Corona (Holland)
SWISHER SWEETS Blunt (USA)	SWISHER SWEETS Little Cigars (USA)	SWISHER SWEETS Perfecto (USA)
WILLEM II Corona Optimum (Holland)	SCHIMMELPENNINCK Mini Cigars (Holland)	HENRI WINTERMANS Half Corona (Holland)

TOBACCO

DUNHILL London Mixture (UK)	DAVIDOFF Green Mixture (UK)	DAVIDOFF Red Mixture (UK)
PETERSON Irish Whiskey (Ireland)	PETERSON Sherlock Holmes (Ireland)	DAN TOBACCO Da Vinci (Germany)
PETERSON Special 2012 Limited Edition (Ireland)	PETERSON 3P’s Peterson’s Perfect Plug (Ireland)	SAMUEL GAWITH Jubilee 2012 (UK)
BORKUM RIFF Original Mixture (Sweden)	BORKUM RIFF Bourbon Whiskey (Sweden)	BORKUM RIFF Champagne (Sweden)
MAC BAREN Original Choice (Denmark)	MAC BAREN Aromatic Choice (Denmark)	MAC BAREN Green Velvet (Denmark)
MAC BAREN Mixture Modern Danish Blend (Denmark)	MAC BAREN Amphora Full Aroma (Denmark)	J F GERMAIN & SON The Balkan Sobranie (UK)
SUTLIFF TOBACCO COMPANY Tobacco Galleria Wild Cherry (USA)	RICHARD LLOYD & SONS Amber Leaf (UK)

…of the More Exquisite Variety

The cigars below are of the more exquisite variety from the collection, some of which are my personal favourites. The dimensions of cigars are usually indicated as length x diameter in inches. The diameter is given in ring gauge, measured as 1/64th of an inch. Hence a cigar of ring gauge 44 is equivalent to 44/64 of an inch, i.e. 0.6875 inch in diameter.

	“My favourite of them all…the Montecristo No.3. A cigar just perfect on the the draw and flavour…” Brand: Montecristo (est.1935) Variant: No.3 Natural Corona Length: 5.5 Ring Gauge: 42 Shape / Size: Parejo / Corona Wrapper Colour: Connecticut / Light brown Binder: Cuba Filler: Cuba Strength: Mild Origin: Cuba RRP: RM97.00 per stick
	“If I don’t have the No.2, the slimmer and longer No.1 will just have to do!” Brand: Romeo y Julieta (est.1875) Variant: No.1 Tubos Length: 5.5 Ring Gauge: 40 Shape / Size: Parejo / Corona Wrapper Colour: Dark brown Binder: Cuba Filler: Cuba Strength: Mild to Medium Origin: Cuba RRP: RM77.00 per stick
	“Earthy flavours, burns well without being too nutty towards the end…” Brand: Romeo y Julieta (est.1875) Variant: Petit Corona Length: 4.9 Ring Gauge: 42 Shape / Size: Parejo / Petit Corona Wrapper Colour: Dark brown Binder: Cuba Filler: Cuba Strength: Mild to Medium Origin: Cuba RRP: RM1,825.00 per box of 25
	“Spicy on the initial burn and has to be smoked slowly, otherwise…dizzy!” Brand: Romeo y Julieta (est.1875) Variant: No.2 Tubos de Aluminio Length: 5.125 Ring Gauge: 42 Shape / Size: Parejo / Corona Wrapper Colour: Dark brown Binder: Cuba Filler: Cuba Strength: Mild to Medium Origin: Cuba RRP: RM1,800.00 per box of 25
	“An intense tobacco taste blended with cocoa, cinnamon and dried fruits, this handmade cigar is highly rated and consistent throughout its burn.” Brand: Hoyo de Monterrey (est.1865) Variant: Epicure No.2 Length: 5.875 Ring Gauge: 50 Shape / Size: Parejo / Robusto Wrapper Colour: Medium brown Binder: Cuba Filler: Cuba Strength: Mild to Medium Origin: Cuba RRP: RM140.00 per stick
	“A handmade premium puro cigar meticulously tapered at both ends with a balanced blend of top-quality Nicaraguan tobaccos grown in the country’s rich, volcanic soils.” Brand: Davidoff (est.1969) Variant: Nicaragua Diadema Length: 6.5 Ring Gauge: 50 Shape / Size: Presidente / Diadema Wrapper Colour: Medium brown Binder: Nicaragua Filler: Nicaragua Strength: Medium to Full Origin: Dominican Republic RRP: RM120.00 per stick
	“A medium-bodied cigar with wheaty woody notes on the draw…” Brand: Don Diego (est.1966) Variant: Corona No.3 Length: 5.5 Ring Gauge: 44 Shape / Size: Parejo / Corona Wrapper Colour: Connecticut Shade Binder: Dominican Republic Filler: Dominican Rep. / Nicaragua Strength: Mild to Medium Origin: Dominican Republic RRP: RM150.00 per pack of 5

The Illustrated Encyclopedia: Cigars of the World is a handy guide on the history and directory of the major players in the cigar industry.

Publications and Ratings

The second best part about a hobby are the reading materials and publications that fuel the interest and enthusiasm, and the one that I refer to the most is Cigar Aficionado. I have read one or two other magazines on cigar appreciation, but found myself always returning to this one.

A good reference book on cigars is the Illustrated Encyclopedia: Cigars of the World (right). This is a small book with useful information about the finest cigars from around the globe and the companies which make them. It is also my source of reference. To buy this book and other titles on cigars, click here.

The Illustrated Encyclopedia Cigars of the World is a great reference with the history and background of all important cigar manufacturers around the world, and Cigar Aficionado is a monthly magazine that piques smokers the world over.

Here are some ratings from the blind tastings carried out at Cigar Aficionado for the cigars “of the more exquisite variety” in my collection listed above, with the dates of publication. The score ratings and their significance as described by Cigar Aficionado are:

• 95 – 100: Classic
• 90 – 94: Outstanding
• 80 – 89: Very Good to Excellent
• 70 – 79: Average to Good Commercial Quality
• 0 – 69: Don’t waste your money

April 2010: The Romeo y Julieta No.1 Tubo scored an outstanding rating of 91,
with the Montecristo No.3 trailing one step behind at 90.

February 2011: The Hoyo de Monterrey Epicure No.2 scored an impressive rating of 92.

April 2009: In the Connoisseur’s Conner, a 1975 stick of Montecristo No.3 attained a classic rating of 96, while a Hoyo de Monterrey Epicure No.2 from 1994 remains at the top end of outstanding at 94.

June 2009: In the Connoisseur’s Conner, a vintage Montecristo No.3 from 1971
again garnered a classic rating of 96.

Preparation and Lighting

Over the years, I realised that prepping and lighting a cigar the proper way is of paramount importance. As mentioned earlier, cigar appreciation is more a hobby than a habit, and it rewards the smoker well to pay heed to some of its ritualistic idiosyncrasies which I find best explained in the following video.

Interesting Conversations About Cigars with Arnie

Quotes About Cigar and Pipe Smoking

Thought I’d just drop a few quotes by some famous people about tobacco smoking, and add one of my own just for the heck of it.

If you’re an avid cigar or pipe tobacco smoker and if you have an interesting quote to share, do pen it down in the comment section below. Meanwhile, keep the end lit and puff away!