Accessories
Types of Lighters
There are two features to pay attention to – the fuel and the flame. The fuel must be a clean burning fuel such as butane. Most other lighter fuels give off a chemical or kerosene-like odor that will alter the taste of your cigar. The lighter must also provide
a large enough flame to light the whole cigar. The flame from a disposable lighter is typically too small. The "blowtorch" style lighters are great because they burn at an extremely high temperature and stay lit even in strong winds.
How do I light a
cigar?
There
are a myriad of ways for you to light your cigar. Some of the methods are
regarded as more formal and elegant and a few are regarded as actually
being crass by some.
Here is the basic mechanics of "properly" lighting a cigar:
1. It is best to gently warm the foot with a flame for 10-15 seconds. Do
not allow the flame to touch the cigar, just pass the cigar near and over
the flame while slowly rotating it.
2. Place the cigar in your mouth, bring the flame near the foot, but again
not actually allowing it to touch your cigar. Simultaneously gently puff
on the cigar with shallow and quick puffs while slowly rotating it between
your lips to help ignite the cigar evenly. The flame will be drawn to the
cigar as you puff. If you wish you can also gently exhale/inhale through
the cigar as you light your cigar, some people find this a more successful
method.
3. Pull the cigar from your mouth, gently blow on the lighted foot, and
examining the cherry glow of the foot ensure that your cigar is lit evenly
across its entire ring.
4. If not, repeat Step 2 concentrating on the unlit portion only.
The key to properly lighting a cigar is to do so slowly and evenly trying
to ignite the tobaccos at the lowest possible temperature. Doing so allows
for your smoke to begin cooler, smoother, and free of any harsh tar-like
flavors.
There are a wide variety of tools you can use to light your cigars. Here
are some of the most common ones, a few obscure ones also.
Matches - When you use a match it is important for you to allow for the
initial striking ignition to cease else you will get a terrible sulphur
flavor and aroma. Paper matches are useless, they simply burn too quickly.
Standard wood matches are functional, but it can be difficult to light a
large cigar evenly without multiple matches. A good trick when using
standard wood matches is to actually use two together as this will create
a broader flame. There is also special long Spanish Cedar matches
available designed expressly for the purpose of lighting cigars. These
provide a long burning, and rather elegant way to light your cigar,
however you do have to watch for burnt bits of the matches falling into
your lap or the carpet. Typically you can only find these long Spanish
cedar cigar matches in fine tobacco shops.
Flint-Style Butane Lighters - Whether we are talking about the $1.00
disposable Bic lighter or a $1000.00 Dupont, these traditional lighters
are a wonderful way to light your cigar. Some flint-style butane lighters
are available with dual flames which provide a broad lighting flame that
is perfect for lighting a cigar. High-end lighters such as Dunhill and
Dupont are not only aesthetically beautiful, but functional tools that can
give you decades of flawless lighting performance.
Torch-Style Butane Lighters - These high tech ultra-hot burning lighters
have become the mainstay lighting tool of many cigar smokers in recent
years. Utilizing micro ported refined butane, these lighters can burn as
hot as 1500+ degrees! Some people criticize the use of these lighters
because a cigar is meant to be lit as cool as possible, however the truth
is if a torch lighter is used properly it can actually provide the
coolest, cleanest light. The trick is use the lighter to super heat the
air above it and to light your cigar within this plume of super-heated air
well away from the torch's jetting blue flame. Torch lighters are
efficient, work well in windy areas, and are great for touching up uneven
burns. The biggest downsides to them are they require specially refined
fuel to prevent their micro-ports from clogging, can be somewhat finicky
at times, and that even if it your lighter works perfectly it will
eventually destroy itself from its own extreme heat. If you get a year's
use from a torch lighter you are doing better than most consumers.
Cedar Spills - This is a long thin strip of Spanish cedar which is ignited by another source and is then used to light your cigar. This is an elegant method that is more about show than go in my opinion. Seldom does a cedar spill function as well as any lighter or even matches.
Candles - I have seen this method utilized in restaurants. Again it is meant to be ritzy, but in actual application it can be messy and typically your cigar will absorb a distinctly unpleasing flavor from the burning wick and wax.
Flaming Liquor - Another fancy, showy cigar lighting method I have seen employed in a few upscale restaurants. It looks good, but seldom does it work well and you have next to zero control over the flame. Do yourself and your eyebrows a favor, skip ever trying to light your cigar this way.
Car Lighter - A car's cigarette lighter does a fantastic job of lighting a cigar coolly, quickly, and evenly. The only problem is that you can only employ this technique on narrow ring gauge cigars as the lighters were designed for a cigarette's girth.
Now that you have endured reading all the above, here comes the part where I tell you to do what you want and what works best for you. Truth is you will find your own style and methods of lighting cigars that best suits you.
Personally, I tend to be more gentle while lighting mild cigars as their delicate flavors can be tainted. I am more ritualistic and discerning when sparking a special cigar at a special event as I relish in the moment. And when I am fishing or working in the garage I just torch the heck out of my cigars.
So finally in short, the proper way to light your cigar is a matter of your own personal choice.
Don’t let flame touch foot of cigar.
Turn Cigar while lighting.
When embers appear - blow through cigar to remove any unwanted odors that flame may have caused (butane, lighter fluid, sulfur).
Experienced smokers prefer to light their own and may sometimes prefer to light with cedar strips.
Don’t butt out a cigar – It will extinguish itself in a matter of a minute or two if not drawn upon.