How to Cut a Cigar

Aside from the taste and the aroma, cigars are quite different from cigarettes.  Unlike smoking cigarettes, you can’t just pull a cigar out of a box, light it up and start to smoke it.  Properly preparing a premium cigar prior to smoking it is a process in itself.  The end of the cigar must be properly cut in order to get the best draw and flavor while maintaining the structural integrity of the cigar.

Virtually all premium cigars have closed heads that have to be cut before you can smoke them.  We’ll look at a number of different ways to cut a cigar.  The best way is the way that suits your style and taste.

If you watch old movies you’ll see that some of the actors cut a v-shaped notch in their cigars with a pocket knife.  Others used a horseshoe nail to pierce the end.  And certain “tough guys” bit the ends off their cigars and spat them out before lighting up.  Although some people still prepare their cigars for smoking using one of these methods, for the most part the way cigar aficionados cut their cigars today is a bit more hi-tech.

One thing’s for sure – a bad cut will ruin any cigar.  So, the better the cigar the more attention you should pay to how you cut it.

The overriding concept is to create a smooth, ample opening for the smoke to come through without compromising the cigar’s structure.  Most of the time this will mean that you’ll have to cut away part of the flag leaf or the cap that was used to close the cigar.  However, you need to make sure that you don’t cut too much away.  If you do some of the filler leaves can fall out.

 

The Wedge Cut

If you make a bull’s eye cut or a wedge cut, you will want to make a relatively large cut in order to expose the surface of the filler leaves.  This will allow you to get a good draw from the core through the rim of the cigar.  Most of the time, you should cut around 1/16^th of an inch off the end of the cigar.  If you don’t have a measuring device with you look for where the curved end begins to straighten out and make your cut there.

Alternatively, you can expose a lot of the surface area of the cigar by cutting a V-shaped wedge.  There are a couple of potential drawbacks to using this type of a cut.  Although the draw will be easy the cigar could smoke too hot.  In addition, if you like to chomp down on your cigars this type of a cut makes the opening in the cigar more prone to collapsing.  If the structure of the cigar is torn the draw will be closed off.

 

Cigar Cutters

Cigar cutters can be used to help you to cut your cigar with one swift motion.  They are the most efficient and safest way to properly cut a cigar.  If you use a cigar cutter rather than a knife or a piercer you will minimize the chance that you will tear the wrapper or otherwise damage the cigar.  Your best options would be to use either a single-bladed or double-bladed cutter to cut across the end of the cigar.

If you use a single-bladed cutter position the cigar away from the blade, at the far side of the opening.    Bring the blade down and touch the cigar before you make the cut.  This will keep the cigar in the proper position.  Then use an even pressure while making the cut confidently and quickly.

A double-bladed cutter is a little easier to use because it cuts from both sides simultaneously.  Nonetheless you should rest your cigar against one of the blades before you click the cutter shut.

It is well-worth investing in a good cutter because making a bad cut will ruin any cigar.  If you ruin even a handful of good cigars their cost could add up to considerably more than that of even the most elegant cigar cutter.

Author Bio – Jason Daniels has been smoking cigars for more than a decade.  When not smoking one of his favorite cigars you can often find him writing about them, usually with an e-cigarette clenched between his lips