5 Must Have Cigar Accessories And Tips For Every Cigar Smoker

Cigar smoking is not unlike other hobbies that require more tools than just the main event itself, which of course in this case are your cigars.

Cigar accessories can and will make your cigar smoking experience more enjoyable.  Accessories will also help you protect your investment, which is key since you’ve spent your hard earned money on some premium handmade smokes.  

With that being said, let’s take a look at 5 must-have cigar accessories. 

CUTTER

Forget about what you’ve seen in the old time tough guy movies where a guy grabs a cigar, bites off the end and spits it out to the side, looking like a bad ass.  Well, that look is merely a recipe for disaster and will surely kill your cigar smoking experience before you even begin.

You’re going to want to invest in a solid cutter that can get the job done right.  There are a few different ways that people cut their cigars which of course brings into the play multiple different types of cutters.

There’s the straight cut, which uses a guillotine cutter.  The v-cut, which uses a v-cutter.  And then you have a punch cut, which uses…you guessed it, a punch cutter.  Each of these specific cuts require specific types of cutters.

• Guillotine (straight) cutters are the most common type of cutter. They have a sharp blade that cuts a straight line through the end of the cigar. Guillotine cutters are easy to use and are the most widely available cutter on the market.
• V-cutters have a blade that cuts a v-shaped notch in the end of the cigar, similar to a valley.  Once you’ve mastered the straight cut, you can dive into the v-cut which will change up the draw on your cigar.  
• Punch cutters are more common in very small cigars (cigarillos) but people tend to use them on all sizes.  The punch cutter is a small round blade that punches a hole in the end of the cigar.  The main concern when using a punch cutter is the fact that the hole is so small which reduces the airflow of your draw and can result in tar buildup.  This will easily ruin the flavors of the cigar and result in you wasting your money. 

Tip:  Our favorite cutter is the Colibri S-V Cutter.  It’s a dual sided cutter that has a straight (guillotine) cut on one side and a v-cut on the other.  It’s pricier than most cutters at around $75 however it's extremely useful, very durable, and you get 2 cutters in one!  Not to mention Colibri allows you to register for a 2 year warranty on the mechanisms from time of purchase. 

Lighter

Seriously, how else are you gonna get this thing lit up? When adding a lighter to your accessories you should look first for a decent torch lighter.  This will ensure proper burn, plus it uses refined butane which means it’s cleaner with less effect on the taste of the cigar.  

Other ways to light your cigar that are useful are soft flame lighters and wooden matches.

• Torch lighters are simply the best way to light a cigar to ensure proper burn.  They produce a larger, hotter flame that is ideal for quickly lighting a cigar. Torch lighters come in different tank sizes as well as number of torches.  A 3 torch flame is ideal for most cigars.  General rule of thumb is the bigger the cigar, the more flames, the smaller the cigar the less flames.  You can get anywhere from a single torch flame to 4+.
• Soft flame lighters produce a small, gentle flame. THey are far less powerful than a torch lighter but still can give you a great and accurate light.  However, soft flame lighters can be more difficult to light a cigar with, and they may not be as effective in windy conditions.

Tip:  Don’t go spending a ton of money on a lighter.  There are plenty out there that are not expensive and fit perfectly in your pocket.  A lighter simply needs to work.  At the end of the day you’re going to lose a lighter or two and the last thing you want is to lose an expensive lighter.

Humidor

You spent all this money on cigars, so where are you gonna put them?  We’ll tell you where not to put them and thats just in a ziplock bag in the drawer of your desk.  For a cigar to maintain its integrity, it’s required that you store them in ideal conditions.  A humidor will allow you to maintain the proper humidity to store your cigars so they don’t become ruined.  Humidors come in a variety of sizes, so you can choose one that fits your needs.

Bonus: We’re going to throw in a bonus entry under this category: travel humidors.  A travel humidor is exactly what it sounds like, a portable humidor that you can bring with you outside of the house.  Unless you want to lug your 300 count humidor to your friend’s bbq, but we doubt that’s something you really want to do.  Travel humidors come in a variety of sizes but anything like a 5 or 10 count size is ideal and simple to carry around without it being a nuisance. 

Tip:  Go big.  If you have 50 cigars, buy a 100 count humidor (at minimum) and not a 50 count.  Cigars need room to breathe so that the humidity levels can circulate properly to all the cigars in your humidor.  Also, if you’re at the point where you have 50 cigars on hand, at some point in the near future (faster than you think) you’ll have 75 and then 100 cigars.  So instead of buying multiple 50 count humidors, just buy bigger to start so you have that wiggle room.

Ashtray

Unless you want a floor full of ash, you are going to need an ashtray. Ashtrays come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and materials, so you can choose one that fits your style. It is important to have an ashtray that is large enough to accommodate your cigars and that is made of a material that will not melt or warp when exposed to heat.  It really comes down to your preference.  You can get anything from a single cigar ashtray up to a large one that accommodates 8 cigars at once.  

Cigar Rest

Technically an ashtray provides you with a cigar rest.  However, much like your humidor, you’re not carrying around an ash tray with you.  And depending on where you are, you might not want to put your cigar down on the ground or on a table.  A cigar rest helps you avoid this because it’s used to prop up your cigar from any surface and let’s the smoke burn and breathe as it should.  This helps to keep the cigar burning evenly and prevents it from getting too hot. Cigar rests come in a variety of materials, including wood, metal, and silicone.  The great thing about cigar rests is that they are rather inexpensive and they fold up to fit in your pocket making the easy to travel with.

The world of cigar smoking has tons of different types of accessories.  We wanted to focus on the must-haves.  Here are some additional tips for you when it comes to choosing your cigar accessories:

• Consider your budget. Cigar accessories can range in price from a few dollars to several hundred dollars. Choose accessories that fit your budget and your needs.
• Choose accessories that are made from high-quality materials. This will help to ensure that your accessories last for a long time and perform the job they’re supposed to.
• Choose accessories that are easy to use and maintain. You don't want to have to spend a lot of time cleaning and maintaining your accessories.
• Choose accessories that you like the look of. After all, you'll be using these accessories every time you smoke a cigar and you still want to look cool in front of your friends.