CigarAficionado

Nothing compares to the perfect pairing of champagne and a cigar. Too often, cigars wind up with dark liquors, their natural partners. Rum, port, scotch and cognac are the norm for an after-dinner smoke -- not champagne. With the holiday season coming, of course, the preferred beverage will likely bubble, so finding the right cigars for the top libation will be crucial.

Fortunately, Vin Lee, CEO of the Beverly Hills Cigar Club, has agreed to help us out. As you prepare for the new year, take a look at the cigar and champagne pairings that he recommends, with both ubiquitous and rare products on the list. Lee says, "In this day and age, not everyone can afford a $50 cigar and a $300 bottle of champagne," said Lee. "Complementing a wonderful glass of champagne with a great cigar for the holidays is something everyone should be able to enjoy."

BHCC's 2010 Top 10 Champagne and Cigar Pairings are:

As the NY Times mentions, one would think that Guitar Aficionado was the new kid brother to Cigar Aficionado magazine. Both have covers with celebrities proudly showing off their toys, be it cigars or guitars. But Guitar Aficionado doesn't come from Marvin Shanken's empire but from the same people who created Guitar World and Guitar Legends, Future US. Guitar Aficionado courts the more upscale guitar fan, the person who buys an expensive guitar in concert with other fine goods such as a fine watch, a good Scotch, and perhaps a good cigar (maybe these magazines should swap ad space?). Guitar Aficionado will launch its first issue with celebrity chef Tom Colicchio on the cover and will publish quarterly.

The NY Times quotes publisher Greg Di Benedetto as saying that the title's similarity to Cigar Aficionado was not intentional although he does point out that the two titles rhyme. The similarities are striking though.

If you live in Scottsdale, AZ, you're about to have a new place to smoke. Pat Mitchel, owner of 21 Degrees Cigar & Accessories, is expanding his store with a Rocky Patel-sponsored lounge. Smoking bans have made lounges more important than ever to the success of the cigar trade, as customers are running out of places to smoke.

The engagement of sponsors is starting to gather momentum, particularly given tough market conditions in which every brand needs to find every advantage available. Sources say that Cigar Inn, in New York, entertained offers from several manufacturers before finally giving the sponsorship opportunity to magazine Cigar Aficionado.

Mitchell's sponsor, Rocky Patel, is excited to be participating in its first lounge, saying "Scottsdale is a good location, with good clientele."

The store pulls its name from the temperature, 21 degrees Celsius (just off 70 degrees Fahrenheit) at which humidors are kept.

A series of limited-edition cigars and boxes is being designed under the leadership of Litto Gomez to benefit El Museo del Barrio, New York City's only Latin American museum. To pull the project together, Gomez is working with artist Ruben Toledo and his wife Isabel, a fashion designer.

The end result, La Flor Dominicana El Museo Limited Edition is a Churchill-sized cigar. The filler and binder are from the La Flor de Palma farm in the Dominican Republic, and the wrapper is from other parts of the same country. The cigars are packaged in off-white lacquer boxes with designs by Ruben Toledo on both sides of the lid. Gomez says that the El Museo has a rich, smooth, full-bodied taste with both sweetness and complexity.

Gomez is making 2,000 boxes available, with each priced at $600. They will be available in May.

The 2009 Tobacconists' Association of America (TAA) Convention kicks off on Sunday, March 8. Tobacconists and manufacturers from around the world will converge on the CasaMagna Marriott for four days of reconnecting, deal-making and of course plenty of cigar smoking. I'm currently at this Cancun resort and am happy to give the attendees – and jealous onlookers – a few insights into the event's host.

Surprisingly, smoking bans have crossed the border, forcing the CasaMagna to be smoke-free. The lobby, restaurants, bars and guestrooms, for the most part, are off-limits for puffing. Fortunately, poolside smoking is fine, and you can light up in the bar that sits alongside the beach.

Igniting your cigar may be a challenge. With airlines frustrating efforts to carry torches, matches may be your only available option (unless you bleed your lighter and find someone to refill it for you in Cancun. The wind off the Caribbean is strong, so look for sheltered corners to use when firing up (there are a handful of them almost everywhere on the property).

A loophole in Mexico's smoking laws allows CasaMagna to welcome TAA's smokers into the Sa Si Thai restaurant, as it is a covered outdoor space. So, you'll be able to enjoy your favorite Avo, Fuente or Davidoff (or anything else) unmolested. The hotel has extended this restaurant's hours of operation to accommodate late-night indulging. After last call, you can retreat to your room's balcony to tie off the night with your preferred stick.

According to Gregory Mottola, of Cigar Aficionado, most of Chicago's cigar smoking takes place in local smoke shops. A smoking ban has whittled the field of options down, and there aren't any grandfathered establishments (as there, for example, in New York). Of course, lighting up on Michigan Avenue works for only part of the year, thanks to the city's brutal winters.

Mottola did find luck at Jack Schwartz Importer, a small shop on West Jackson Boulevard in the financial district. The store is small, but it does have a few chairs – for which there is considerable competition. Unfortunately, Jack Schwartz closes at 5 PM, leaving few options for an evening smoke.

When Mottola asks a store manager where people smoke after work, the reply was brutal and blunt: "They don't. This is pretty much it."

Iwan Ries, which also closes at 5 PM, has a 1,000 square-foot lounge on its second floor, with large windows that allow plenty of sunlight. Black leather chairs, televisions and wood floors adorn the lounge. Non-members have to pay a $10 fee (per day), and they, like members, are required to bring their own spirits. The store does not have lockers or personal humidors on site.

Cigar Aficionado has long had a policy about news and retailers: it doesn't happen. Well, times are tough, and it looks like those walls are coming down. The magazine doesn't have much of a choice, particularly after word has spread of between 25 and 30 layoffs (heard it from two confidential sources). So, what happens next? The publication dives headfirst into editorial prostitution.

The newly opened Cigar Inn -- on Second Avenue between E 54th Street and E 55th Street -- features a Cigar Aficionado-sponsored smoking lounge, with leather chairs, a working fireplace and even a barber's chair (of little use ot me, thanks to mother nature. You can get your sartorial needs taken care of at the Brioni counter.

So, it's hardly surprising that this establishment is popping up regularly on the once sacrosanct pages of the cigar community's "bible." The good news, however, is that you'll be able to get a sense (however brief) of what your other options are in New York.

Cigar descriptions are often like wine descriptions you can read them and hear rhapsodic words about the flavors and the notes but that doesn't necessarily mean that you taste them when you are puffing away. The Make Scents of Cigars kit contains six scents ( caramel, leather, oak moss, musk, pepper and damp earth)  that are often used to describe cigars. The kit helps you refine your palate and differentiate the subtle flavor differences. Cigar Aficionado found a kit that costs $20 but you can also get the kit online through Make Scents of Wine (which makes kits for appreciating wine and coffee) for $35.

A torcedor (which literally translates to ‘twister’, is the last thing you should do when rolling a cigar), or cigar roller, is a true artist with tobacco. Knowing all the work it takes to hand roll a cigar, it’s actually quite amazing they don’t cost more then they already do… rolling leaves into themselves, inspecting the best leaf for wrapping and sculpting the cigar to the requested shape. Earlier this month at the annual La Gloria Cuban Super Roll in Las Vegas, rollers got to compete for the top title of torcedor. If you think you have what it takes for future rolling events, sign up is about $500 (training included).