Several months ago, I had an experience smoking some Taboo cigars that we ashed into a rather ingenious tin can ashtray. Ok, it wasn’t that ingenious but it was functional and added a bit to the smoking experience. Im sure almost every cigar smoker has some similar stories of improvised ashing, especially in the early days of discovering cigars. Ashtrays can become like characters of the smoking experiece as much as humidors, lighters and cutters. We become attached to them and they are anchors for memories of good smokes.If you …

When you’re first getting into cigars, and you would like to try something beyond the cheap brands in terms of flavour and experience, there’s a good chance your local tobacco shop will point you towards a Padrón. This brand has established itself as the source of good value, high quality entry level cigars. José Orlando Padrón, coming from a long family history of tobacco growing in Cuba, started his own cigar company in 1964 using American tobacco. As his market changed he needed a more reliable supply of materials and …

When the wife takes one of those shopping trips south of the border and you end up as the chauffeur, make sure you take advantage of the situation and make a detour to a local cigar shop. In my case, being from Vancouver, I’m talking about the Fairhaven Smoke Shop. Set in the quaint tourist village of Fairhaven, near Bellingham, you can expect turn-of-the-century buildings and good restaurants – just the recipe to distract the lady from the true nature of the visit. On my most recent trip, Michael pointed …

As I travel quite frequently, I often find myself in hotel bars or restaurants grabbing a beer or a dram after an arduous flight. However, a recent trip to Albuquerque proved to be something special. After arriving in Albuquerque after a long flight, I was more than ready for a dram in the hotel bar or a nearby establishment. Because the hotel was under renovations, a quick google search led me to a handful of pubs and bars in the nearby area (it was already 11pm at this …

I’ll be attending The Great Whisky Smoke tonight – a satellite event for the Hop Scotch Festival which includes an afternoon of cigars, catered food, and Glenmorangie scotch, followed by an evening in the grand tasting hall where a large variety of exhibitors await.  While I assumed that the 10 tasting tokens accompanying my ticket would allow me to taste 10 different whiskies in the tasting hall, I just finished going through the festival website and this is definitely not the case.  In fact, if I decide to sample Johnnie …

I don’t know much about pipes, but The Art of Manliness had a great primer today on smoking a pipe.  Everything from the materials needed (a pipe, tamper/cleaner, matches/lighter, tobacco) to how to smoke. Check out the full article here.
I’ve seen many people compare cigars and pipes, and in general both have their merits.  I say to each their own.   I’ve only smoked a pipe a handful of times, but I’m definitely craving a pipe after reading that article.