Cigars 101

Being a cigar aficionado isn't necessary in becoming a gentleman, in fact, nothing is "required" to be a gentleman. The only thing that truly defines a gentleman is his outlook on life, and how he carries himself everyday.

However, chances are you'll smoke a cigar once in your life. I personally enjoy a cigar once in a while, but its not for everyone; and by no means are we saying you have to take up cigars if you want to be a gentleman. If enjoying a cigar is something you want to try, we want to make sure you have the knowledge to confidently interact with others in the cigar-smoking world.

And if you are currently an avid cigar smoker, skip our Cigar 101 posts, and look for our reviews about various cigars.

To be honest, I was intimidated before I had my first cigar, and I even asked the gentleman working at the cigar room what I needed to know before I took that first puff.

So, here is our first addition to Cigars 101:

Basic definitions:

Ring Gauge: A measurement for the diameter of a cigar divided into 64ths. Thus a 64 ring gauge would mean that a cigar had a one inch diameter. A 32 ring gauge indicates a half inch diameter; a 48, a three quarter inch diameter.

As in: "Whats the ring gauge on this cigar?"

Draw: The act of drawing smoking from the cigar.

As in: "This cigar has a nice draw, its a very smooth and easy smoke."

Plug: Caused by an obstruction in the cigar, causing a very difficult draw

As in: "This is cigar is definitely plugged."

Body: The strength of a cigar, which usually comes in three variations: mild, medium, or full bodied.

As in: "Is the body on this cigar fairly mild?"

The Gentleman's Blog Tip: Always light your cigar with a match, the butane in a standard lighter will taint the flavor of your cigar.