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Why I Smoke Cigars

Updated 2026-10-23 · by Eric

I smoke cigars to slow down. Not for the nicotine, not for the strength, and never as something to do while I work. A cigar is how I pause a busy life for an hour and a half... which is also why I'm not going to spend one of those evenings on a cigar that isn't worth it.

A busy life, paused on purpose

Slowing down is kind of why I got into cigars in the beginning. I've always liked the smell of cigars, even as a kid. And I'm pretty busy. There's a bunch of stuff going on with work, and then the family: my daughters are still in school, they're both involved in sports and activities, and then there's friends, church, and a bunch of different stuff. Cigars, for me, are a way to just pause, take a break, sit down and relax.

So I really enjoy doing absolutely nothing while I have a cigar. No YouTube, no Facebook, no social media, no work. Just relaxing for an hour and a half to two hours, usually out on the back deck. Generally that's in the evening, after dinner and before bed, when the day's winding down. Occasionally I'll have one in the afternoon, mostly on a weekend. A lot of nights the cigar takes the place of dessert, and that trade already has its own page.

The one rule: a cigar doesn't ride along with work

I don't pair cigars with doing any work at all. If I'm working in the office or working in the yard, I'm not going to go have a cigar while I'm doing those things. I use a cigar to slow down, relax, and just chill. I don't use a cigar while I'm doing something else.

There are incredibly few exceptions to that, and they're usually not planned. I've already got a cigar going, then something comes up that I have to do... and unless it's a bad cigar, it comes along while I do it.

I chase flavor, not strength

I don't smoke cigars for the nicotine or the strength. I smoke them for the flavor profile, and to relax and unwind and enjoy the quiet time. I don't chase strength; I chase flavor. It just depends what mood I'm in, whether I want something with really bold, strong flavors, or something mild that's just creamy and nothing else. Strength vs body vs flavor pulls those dials apart.

When I'm too busy to have one, I miss cigars. But not because I need a nicotine hit or anything like that. I miss the relaxation, the enjoyment, and the flavor. The nicotine side of cigars, and how to keep a strong one from wrecking your night, lives at nicotine and not getting sick.

An addition to my life, not my life

If I'm busy all day at work and the evening is filled with games, taking my daughters to different activities, or going out with friends, I don't get to smoke a cigar. And if I can't enjoy a full cigar, I'm not willing to light one, burn it for fifteen minutes, and throw it away. The cigar does not take over my life. It's an addition to my life. I generally don't have more than one a day, and the count is completely time dependent... my actual numbers, and what the research says about frequency, are on how often is too often.

What it's done for my stress

I don't have any medical story where I can say I started smoking cigars and this positive thing happened. What I can tell you is that since I started, the stress I physically feel on a regular basis is definitely down. It's not because work is any less crazy. It's because I take the time to stop and pause and rest and relax with a cigar.

Then my wife pulls up a chair

It's been great for my wife and me, too. She's busy and running fast a lot of the time as well. But when I have a cigar, she knows I'm not doing anything else. At least two or three times a week she'll pause everything, come out, sit down, and she and I just talk... sometimes about nothing, sometimes about super important stuff. A couple of hours together, because I'm having a cigar and I'm not going anywhere. There have been a ton of phenomenal conversations just because I paused.

That goes all the way back to the first one. What I remember most about my first cigar isn't the flavor, it's that it got a conversation going with her. How the household got comfortable with cigars is its own story: cigars and your family.

It isn't only at home, either. This hobby has brought me rest and relaxation with other people too, a friend or a group of friends just hanging out with a cigar.

Why that's how I review

The whole purpose of it for me is relaxing, so I'm not going to spend one of those evenings on a crappy cigar. That's the thinking under every verdict here, and the case against the 100-point scale lays out how it turns into four tiers. A cigar that wastes one of those evenings still gets its review, for reasons I lay out in why I review the misses.

So every review on this site comes down to one question from a guy with an hour and a half and one cigar: would I spend my own money on this again?

Keep reading

• I skip dessert for a cigar
• Cigars and your family
• How often is too often?
• The case against the 100-point scale

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