Smoking
Cigar etiquette
Cigar etiquette comes down to one idea: your smoke shouldn't become someone else's problem. Ask before you light, keep ash in the tray, and let a finished cigar go out on its own.
Manners here are custom, not law
Cigar etiquette is a set of habits most smokers share, and it varies from lounge to lounge and host to host.
Nobody hands you a rulebook at the door. These are the habits most regulars share. When a room does it differently, the room wins. Watch for five minutes before you settle in. You'll learn more than any list can teach.
Lounge customs at a glance
Most lounge etiquette protects three things: the house's business, other people's air and the shared furniture.
| Moment | Common practice | Usually frowned on |
|---|---|---|
| Arriving at a lounge | Buy a cigar from the house humidor, or ask about the policy on outside cigars | Lighting a cigar you brought without asking |
| Choosing a seat | Take an open chair and leave regulars' usual spots alone | Spreading coats and bags over three seats |
| Lighting up | Toast the foot with a soft flame, away from other people | Waving a torch lighter near someone's face |
| Ashing | Let the ash grow and drop it into the tray | Flicking ash like a cigarette or onto the floor |
| Talking | Keep your voice at the room's level | Speakerphone calls and videos with the sound up |
| Finishing | Rest the cigar in the tray and let it go out | Crushing it out like a cigarette |
| Leaving | Clear your glass and empty packaging | Leaving cellophane and cut caps on the table |
Can you bring your own cigar to a lounge?
Sometimes, but ask first, because a lounge that sells cigars pays for its chairs, ventilation and staff with those sales.
Some lounges welcome outside cigars. Some charge a cutting fee. Some members' clubs run lockers and play by their own book. A shop that lets you smoke your own for free is doing you a favour, so buy a cigar or a drink while you're there. That's the trade.
Cigars from the house humidor are fair game to handle gently. Pinch, sniff, put back the ones you don't buy. Don't squeeze every cigar in the box.
Light up without bothering anyone
The polite light is the slow one: toast the foot with a soft flame, turned away from the people next to you.
A torch lighter is loud and hot. Point it at your cigar, not across the table. Matches and cedar spills are quieter and smell better once the sulphur burns off. Lighting technique has its own page: how to light a cigar.
Blow smoke up or away, never at someone. Obvious. Still worth saying.
What do you do with the cigar band?
Most smokers leave the band on until the burn gets within an inch or two of it, then slide it off once the heat has softened the glue.
Pull a band too early and the glue can take a strip of wrapper with it. Leaving it on the whole way is fine too. Some people like being able to tell their cigar from the next one in the ashtray. There's no snobbery in either choice, whatever you've heard.
Ash, ashtrays and the cigar you finish
A cigar's ash is meant to grow long and drop into the ashtray, not get flicked off every few puffs.
Rest the cigar in a groove of the tray between puffs. Don't balance it on the table edge or the arm of a leather chair. When you're done, set it down and leave it. A cigar goes out by itself within a few minutes once you stop drawing on it, and it smells far less than one crushed and smoldering. The ashing guide covers the technique.
Don't relight someone else's abandoned cigar for them, and don't ask for a puff of theirs. Cigars aren't shared like that.
Smoking at someone else's home
At home the host makes the rules, and the polite default is to ask, then smoke outside unless they say otherwise.
Cigar smoke travels. It settles into curtains, couches and clothes, and it hangs around long after you leave. The National Cancer Institute says cigar smoke can be a major source of indoor air pollution, and there is no safe level of exposure to tobacco smoke. That's a reason to think about who else shares the room: kids, pregnant guests, anyone who didn't sign up for it.
Bringing cigars as a guest? Bring enough to offer. Hosting? Have an ashtray out, a cutter and a lighter on the table, and a spot outside with somewhere to sit.
Gifting and sharing cigars
Handing someone a cigar is one of the oldest gestures in the hobby, and the custom is simple: give the cigar, then let them smoke it when and how they like.
Don't hover over their cut. Don't critique their light. If you're offered a cigar you don't want right now, thank them and say you'll save it. Nobody minds. Know your etiquette cold? Take the cigar etiquette quiz and see.
Lounge and host manners, answered
Is it rude to bring your own cigar to a cigar lounge?
It can be. Many lounges sell cigars and expect you to buy from them, and some charge a cutting fee for outside cigars. Check the house policy at the counter first.
When should you take the band off a cigar?
Common practice is to leave it on until the burn is an inch or two away, when the heat has loosened the glue. Pulling it early can tear the wrapper.
Is it rude to put a cigar out?
Crushing it out is frowned on in most lounges. The usual move is to rest the cigar in the ashtray and let it go out by itself, which takes a few minutes and smells less.
Should you ask before smoking a cigar at someone's home?
Yes. Cigar smoke fills a room and lingers in fabric, so the host decides whether, and where, anyone smokes. Outdoors is the common default.
What these customs rest on
- Cigar Smoking and Cancer: indoor air pollution and secondhand smoke, National Cancer Institute
- How to put out a cigar: the light tap and the slow burn, Boveda
- Cigar: accessories, ashtrays and cigar stands, Wikipedia