The cigars are cut and the guests are waiting. You reach for the deck lighter and find it is the yacht's windproof torch. Behind it on the tray sit cedar spills and a soft-flame lighter. Which you choose, and how you use it, will decide whether the cigar tastes of tobacco or of fuel.
What to Light With
| Source | Use | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cedar spill (thin cedar strip) | Traditional, best flavour | Light the spill from a flame, then light the cigar with the spill. Adds a faint cedar note |
| Butane soft-flame lighter | The reliable default | Odourless, clean; keep it fuelled |
| Butane torch (jet) lighter | Windy decks, thick ring gauges | Hot and fast; keep the flame a little away from the foot to avoid charring |
| Odourless matches (long) | Acceptable | Let the sulphur burn off before it touches the cigar |
Never use a petrol/naphtha lighter, a scented candle, a galley hob or anything perfumed. The fuel and the scent go straight into the tobacco and ruin the cigar.
The Toast-and-Light Sequence
- Toast the foot: hold the cigar at roughly 45°, flame below and just clear of the foot, and rotate slowly. Do not let the flame touch the tobacco. Toast until the rim glows evenly.
- Light: bring the cigar towards the mouth, draw gently while rotating, keeping the flame just off the foot, until the foot is lit across its whole face.
- Check the burn: look at the glowing foot. Touch up any unlit section rather than letting it burn crooked.
- Blow gently across the lit foot to even it, then present.
Who lights it? Offer the flame and let the guest draw — most prefer to light their own once toasted. Some owners expect you to toast, light and hand it over ready. Ask, and record the preference. Never take a guest's cigar into your own mouth.
Ash and Ashtrays
- Use a proper cigar ashtray: wide, deep, with a broad rest groove sized for the ring gauge. Cigarette ashtrays are too small and tip cigars out.
- One ashtray per one or two guests. Empty and replace before it is full — do not scrape a guest's ash in front of them.
- Do not tap the ash off. A good cigar holds a firm ash; let the guest roll it off gently in the tray when it is an inch or so long. Ash insulates and keeps the burn cool.
- Empty ash into a metal container, never a bin liner, and never over the side (see the fire and pollution rules).
Relighting
- A cigar left for a few minutes can be relit. Tap off loose ash, gently blow through it to expel stale smoke, brush the foot clean, and re-toast.
- Trim off the charred end if it has been out for a long time.
- A cigar out for hours will taste stale and bitter. Offer a fresh one.
Pairing
| Pairing | Works with |
|---|---|
| Aged rum, cognac, armagnac | Medium to full cigars; the classic after-dinner match |
| Single malt whisky | Peated malts with full, spicy cigars; sherried malts with maduros |
| Port, madeira, sweet fortified wines | Maduros and richer blends |
| Espresso / dark coffee | Almost anything; excellent in the morning |
| Full-bodied red wine, champagne | Milder cigars; delicate wines are easily overwhelmed |
General rule: match intensity to intensity. A big Nicaraguan flattens a delicate white wine.
Onboard Notes
Keep lighters fuelled and spare butane in a safe, ventilated stowage — not in the humidor or a cabin locker.
Never leave a lit cigar unattended on a rest, on teak, or on soft furnishings.