'A good cigar is a smoke'

Winston Churchill loved them, Fidel Castro flaunted them and Sigmund Freud couldn't live without them. Smoking tobacco has been with humanity for millennia, but the practice of cigar smoking, arguably the most stylish version of the habit, can trace its popularity to Christopher Columbus, and has its own circle of aficionados right here in the city.
Meet the members of the Bangalore Cigar Club, a group of cigar buffs who often come together for a puff and powwow over high-quality tobacco with some fine jazz playing in the background.A 283-member-strong group, the Cigar Club, perhaps the only one in the city, has both men and women members, cigar fans keen on catching up with people who share the passion.
Started in mid-2012 at a meeting of six friends at a residence in Whitefield, the club grew in number simply by word of mouth. “I still remember it was a casual get together to try the Parpagas Serie D4, a fine Cuban cigar which was released in India. It was a fine evening where we smoked, sipped a few drinks and exchanged thoughts about the cigar with music playing the background,“ remembers Abilash R, co-founder of the club.
Soon, the club was christened and word spread.
Within months, the forum saw cigar lovers coming togeth er on pre-planned evenings, sharing smokes, discussing flavours and introduc ing exotic cigars. Mem bers often brought their own cigars to the meeting to share with others and com pare notes. Hosting cigar eve nings is said to be a privilege among members, and monthly meetings are conducted. “The club's idea is to bring together people who share a genuine passion for cigars and we as members are doing just that,“ says MS Joyappa, also a founder.
Invitations for cigar evenings are often emailed and a WhatsApp group keeps members updated on new cigars, cutter models and lighters in the market. New members are enrolled only after a brief telephonic interview to evaluate their cigar knowledge. “The exercise is only to gauge the passion the prospective member shares for cigars and also to explain the club rules,“ says Abilash. Abilash also organised a cigar evening on October 14 at a member's residence in Indira Nagar, which witnessed as many as a couple of hundred members attending. With a member list including senior corporate executives and businessmen, the Bangalore Cigar Club's senior most member is an octogenarian and the youngest, a 25-year-old. The club doesn't publicise its activities but maintains a presence on social media.
Bangalore Cigar Club, founded in 2012 is a group of cigar lovers with stringent membership criteria.Members meet monthly and often enjoy medium bodied cigars (in terms of strength) at a pre-planned venue. Pieces enticing members are mainly imports from Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua.Indian brand Black Tiger sometimes is part of a cigar evening.Club meetings are discussion forums on cigar models ranging from Rs. 500 to Rs. 4,000 per piece.Lighters (often Butane gas) running from Rs. 4,000 to Rs. 2 lakh a piece, cigar cutters ranging from Rs. 500 to Rs. 10,000 and limited edition ashtrays starting from Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 8,000 are prized possessions of some Club members.
Members of the cigar club.
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER
These days, the most prominent smoker of big cigars is Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Governator himself. Arnold's cigar smok ing started after his future father-in-law Sargent Shriver offered him a cigar when he and his currently estranged wife Maria were dat ing. His favourite cigars are Cohibas and Punch.
JP MORGAN
The legendary business tycoon and robber baron was also a fan of cigars. He loved to travel, collect art and smoke cigars, of which he consumed dozens a day. He was known to favor Cuban smokes, particularly Meridiana Kohinoors, a brand his acquaintances and associates called “Hercules's clubs“.
ZINO DAVIDOFF
If your wife doesn't like the aroma of your cigar, change your wife,“ said the late Swiss-based cigar-industry icon, who began his illustrious career in the 1930s as a worker in his father's tobacco shop in Geneva. The Russian émigré was instrumental in creating the highend Hoyo de Monterrey `Chateaux' series of cigars.