The first thing you need to cut a cigar is a cutting tool. The most commonly used cutter is a guillotine cutter, which can be bought at any tobacco shop or online for fairly cheap. When I was a child, my dad would always jokingly ask me and my brother to stick our fingers into his guillotine cutter with the intention of cutting off our fingers. I suppose that instilled in me a healthy fear of blades.

No matter what shape your cigar is, your cutting practice will remain the same. The part of the cigar that you want to focus on cutting is the cap. The goal here is to cut off enough material to allow for proper draw but not so much that it will compromise the construction of the cigar. As Archer would say, “Just the tip.” When cutting, I also like to think of leaving a small taper on the head of the cigar to allow the smoke to funnel slightly as it enters my mouth.

When you have your cutter positioned properly, make sure you cut down firmly. A cut made in hesitation will cause tearing. It’s common to have a few flakes of tobacco fall out, but you don’t want the wrapper to start unravelling.

Another common way to cut a cigar is to use a cigar punch. Cigar punches are also fairly cheap and can be convenient, as they can often be attached to a keychain. Punches are circular blades that are inserted into the cap of the cigar and pulled out, leaving a small hole. The upside to a punch is that there is a lower risk of destroying the construction of the cigar. The downside is that the draw will not be as great.

There are other fancy tools you can get in order to get a perfect cut every time, but using a guillotine or punch should get you by just fine. In a worst case scenario, you can just use a pocket knife to cut a cigar – and if you screw up your cut, you can always smoke your cigar backwards.

The post Cutting Cigars appeared first on Bourbon Tobacco Wine.