As we all know, a premium cigar has many unique qualities and is revered by those who truly know their cigars and all that goes into their creation. In fact, it is estimated that 50 people are directly involved in producing a quality cigar. From planting that first seed to shipping it to your favorite cigar shop, more people than you ever imagined do all they can to give you a good smoke. To make sure their efforts are not wasted, we suggest never making the mistake of using a torch lighter and its extreme heat to light your favorite stogie. Instead, there are several types of a soft flame lighter we guarantee will give you far better results and will let you enjoy each and every bit of your smoking experience.
Spills
When we talk about spills as related to your cigar, don’t think we are referring to a drink you’ll need to wipe up. Instead, a spill in this sense means an item that can be used to give your cigar the soft flame it deserves as it is lit. Either a long, twisted piece of paper or a thin strip of wood, it’s ignited at one end and then delivers a beautiful soft flame to your cigar. Commonly used over the years to light candles, lamps, smoking pipes, and cigars, we feel spills have proven themselves to be great soft flame options.
However, if you think you’ll need to start searching your home for long pieces of paper or thin strips of wood, we are here to put your mind at ease. Instead, you can simply look inside your cigar box or at your cigar itself. Most cigar boxes today contain thin sheets of Spanish cedar, which by using an X-ACTO knife can be easily cut into thin strips. As for your cigar, our experiences have shown that unrolling the cedar sleeves and slicing them into spills works great. Natural, easy to do, and offering a great-smelling aroma when lit, we highly recommend spills.
Matches
While we love our spills, we also realize there are times when you’re ready to light your favorite cigar but don’t have a spill nearby. In these situations, we recommend using good ol’ dependable matches as a soft flame lighter. Easy to carry with you and almost always accessible at bars, restaurants, gas stations, and virtually any type of store, matches are commonly used by many who value their cigars. If you go the match route, do like us and choose a wooden match over a paper match. By doing so, you’ll avoid the residual chemicals in paper matches that may burn off and spoil the flavor of your cigar.
To show you know exactly what you are doing once you have the match and cigar in hand, we suggest always letting the match head burn completely off prior to pressing the flame to the cigar’s foot. If you’re like us and enjoy showing off now and then, hold two matches close together while lighting a vitola with a large ring gauge. When you do, you’ll create a wide double-flame that will get the attention of everyone in the room. While you can use any type of wooden match, we recommend keeping a supply of Davidoff 3.75-inch matches nearby, since they are made from wood that is non-aromatic and thus provides a burn that is clean and odorless.
Disposable Butane Lighters
If you want the ultimate “bang for your buck” and want to be assured of always having a soft flame source with you to light your cigar, then do like many of us and pick up a few disposable butane lighters the next time you are in the store. At an average price of only $1.50 and offering as many as 3,000 lights from a single lighter, the Bic disposable butane lighter gets our vote as the top choice for true cigar lovers. Great with cigars possessing a ring gauge of 50 or less, the Bic lighter produces a very good soft flame. However, the downside is that the flame is not adjustable and reduces in size as your lighter has less fuel.
Should you decide you want a disposable lighter that is a bit more fashionable and will make you look even more stylish and sophisticated than you are already, we recommend the Djeep lighter. Available in various colors and with logos and graphics, it costs a bit more than Bic. However, you’ll get up to 4,000 lights, an adjustable flame, an oversized thumb plate, and much more. Able to be used quite well with any type of cigar, the Djeep is a lighter many of us carry with us wherever we go.
Refillable Butane Lighters
Whether you want an inexpensive lighter or one that looks as if it should be placed next to a set of the fanciest diamonds, you can find these and many other options should you decide to purchase a refillable butane lighter. If you’re on a tight budget, we suggest the Vector’s Thunderbird lighter, which will run just under $20. However, if you have both money and cigars to burn, then we think you may want to put your exquisite taste on full display and purchase a Prestige lighter from Davidoff. Priced at $800-$1,700, these lighters are available in silver, gold, and other impressive finishes.
Yet no matter which type of refillable butane lighter your budget will allow you to buy, you’ll get such benefits as 45 and 90-degree angle flames, flames that are very clean-burning, and lighters that are repairable, which has often come in handy when some of us have thrown caution and our budgets to the wind on a new, expensive lighter.
If you want your light to be just right and are looking for the perfect soft flame lighter for your favorite cigar, give any or all of these a try. Once you do, we know you’ll find the one that works best for you and the cigars you love.
