We here at cigars.com are beginning an exciting new chapter for all our cigar lovers embarking on this brand-new, pleasurable pastime. We’ve worked tirelessly over the last year and a half to curate cigar kits for new smokers.
Becoming an avid cigar smoker can be daunting at times, however, we want to make the first step in your cigar journey a less stressful, and more memorable experience.
The first sampler we have for you today is the “Essential” cigar sampler for new smokers. The Essential cigar sampler has a variety of cigars that are a good introduction to the cigar world. This kit also is a great starting point if you feel like bringing cigars to any type of event you see fit.
Whether you’re getting together with friends at a winery, going to a wedding, or playing golf, this essential cigar kit for smokers just beginning their journey is the perfect companion to bring along with you.
In this kit, you’ll be receiving a total of 10 cigars, a torch lighter, and a Vertigo Big Boy cutter. The cigars featured in this kit are highly-rated blends with a profile that’s the perfect introduction for you, the new cigar smoker.
Another common theme you may see throughout this list is the sizes of the cigars we chose to be in the essential cigar kit. Robusto-sized cigars, which are usually 4 to 5 inches long with a ring gauge of 48 to 52 are the ideal size new cigar smokers should try first and foremost.
Let’s dive deeper and see what treats and surprises we have in store for the essential cigar kit for beginners!
- Romeo y Julieta 1875 Bully
- Oliva Serie O
- CAO MX2
- Rocky Patel Vintage 1999
- Crux Epicure
- Cigar Accessories
Romeo y Julieta 1875 Bully
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Indonesia
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Length: 5
Ring: 50
Strength: Medium
Smoke Time: 40-45 Minutes
Right off the bat, we’re featuring a cigar that is a perfect cigar for any novice or seasoned cigar smoker out there. The Romeo y Julieta 1875 Bully is perfect for smokers new to cigars for various reasons.
First off, this particular size, the 5 x 50, will only take you about 40 to 45 minutes to smoke. It won’t eat up a lot of your time and it's not much of a commitment. If you were to light up a Lancero or Churchill-sized cigar, those are a good hour to hour and a half smoke session. So, if your smoking experience may be a tough one at first, you won’t feel guilty smoking a smaller cigar.
Secondly, the combinations of tobacco featured in the Romeo y Julieta 1875 Bully will offer you a medium-bodied smoking experience. I always suggest to new cigar smokers to start with a cigar that isn’t powerful or could be defined as “harsh”, because you need some time to build your tolerance up to those fuller-bodied, stronger cigars down the road.
The Romeo y Julieta 1875 Bully could be enjoyed in any type of setting or event. It’s a cigar you could enjoy at a wedding, or as a nightcap cigar with a cup of coffee or after-dinner beverage.
Oliva Serie O
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Sun-Grown Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan Habano
Length: 5
Ring: 50
Strength: Medium
Smoke Time: 40-45 Minutes
The Olivia Serie O is one of three different cigars under Oliva’s “Serie” line. I’d say it’s the first cigar I’d pick under this line if I were to introduce a new cigar smoke to the Oliva brand.
Like the Romeo y Julieta 1875 Bully in regards to size and strength, the Oliva Serie O may have a bit more kick to it due to being a Nicaraguan Puro. “Puro” means when a cigar has the same type of tobacco as the wrapper, the binder, and the filler portion of a cigar.
Oliva reigns supreme with their products being flavorful smokes, especially the cigars in their profile that are mellow to medium-bodied. So, while smoking the Serie O from Oliva, you may detect notes of pepper, spice, and chocolate, which is all thanks to the Nicaraguan Habano tobaccos featured in this beautiful-looking Robusto.
CAO MX2
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro
Binder: Brazil
Filler: Nicaragua/Honduras/Peru/Dominican Republic
Length: 5
Ring: 52
Strength: Medium-Full
Smoke Time: 45 Minutes
CAO cigars are known for making some of the best Maduro blends in the industry, and the MX2 is a perfect example of this. With a dark and oily Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro wrapper, the MX2 may be daunting to the eye at first.
Darker cigars don’t always mean they’re stronger than cigars with lighter wrappers. That is a common myth within the cigar world that most new cigar smokers often make.
Now although the MX2 is on the medium to full-bodied side in terms of cigar strength, it is still a manageable cigar to smoke if you’re a newcomer. With six different tobaccos in this 5x52 Robusto, which isn’t a common trend with cigar ingredients, you’ll get delicious flavor notes of cocoa, cream, and cinnamon that are a treat for your palate.
Rocky Patel Vintage 1999
Country of Origin: Honduras
Wrapper: Connecticut Shade
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Dominican Republic/Nicaragua
Length: 7
Ring: 48
Strength: Mellow
Smoke Time: 70-90 Minutes
The Rocky Patel Vintage series is one of the most popular lines Rocky Patel has to offer. Each cigar under the vintage series features tobacco that was grown the year and aged to perfection. So, the Rocky Patel Vintage 1999 has high-quality tobacco from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic that’s been aged for almost two decades.
What makes the Rocky Patel Vintage 1999 a perfect blend for a new cigar smoker is the delicious Connecticut Shade wrapper. This wrapper provides a smoother and more delicious smoking experience than most Connecticut wrappers. If there are stronger tobaccos in the binder and filler, the wrapper is where most of the flavors come from and will counterbalance any full-bodied flavors you may detect.
Despite the size being bigger than the other cigars featured in this kit, the mellowness and smoothness of this smoke shouldn’t be as intimidating as most Churchill cigars tend to be for new cigar smokers. This smoke is a perfect cigar to take out on the golf course or enjoy poolside on a nice Sunday afternoon.
The Rocky Patel Vintage 1999 is the perfect Churchill-sized cigar for a new cigar smoker to take the plunge into bigger cigar sizes.
Crux Epicure
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Length: 5
Ring: 50
Strength: Medium
Smoke Time: 40-45 Minutes
Rich in flavor with phenomenal construction, Crux Epicure Habano is another cigar that is perfect for smokers just starting on their cigar journey. Being a Nicaraguan puro in a 5x50 size, you’ll get a similar smoking experience as the Oliva Serie O.
With a new palate to cigars, the Crux Epicure might be a bit of a jolt to you, but the flavor notes and construction are perfect for new cigar smokers. Although the Crux Epicure is a medium-bodied cigar, the smoothness of each puff won’t seem like it’s from a stronger cigar.
Cigar Accessories
Two quintessential items you need when smoking cigars (other than the cigar itself) are a lighter and a cutter. It’s all preference when it comes to the type of lighter and cutter you want to use, but we included some top-notch cigar accessories within this kit for you to have the ultimate smoking experience.
The Colibri Firebird Clear Afterburner is a very affordable cigar lighter for any novice smoker. A clear, large fuel tank will be a powerful accessory for you to light the cigar to perfection. Not lighting the cigar correctly or with an ineffective lighter could hinder the cigar-smoking experience. Its clear fuel tank will also help you see and gauge how much fuel the lighter needs, which can be a daunting task whether you are a new cigar smoker or not, but especially for those who have never refueled before.
As far as cutters go, we included the Big Boy 64-Ring cutter from Vertigo. Compact, durable, and extremely affordable on its own, the Big Boy Cutter is the perfect cutter for new-coming cigar smokers. It is the perfect cutter to start you off right so you can get a feel for how to properly cut cigars at your own pace.
Final Thoughts
We hope you enjoyed our very first cigar kit for new smokers piece, where we featured some top-notch cigar brands for you to start with. As, generally speaking, new cigar smokers may have no idea where to start when it comes to choosing the right cigar.
With the likes of Romeo y Julieta or Rocky Patel on our list, we hope to provide a wide range of cigars you can enjoy and eventually branch out to other delicious cigars under their portfolio as you continue your exciting journey through the cigar world.