"We have all seen the movies in which the hero or main bad guy slowly and stylishly withdraws a large cigar from his breast pocket. They insert it into a small tool, and gingerly snip one of the ends off it. This is the purpose of a cigar cutter."

However, cigar accessories are not there to simply look good, they are there to make the best of your cigars and to culminate in the most satisfying of smokes (I learnt this the hard way, and trust me, you want to spare yourself that). For example, a cigar 'cut' with ones teeth results usually in a bitter taste and loose flakes of tobacco in ones mouth. A cigar kept our of a humidor will eventually lose its character and flavour, and be difficult and horrible to smoke. And there is NOTHING worse than a caseless cigar becoming wet and renedered useless in the rain. (Hairdrying it wont help).

I have therefore done some research and hope you will all find this hub informative: please feel free to comment if theres something I miss out! 

Cigar cutters are an essential for those who wish to smoke cigars requiring cutting. Just because you have seen a gangster film in which a character bites if off with his teeth, I beseech you, please don't try it. Unless you know what you are doing (which I certainly didn't), I would honestly say it is one of life's more.....well..... disgusting expereiences.

This is where the cigar cutters come in, and there are three different types:

• The "Guillotine" or "Traditional" Cut - the best known of cigar cutting techniques, in which the cutter is basically a circular hole with a blade either side. The cigar is inserted into the whole and the blades quicky sliced across, chopping the end off the cigar, like Robespierre's execution. The advantages of this are that it is quick and easy, the disadvantages are that the smoker reccieves the full amount of tar and residue, which may impair the flavour of the cigar, and is also more of a health risk.
• The "Bullet" or "Punch" Cut - A punch or bullet cutter pierces a hole in the end of the cigar, making a clean job. This is often pre-done on many cigars, but is advantageous over guillotine cutting as tar and residue is collected in the curved end of the cigar before it leaves through the hole. It can also restrict the freedom of a draw of smoke.
• The "V" Cut - the king of cigar cuts. V cutters make a v shaped slit in the end of the cigar. It does not restrict the flow of smoke and most of the tar and residue accumulatedon the inside of the 'V', giving a smoke of maximum smoothness and minimum bitterness. However, due to the shape of V cutter blades, it is sometimes difficult to retain their sharpness.

Although there is a relatively wide price margin in cigar cutters, if you only tend to smoke one or two a month, you can stick with a cheap one, or at least, one which does the job satisfyingly. The more up-market cigars are really for those who smoke a lot, or who will gladly part with vast amounts of money.

Cigar Humidors are something you need to have if you want to keep cigars in your home. No matter how often you smoke them, cigars will not keep properly outside of a humidor. They will lose their texture and aroma, be prone to infestation by Tobacco Beetle, and become either too soggy, or too dry.

Cigar humidors are made and lined with special Spanish Cedar. This helps to

• Maintain a constant humidity in the humidor.  
• Repel tobacco beetle.  
• Add a distinctive aroma to the cigar.  

Cigar humidors, techically, do vary in size. Humidors can be walk-in rooms used for cigar storage, sometime occupying a whole floor! However, most of us arent willing to sacrifice our houses for this, so will stick with a box-type one.

Humidors usually contain some moisture absorbing/repelling material, and a hydrometer. These help to keep the humidity of the humidor at around 65-70% - the ideal for Cigars and tobacco.  

For those on the move, cigar cases are an essential item. Not only do they protect your cigars from bumps and distortions, they can also help preserve their flavour and humidity. Many are small enough to fit descreetly in a jacket pocket, others find a good place in a briefcase or travelbag. They are usualy made from leather, but some (see below) are lined with spanish cedar, very much like a humidor.

There are two main types of cigar cases:

• Spanish cedar lines cases - are usually more up-market, and act more like a mini-humidor than a case. They are extremely protective of your cigars whilst you are on the move.
• Telescopic cases - These usually have seperate cylindrical slots for the cigars to fit into: and slide, therefore can accomodate different kinds of cigar. Usually made from a harder leather, and not from any wood.

Some cigar cases actually incorporate small compartment(s) for accomodating a cigar cutter and/or lighter. This is (of course) another useful feature, as it saves jacket pocket space and hassle.

I use a simple Pantanella Cigar case, which although may be not the most up-market of cases, I feel does the job fine, as most of the time my cigars are kept in a humidor. And for those of you who live in an area with not a single tobacconist in sight, try this site for cigars and Cigar Accessories.