The Cigar Journal

[RegC]

As you start your cigar journey, you’ll no doubt feel lost at times and lose track of what cigars you’ve smoked. When I’m in shops I’ll hear someone asking a staff member about a cigar that they enjoyed but they can only describe it by the band or some aspect of it. I happened to be that customer once and some of the best advice I received was to start a journal to keep track of the cigars that I was smoking.

Today we’ll discuss the importance of a journal, some suggestions on the types of notes you should take, and digital vs hard copy.

When most people start smoking cigars, they usually buy one or two at a time. This can be due to not owning a humidor and/or smoking infrequently. That can make it easy to lose track of the cigars that you are smoking and even harder to find that cigar again.  A cigar journal is not only a great way to keep track of the cigars that you smoke but also a way to save the bands from those cigars.

Journaling can be an important tool in your evolution as a cigar smoker, having a running log of what you’ve liked and didn’t like can help you see what your preferences may be. Over the years I’ve ended up with several journals, I recently came across one and it was interesting to see how my taste has evolved over the years.

As you set up your journal you can choose to save your bands or write the name and brand of the cigar. You’ll also want to note the size this is important because there can be nuanced differences in a cigar depending on the size. Important things to note:

1. When you smoked the cigar – There are cigars that I like to start the day off with but don’t’ necessarily enjoy later in the day and vice versa a medium-full bodied cigar that I’ll smoke later in the day may be too strong in the morning. You may recognize that a cigar that you didn’t like in the morning you love in the evening after you’ve eaten a meal or two.
2. What you’ve eaten – The food that we eat has a direct effect on how we’ll experience a cigar. Food on our palate can wreak havoc on the tasting notes in a cigar. Cigars can have levels of tasting notes some more pronounced than others. So be aware of what you’ve eaten, how that may have impacted your experience with that cigar.
3. What you drank – Just like food beverages effect how you experience a cigar. Even more so at times because we tend to drink while we smoke a cigar.

Now that you have an idea of what notes you should take, let’s look at written vs digital journals. When I got started the digital option wasn’t as robust as it is now, though cell phones were around they weren’t as “smart” as they are these days. A segment of the population enjoys writing and keeping written records, it also gives you something to do with the cigar bands that you may accumulate. It’s also something that you can show off to family or discuss with friends at the lounge. These journals don’t have to be super expensive; a simple spiral notebook will do.

The digital option will appeal to a lot of people because we always have our smartphones with us. Some apps allow you to snap a picture, add notes and organize photos. Though it’s not as easy to share your journal with others, you do have the advantage of having a mobile platform when you happen to be at a shop and want to show a staff member a photo.

In conclusion

A journal can be a helpful tool as you navigate the world of cigars. It will allow you to accumulate data that can show trends and preferences, there are times we can smoke the same cigar (example Room101 Farce) and have varying experiences depending on the factors we discussed earlier. If you decided to start a journal let me know how it’s going and feel free to post pictures. If you have questions, feel free to reach out.

[brewsandstogies]

I have been keeping a running journal of my smokes for the past 5 years. It's not a detailed account of the smoking experience, more just a couple of lines about what I liked or disliked about the cigar. I note things like the smell, cold draw, the lighting/burning, re-lights if needed, volume of smoke and any issues in the over-all experience. This helps me if I want to purchase more of a particular line. It's definitely been helpful and it's a good memory jogger for cigars I may have forgotten about.  

[DatGOOSEwaddup]

This is excellent advice! When I first picked up cigars as a hobby, I made every effort to review every cigar I could. In about three years I filled up three books, for over 1000 reviews total, and I always kept a glue stick with me for the bands. This was about eight years ago now, and I don't really review cigars anymore, but that was such a great way to develop my palate and make cigars a part of my life. And it's fun to go back and read reviews from the first cigars I ever smoked

[Andrew]

Thanks for the great idea. Do you have any recommendations for a journal or dossier?

[RegC]

Hey Andrew,

If you want to go the inexpensive route a standard spiral notebook will suffice, but if you want to step it up a bit a nice leather bound journal is a good way to go. Something like this is stylish, easy to carry and would also make a nice way to show off your bands once your fill it up - Amazon.com : Handmade Leather Journal/Writing Notebook Diary/Bound Daily Notepad For Men & Women Unl...