The Best Cigars for Beginners: An introduction to Smoking Cuban Cigars.

Whenever I am asked for a recommendation for a first Cuban cigar, I always name the first one I ever smoked: the Montecristo No.4.

In my case, I chose that cigar because it was the cheapest Cuban in the liquor store, but 25 years and many thousands of cigars later, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Cuban cigars vary in strength and nicotine, mainly determined by how much sun exposure the leaves that they are made from had while they were on the plant. For someone unaccustomed to tobacco smoking, a full-bodied cigar like a Partagás is probably too much for a first smoke, while on the other hand, a light cigar like a Hoyo de Monterrey tends to require a bit more experience to fully appreciate. Montecristo’s blend, however, sits in the middle – enough to give the smoker the full experience of a Cuban cigar, without underwhelming or overpowering.

The next factor is the size. Cuban cigars range from petite cigarillos to giant perfectos. Both have their place for regular smokers. In truth, there is probably some logic to a new smoker getting a taste of the hobby via a Montecristo Joyita or some other small panetela, but let’s face it, most first-time cigar smokers are curious about smoking at least in part for the look of it. You can’t look like robber baron chomping on some little thin thing. A Montecristo No.4, however, is big enough that is clearly proper cigar, but not so big that it will be difficult for a first timer to see it all the way through.

Finally, price. There are cheaper options that a Montecristo No.4, and there are much more expensive – of the more expensive, the most obvious is the Cohiba Siglo II, which is the same size and shape as a Montecristo No.4, but retails for around twice a much. The Siglo II is a great cigar, and a personal favourite, but a first-time cigar smoker needs to save something for the future. I think there is almost no chance that someone would find that they don’t care for Montecristo, but do like Cohiba, and given that there is some possibility that they will discover that cigars aren’t to their taste and toss it in the ashtray after a few puffs, to hand a Cohiba to a first-time smoker would be a waste of quality tobacco.

On the cheaper side there might be a few dollars difference between the Montecristo and a similarly sized cigar from Romeo y Julieta, Upmann, Partagas, or any of the big brands, but to make any serious saving you would need to select a machine-made or short-filler cigar. These cheaper smokes are made with chopped up pieces of leaf (like a cigarette), rather than full leaves, rolled by hand (or “on the thighs of virgins,” as surely every first-time smoker will want to tell their friends). Short-filler cigars tend to be more one dimensional than long-filler, as in short-filler everything is homogenised, while with a long filler cigar you are smoking along the length of a leaf from tip to stem, and the character will change as the smoke progresses. It’s perhaps debatable that a first-time cigar smoker will have much appreciation for that nuance, but after appearance the second reason why a first-time smoker is curious about cigars is that they want to appreciate a handmade artisanal product that is little changed from the one that has been giving smokers pleasure for more than five centuries, and for that you need totalmente a mano con tripa larga – totally hand made with long filler.

And so there it is. For your first Cuban cigar, the perfect choice is the Montecristo No.4. You won’t regret it.