A Warm Escape

I was a long way from Marylebone and Mayfair this week. London had a cold start to the year and I needed sunshine.

Where better than Seville, Spain - a modest 22 degrees Celsius (72 Fahrenheit for our American readers).

Great Tapas, inspiring architecture and deep rooted historic ties to cigars.

For those who are interested in History, Seville was Spain’s official gateway to the Americas after 1503, when the Crown centralised all New World trade through the city.

That shift followed the completion of the Reconquista in 1492 - the successful Christian military campaign that ended nearly 800 years of Muslim rule in much of the Iberian Peninsula (modern day Spain and Portugal), culminating in the fall of Granada.

A newly unified Spain, then turned outward with imperial ambition. Christopher Columbus, an Italian from Genoese, successfully petitioned to be funded for his expeditions and sailed under the Spanish Crown. This opened Europe’s route to the Caribbean and, unknowingly, established our modern day cigar culture.

For centuries, goods from the New World - including Cuban leaf - were regulated through Seville before being processed at the vast Real Fábrica de Tabacos (the biggest tobacco rolling factory in Europe), completed in 1728 and operational until 1950.

Anyways, that’s enough history for one day. I write more on these topics on the Insider editions. See The Origins of the Cigar for more. Back to the regularly scheduled programming… Cigars.

I walked into an unassuming cigar shop named Estanco 31 San Francisco. A small lady greeted me with a big smile.

We exchanged notes on cigars, when she realised I loved cigars, she pointed me to her special stash and advised the Hoyo De Monterrey Le Hoyo De San Juan.

Sold.

I found an exquisite roof terrace to enjoy my cigar on at La Terraza del Hotel Inglaterra.

The San Juan was one of the most floral smelling cigars I have encountered.

Taking a draw before lighting, you get a sense of what is to come - in this case, a bed of flowers.

As I began the ritual and took the first draw, I was surprised by how light touch the cigar was; notes of sea salt and nougat could be sensed through this flower bed of a cigar.

It was like being reunited with your lover after being away at war for an extended period of time. It provided a sense of nostalgia.

You can drift away into thought and be pleasantly surprised when you remember that you have a cigar in hand.

It is a gift that keeps on giving, as its a sizeable cigar.

It burnt wonderfully.

The ash stayed on strong at the foot of the cigar, really keeping the flavour together.

De San Juan is much like the individual that doesn’t speak much; but when they do, they always says something wonderful and welcoming to the ears.

Never in your face but always with a smile.

As much as I enjoy the darker notes of coffee and leather, the lighter floral notes of the Hoyo De Monterrey De San Juan were refreshing to the soul.

Cigars shape the tempo of our thoughts.
A heavy cigar can sharpen the mind and narrow the focus.
A floral one like the this one opens it - softens the edges - makes space.

That afternoon in Seville, the cigar did not just complement the day.
It defined it.

You see, the cigar you choose is the mood you permit.
And the mood you permit, becomes the direction you take.

Until next time.

Yours truly,
The Cigar Lover

Have you smoked this cigar before? What was your experience?

P.S. Don’t forget to put your city on the map, 75+ venues and counting, submitted by you all. Cigar Maps | find and save cigar shops & lounges, wherever you are.

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