Partagas Serie D No. 4 Tubos Pack of 3
£137.00 £45.67 a cigar
How do you light a cigar with matches without ruining the taste?
The short version
How do you light a cigar with matches without ruining the taste?
To light a cigar with matches, strike a long wooden match and hold it horizontally until the chemical sulphur head burns away completely (about 3 to 5 seconds). Once only the bare wood is burning, hold the soft flame an inch below the foot at a 45-degree angle, gently toasting the tobacco without touching the flame directly to the leaf.
The main points
- Always wait 3 to 5 seconds for the sulphur chemical flare to burn down to clean wood before touching the flame near the cigar
- Use long wooden cigar matches (3 to 4 inches) rather than flimsy paper books or short kitchen matchsticks
- Hold two matches parallel for 50+ ring gauge cigars to create a wider, more even flame bed
- Never touch the visible flame directly to the wrapper or filler: radiant heat alone should toast the tobacco
- Blow gently on the lit foot to inspect the cherry ring: ensure an even orange glow across the entire circumference
The sulphur trap: Why rushing ruins your first third
The chemical composition on the strike head of a match is a mixture of sulphur, potassium chlorate, and glue. When struck against the phosphorus striker strip, it flares vigorously, producing intense sulphur dioxide gas and acrid chemical smoke.
Tobacco leaf is intensely porous and hygroscopic. If you bring a match to your cigar the moment you strike it, that noxious sulphur smoke is drawn straight into the unburnt foot of the cigar, permanently impregnating the tobacco with a bitter, metallic taste that ruins the entire first third. Always hold the match level and wait until the flare dies down and the flame is burning cleanly on the bare aspen or pine wood.
Wooden cigar matches vs paper book matches
Ordinary paper matchbooks from restaurants or bars are useless for premium cigars. Cardboard matches burn far too fast, generate low heat, and contain wax and glues that impart their own chemical odours. Furthermore, holding a burning cardboard match close enough to toast a cigar almost guarantees burnt fingers.
Specialist wooden cigar matches are three to four inches long, giving you 30 to 45 seconds of clean, steady burn time. Their thicker wooden splint produces a broader, cooler flame that allows you to toast the foot deliberately without rushing.
The multiple match technique for thick ring gauges
A single match flame is roughly half an inch wide. Trying to light a 52 or 54 ring gauge Robusto or Toro with one match means the flame only covers a fraction of the surface area, forcing you to rush around the perimeter before the wood burns your fingers.
The traditional tobacconist technique is to hold two wooden matches together, head to head, and strike them in tandem. The combined flame produces a wide, generous bed of soft heat that toasts the entire diameter of a large vitola evenly and efficiently.
Spanish cedar spills: The connoisseur alternative
For the ultimate traditional light, use a Spanish cedar spill. In wooden cigar boxes, sheets of paper-thin Spanish cedar (cedro) separate layers of cigars. Tear a thin strip of this cedar, light it with any match or lighter, and use the burning wood to light your cigar.
Spanish cedar burns cleanly at an ideal low temperature, completely free of chemicals or sulphur, and imparts a faint aroma of sweet toasted cedar to the initial draw.
Recommended from our humidor
Duty-paid, kept at 68% humidity, and sent with a free Boveda pack.
Follow-ups
Related questions
The variations of this question people search for most.
Can I use ordinary small kitchen matches to light a cigar?
You can in an emergency, but you will likely need four to six matches. Strike them one at a time, let the sulphur burn off, and toast one quadrant of the foot with each match. Long cigar matches are far more practical.
Why do matches keep blowing out when lighting cigars outdoors?
Matches produce a delicate soft flame that cannot withstand even a gentle breeze. If you are smoking on an outdoor terrace or in the garden, a windproof jet torch lighter is much more effective than matches.
How many matches does it take to light a robusto cigar?
With long wooden cigar matches, an experienced smoker typically uses two matches: one to thoroughly toast the foot and another while taking the first gentle draws to set the cherry.