We’re back with another episode of Smoke and Steel, and this time we let our listeners drive the conversation. Instead of our usual format, we opened things up for questions from our Facebook community and the responses didn’t disappoint. From drink pairings to getting cigar smell out of your clothes, we covered it all in this Q&A session.

Pairing Your Smoke: It’s Not Rocket Science

One of the first questions came from Walt’s wife, and honestly, it’s one we get asked a lot. How do you know what to drink with your cigar? The short answer is you don’t need to overthink it.

Most of us stick with whatever we’re in the mood for. Jim pointed out that any bourbon or whiskey generally works well with almost any cigar he smokes. We’ve all tried the marketing gimmick of pairing specific cigars with their branded whiskeys, but at the end of the day, it comes down to personal preference.

Rob shared a story about pairing an EH Taylor cigar with EH Taylor bourbon over a weekend. Did it enhance the experience? Maybe. Would it have been just as good with a different bourbon? Probably. The key takeaway is to smoke what you like and drink what you enjoy. They’ll usually work together just fine.

The one exception we all agreed on is being careful with heavily peated scotches with cigars (It’s a pairing that can easily dominate the cigar). Beyond that, stick to brown liquor and you’re golden.

The Non-Alcoholic Scene

Eric brought up an important topic that’s often overlooked in the cigar community. For those who don’t drink, what are the options? The non-alcoholic beer market has exploded in recent years and Eric’s been sampling quite a few.

Athletic Brewing came up as a favorite for non-alcoholic IPAs. Heineken Zero and Corona’s non-alcoholic options also got high marks. Eric mentioned that Guinness Zero supposedly tastes just like the real thing, though he hasn’t personally tried it yet.

The key point here is that these aren’t your grandfather’s O’Doul’s. The quality has improved dramatically and they pair well with cigars. Even Costco is stocking them now, which tells you something about the market demand.

On the spirits side, things aren’t quite as developed. Eric tried a few non-alcoholic spirits, and let’s just say the technology isn’t there yet. They’re designed to be mixed into cocktails rather than sipped straight, which doesn’t really work for cigar pairings (at least, not for our group).

Getting the Smell Out

Another question from Eric’s wife hit close to home for all of us. How do you get cigar smell out of your clothes, hats, and shoes? This is a constant battle, especially if you’re married.

Rob recommended Downy scent beads in the wash. Not lavender, but vanilla or one of the other scents. Jim suggested Febreze for shoes and hats, letting them air out after a quick spray. Eric mentioned he gets undressed in the garage and leaves his clothes out there for a few days before bringing them in for washing.

The truth is, certain materials hold the smell worse than others. Jackets are notorious for it since you don’t wash them as often. Shoes can be surprisingly bad too. One suggestion was Lampe Berger products, which use an alcohol-based system with scents to neutralize odors in the air.

But here’s the reality: if you’re serious about cigars, you’re going to smell like them sometimes. Most of us have accepted this. Rob shared a story about his wallet sitting on the kitchen table and his wife immediately smelling it from across the room. It happens.

What to Look for in a Cigar Lounge

This was the big question from our buddy Bruce, and it sparked the longest discussion of the night. What makes us want to return to a cigar lounge?

First and foremost, ventilation matters. If you walk into a lounge and can’t see through the smoke, you’re not staying long. Your eyes shouldn’t be burning while you’re trying to enjoy a cigar. The best lounges invest in quality smoke eater systems that keep the air clean without making it feel sterile.

Cleanliness came up repeatedly. We’re not talking hospital-grade sterile, but the place should be well-maintained. If the bathroom is a disaster, if there’s ash everywhere, or if ashtrays are overflowing, that tells you something about how the business is run. It usually means the humidors aren’t being maintained properly either.

Hours of operation matter more than you’d think. Not everyone works a standard schedule. If a lounge is only open 9 to 5 on weekdays, they’re missing out on a huge chunk of potential customers. The best lounges understand their clientele and adjust accordingly.

Hospitality is huge when considering what to look for in a cigar lounge. Being greeted when you walk in, having staff who are knowledgeable and friendly, feeling welcome. These things make a difference. We’ve all been to lounges where the person behind the counter barely acknowledges you, and it’s a turnoff.

Parking shouldn’t be overlooked either. We talked about some great lounges in Philly that we don’t visit as often as we’d like simply because parking is a nightmare. When you’re trying to relax, the last thing you want is to walk eight blocks or worry about a meter running out.

Selection matters, but it’s not everything. A smaller shop with a curated selection and great atmosphere beats a massive humidor with terrible ventilation and unfriendly staff every time.

Price is always a factor. We get it, brick and mortar stores can’t compete with online prices. But there’s a limit. When a lounge is charging $15 more per stick than anywhere else just because they have a bar, that’s tough to justify for regular visits.

The Cigar Aficionado Top 25 Debate

Joe asked us about the upcoming Cigar Aficionado top 25 list and whether we trust it. The consensus was pretty clear: wheither you believe in it or not, they are a massive boost to sales across the industry.

Jim was the most vocal about this. He pointed out that the cigars at the top often correlate with who bought the most full-page ads that year. That doesn’t mean they’re bad cigars. Most of them are quite good. But calling them the absolute best of the year? That’s debatable.

We talked about specific winners that raised eyebrows. The Alec Bradley Prensado winning was controversial. The Andalusian Bull winning back in the day had people up in arms. The My Father Blue from this year seems like it might actually deserve the hype if it wins.

The interesting thing about these lists is their effect on sales. A cigar that wins or places high on the list will see demand skyrocket. Prices often go up. Availability becomes an issue. Whether that cigar truly deserves the spot becomes almost irrelevant once the market reacts.

Our approach is simple: if a cigar wins and we haven’t tried it, we’ll give it a shot. That way we can form our own opinion. But we’re not buying boxes based on someone else’s ranking.

Brands That Changed

The conversation naturally shifted to cigars that used to be favorites but changed over time. Camacho came up immediately. They changed their entire line, and while the cigars aren’t bad, they’re not what they used to be. Some of us still enjoy them, but none of us seek them out like we did years ago.

The Nestor Miranda Coffee Break was another casualty. When it was reintroduced, it bore no resemblance to the original. Jim learned an expensive lesson on that one by buying a box before trying the new version.

Oliva was interesting because the brand itself may not have changed as much as our palates did. Walt used to smoke their entire line but now only really enjoys the V series, particularly in lancero. Sometimes it’s not the cigar that changes but us.

The Gurkha Ghost got mentioned as something that started strong and then fell off. Whether they changed the blend or ran out of certain tobacco, the quality definitely declined.

Wrapping It Up

This Q&A format worked really well for us. Getting questions directly from our community made for a more organic conversation than our usual structure. We covered what to look for in a cigar lounge, how to pair your smokes, dealing with the inevitable smell, and plenty of other topics.

We’ve got some exciting episodes coming up. Dave West from Avowed was in recently, and we’re planning a Christmas special with the boys from LA Cigar Collective. We’ll have holiday gift ideas, ugly sweaters, and plenty of surprises.

Make sure to check out our new merch over at our Sticker Mule store. Walt and Eric are modeling the hoodies in this episode, and Jim has one on the way. We’ve got them available at cost. We’re not making money on them, just giving you guys a way to rep Smoke and Steel wherever you are.

Until next time, keep them lit and we’ll see you on the next episode.