Cigars – quality and rich enjoyment
Few products are as strongly associated with luxury and indulgence as cigars. When the workday is stressful and the pace frantic, the need for relaxation and pleasure becomes even more urgent. Increasing numbers of people are discovering how a quality cigar can make a luxurious interlude even more enjoyable.
IN THE MID-1990S, cigars underwent a major renaissance. After decades of obscurity in the shadow of cigarettes, exclusive, preferably hand-rolled, cigars again became popular. But what many believed was a transient fad has proved persistent and now, slightly more than ten years later, cigars are also riding high on a widespread wave of interest in consumer products that confer a feeling and experience of luxury and pleasure.
Lavish books and magazines contain reports on exclusive dark chocolate in beautiful packaging, well-aged cheeses, expensive vintage wines and exquisite Coronas. A phenomenon confirmed by the fact that luxury goods and quality products are selling as never before.
Today, time is often a scarce commodity, which makes brief interludes of recuperation even more valuable. At such times, what could be better than to withdraw to a state of contemplative tranquility and draw on a lovingly hand-rolled cigar, either alone or in the company of like-minded people, comfortably ens- conced in a favorite armchair with a balloon glass of well-aged brandy in your hand?
Only the best imaginable
Swedish Match has focused its attention on the ultimate cigar experience, in which quality is a crucial element.
“Our brands are based on a foundation of the highest quality and the most carefully selected tobaccos. Every stage of the process, from planting and processing, to marketing and sales, is aimed exclusively at producing the best product imaginable. This is why consumers return to us time and again”, says Bill Chi-lian, Marketing Director at General Cigar, a wholly owned subsidiary to Swedish Match.
To guarantee the highest quality, production methods are continuously evaluated and improved. But the newest and best solutions are not always found in cutting-edge technology. General Cigar has once again started using classic old seed varieties that have far more flavor than the hybrid varieties produced in recent years. The tobacco is also aged for considerably longer, and now also in accordance with the old methods, wrapping the tobacco in palm leaves and placing it in used wine and sherry barrels.
“For premium cigars, as for most other products, the natural methods are the best,” continues Bill Chilian. “You can develop seed genetically that has greater resistance to disease and insects, but this is at the expense of the flavor. Longer curing of the tobacco gives the cigar a more balanced and refined flavor, but very few cigar producers are able to age their tobacco as long as we do.”
Bank of tobacco
Bill Chilian tells us about a “Tobacco Library,” a bank of tobacco that has been specially aged for a number of years. As with wine, properly cured high-quality tobacco only gets better with age. It acquires a pronounced mildness, surprising in a cigar context, without any loss of flavor or aroma. A combination that is sheer paradise for the cigar aficionado and ensures that Swedish Match will be able to supply the US market and the rest of the world with first-class, luxurious premium cigars for many decades to come.
Another advantage conferred by this exceptionally long period of aging is greater security against unreliable deliveries or poor harvests. There is simply no risk of being left without quality tobacco, notwithstanding unrest or unfavorable weather conditions in the supplier countries.
STORY: BIRGITTA SJÖBERG
PHOTO: MAGNUS FOND
Experience and skill needed for best results
COMPOSING A CIGAR RECIPE requires many years of experience. Apart from taste and smoke characteristics, the major challenge lies in ensuring that the cigar has the same taste from year to year, regardless of harvest variations. The cigar recipe is compiled either vertically, where only one tobacco type is used with leaves from different heights on the plant, or horizontally, involving the blending of several tobacco types and leaf heights.
Longfiller cigars, with a filling made of whole tobacco leaves, are rolled by hand, often by teams of three. Cigar rollers achieve the necessary manual dexterity after undergoing six months of training and long practice. Leaves are cut and rolled with consummate skill. The wrapper leaf is rolled diagonally, with the leaf nerves on the inside and lie parallel to the length of cigar.
To conclude the process, the tip is sealed using a circular end-piece cut from the tobacco leaf – a safety feature to prevent the cigar from coming undone during transport. The wrapper leaf is rolled on diagonally with the nerves on the inside and parallel to the length of the cigar.
STORY: BIRGITTA SJÖBERG
PHOTO: VICTOR BROTT
Hajenius strengthens our quality range in Europe
Hajenius is one of the most well-known premium cigars in the Netherlands. Its brand includes an exclusive cigar store in Amsterdam. Swedish Match’s acquisition last year of Hajenius strengthened its product portfolio with a brand that has become synonymous with extremely high quality.
EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA are Swedish Match’s most important cigar markets. The Dutch branch Hajenius is a leader among premium cigars in the Netherlands and its cigar store in Amsterdam is a key element of marketing.
The Hajenius cigar store is one of the most beautiful and exclusive cigar stores in Europe. It is furnished in Art Deco style using such classic materials such as oak, leather and marble. Apart from the retail premises and private humidor boxes, the premises include a room that functions as a walk-in humidor. The store attracts approximately 160,000 visitors annually.
The history of Hajenius cigars and cigar store extends 180 years into the past. It began as far back as 1826, when Pantaleon Gerhard Coenraad Hajenius started his first cigar store. The store, which quickly became successful, was moved in 1914 to its current address in central Amsterdam. P.G.C. Hajenius eventually also became a known brand of quality cigars.
Today, Hajenius cigars are available in three varieties: Hajenius Sumatra Selection, Hajenius Grand Finale Selection and Hajenius HBPR Selection. The cigar sizes range from small cigarillos to large coronas.
Read more about Hajenius and the cigar store on the website, www.hajenius.com.
STORY: LOTTA ÖRTNÄS
