A note from Charles
Curiosity, carefully documented.
I’m Charles McQuain. Cut & Smoke is where I document what I’m learning about cigars themselves, and the storage, gear and pairings around them.
Why this exists
With cigars, I’m a beginner, not an established expert. I’m learning through my own experience, which so far includes one very small humidor. Writing it down carefully is the best way I know to learn properly, and it may be useful to someone at the same stage.
Bourbon, and my other site
I also own and operate BourbonProof.com , a site of bourbon travel, gift and learning guides. I believe bourbon is an excellent pairing with a cigar, so it will come up here. That is my opinion, not a test result. BourbonProof earns affiliate commissions, so when a story here mentions it, I’ll say it’s mine.
What you’ll find here
- Cigars: Cigar vocabulary, craft and culture from a beginner’s perspective.
- Gear: Cigar accessories, cases and the everyday setup, compared carefully.
- Storage: Humidors, humidity monitoring and travel storage, explained.
- Pairings: Coffee, bourbon and other pairings, with personal taste kept separate from guidance.
The first stories are practical guides, because those are questions with answers that can be checked. Coverage of cigars themselves will grow as I try more of them.
How stories are labelled
Every story says how it was put together, so you can weigh it accordingly:
- Personal observation
- Based on my own notes and experience. Your results may differ.
- Researched guide
- Compiled from published sources named and linked in the story, not from product testing.
- Researched comparison
- Compares published specifications and design differences. No products were tested for this piece.
I don’t claim to have tested something unless I have, and I don’t publish ratings or scores. Photos here are stock photos, unless a story says otherwise. They don’t show my own setup and aren’t evidence of testing. Opinions are written as opinions.
How this site makes money
Cut & Smoke doesn’t sell anything itself. It’s built to earn commissions through affiliate links, which can include retailers that sell cigars as well as humidors and accessories. The Amazon Associates Program, Refined Traditions, 1st Class Humidors and Gotham Cigars are the only ones active so far. A page with these links says so before the first link, and the affiliate disclosure names every program. A commission won’t change what a story says.
Tobacco
Cigars are tobacco products, and nothing here suggests they are safe or healthy. This site is for adults 21 and over.