Hello everyone. Today I want to go over the different ways to cut your cigar. I know for some of us out there, it might be a little rudimentary. But there are still a lot of folks who are just getting into this hobby. Let's discuss the three basic methods for cutting your cigars.

Straight Cut

We'll start with the infamous straight cut. That's typically what you find most people using as they're going through their early cigar experiences. I have the Xikar Xi Cutter, a personal favorite of mine. It's a nice little teardrop shape with a double-blade cutter to go with it. Normally all you want to do is aim for your cap on your cigar at the very top of it; you don't necessarily want to cut below the cap level because as you smoke your cigar, it's going to get moist and wet from your mouth and your lips and then it can tend to unravel and just ruin your smoking experience.

You also don't want to clip too little on the cap because then it becomes very snug, a little tight, and very tough to smoke. So you always want to get that line right above the cap and just clip away. Now I would also suggest, as you're cutting your cigar with something like this or your typical straight cut, you don't want to just be easy with it. Put some force into it and get a nice clear cut.

For the newbies out there, there is a hack for a cut. Take your cutter, put it on a flat surface or table, take your cigar over and you put it on the table, and clip it. That will help you get an almost perfect cut every time.

Punch Cut

Next we have the Xikar Pull Out Punch. What I like about these, and you find this with a lot of punches, it comes with a nice little key-ring attachment. So you can put it right there in your keys and that way hopefully you don't lose it.

When it comes to using a punch, from my personal perspective, it works a lot better with a cigar that has a bigger ring gauge or something with a flatter surface, kind of like these Neanderthals by RoMa Craft. So that's going to give you a much more clear cut. What I like about a punch compared to a straight cut: with a straight cut, you're going to get much more flow, much more openness with the smoke. With the punch, you get a little bit more of the intensity of the smoke going through a much smaller hole. And, for me, it can intensify the flavor of the cigar I'm smoking.

V-Cut

And lastly, we have the Xikar V Cutter here. You squeeze the sides, which opens it up, and you just cut your cigar like that. So what I like about a V-cut, also to some people known as a cat's eye cut, is it's kind of like a cutter with training wheels. It's really hard to mess up your cut. You can get almost a perfect cut every single time as long as your blade is nice and sharp.

And also what I like about a V-cut is opposed to the straight-cut style and the punch style, it cuts an actual V notch into the cap of your cigar, which kind of opens up the smoke to go around your palate to give you sometimes a little slightly different aspect to the flavor of the cigar that you're smoking.

Cigar Cuts

So there you have it. These are your three basic versions of cutters that are available on Smokingpipes. Highly suggest the Xikar line. They make a really great product. So make sure if you do happen to have all three, try each cut with the same style of cigar and see if you can notice a difference. Thank you.