The cap of a cigar — the rounded, closed end you put in your mouth — is hand-applied by the roller specifically to keep the wrapper leaf intact during transport and aging. Your job is to remove just enough of that cap to open the draw without cutting so deep that the wrapper starts to unravel.

As a rule of thumb, you want to cut about 1/16 to 1/8 of an inch off the cap — just enough to open it. Go too shallow and you restrict the airflow. Go too deep and you will be picking tobacco off your tongue for the next hour.

The most popular cut in the world, and the right choice for most cigars. A quality double-blade guillotine cutter makes a clean, even cut in a single motion. Position the cigar so the blade sits just inside the shoulder — the point where the cap curves down to meet the body — and cut with one decisive motion. Hesitation creates a ragged edge.

At Smoky Justice, we keep cutters at the bar. If you are not sure where to cut, just ask — we would rather walk you through it than watch a great cigar go to waste.

A V-cut (cat's eye cut) removes a wedge-shaped notch from the center of the cap rather than slicing across the whole head. It concentrates the smoke toward the center of your palate and is popular with torpedo and figurado shapes.

A punch cut drills a small circular hole in the cap and is a favorite among people who prefer a tight, concentrated draw. It works beautifully on robusto and toro sizes but can plug on longer, thinner cigars if the draw is already tight.

Never bite a cigar open — even if it looks effortless in old movies. You will crack the wrapper and likely pull loose tobacco with every draw. Avoid cheap single-blade cutters that require multiple passes; the second pass almost always tears the cap. And never cut a cigar over a surface that could dull the blade — a quality cutter is worth protecting.