Are cigar clubs like Instacart for cigar hobbyists? Fits the bill if you don’t have time to visit (or aren’t near) a decent local cigar shop. OR you’d rather pay for the service of someone hand picking your cigars—someone who understands your tastes and sends you something different each month that you can’t find anywhere else. Or you want to stock your humidor with something good to smoke whenever you want it.
Find out where cigar clubs are headed with Rob and Founder of Privada Cigar Club Brian Andrew Desind.
- Are monthly cigar subscriptions a fad?
- Are cigar subscriptions a threat to cigar retailers?
- How can a cigar club help you define your palate?
Explore cigars, cigar life and cigar enjoyment with Rob Gagner, host of Box Press, Boveda’s cigar podcast. Subscribe to the Box Press podcast on the Boveda Cigar YouTube Channel or on iTunes.
WHAT ARE ROB & BRIAN SMOKING?
Victory by Aireyys. This $30+, 60-ring gauge cigar has bursts of creamy chocolate, coffee, leather and mild spice. Finishes with a mineral hint. Created by former Olympian pole vaulter Mike Edwards, Aireyys is the first black-owned cigar line in Great Britain. In recent years, there’s been a dramatic increase in people of color and women joining the cigar smoking community.
WATCH ROB’S PRIVADA CIGAR CLUB UNBOXING
Another Exclusive Cigar! Privada Cigar Club sends 3 cigars (most of them aged or hard-to-find smokes), along with tasting notes and pairing ideas. Boveda keeps all the hand-picked cigars fresh in transit and until they’re ready to smoke. (Membership is $25.99 a month + shipping.)
JUST KEEP THOSE CIGARS IN THE BAG WITH BOVEDA AND RE-SEAL
Privada Cigar Club members always comment on the its packaging. Boveda’s 2-way humidity control is sealed inside every month’s subscription to create a humidor in a bag. That way, members don’t have to worry about their cigar shipment. It’s protected from any fluctuations in humidity—even after they open the package.
“Rob, I opened a Privada pack that I sent you 11 months ago, and [the cigars] are still still absolutely fresh.
“When people say, ‘oh, I’m running out of space in my humidor,’ I ask why are you putting them in your humidor? You don’t need to. [The cigars] are in a sealed moisture barrier and can stay in there for a very long time. I feel like I don’t have humidors anymore.”
Brian just re-seals his cigars in Privada’s shipping bags with the Boveda still inside. “I feel like it’s a more controlled environment and I’m really happy.”
UNBOXING THE PRIVADA CIGAR CLUB BOX PRESS EPISODE
- Better to smoke a cigar indoors or outdoors? (2:40)
- Learn how to “cut” a cigar with a match stick, just like Winston Churchill. (9:20)
- Why are so many cigar smokers subscribing to cigar clubs? (13:10)
- What pairs well with a good cigar? (14:20)
- What beginning cigar smokers and aficionados can learn from a cigar club. (22:05)
- Where does Privada find limited, hard-to-find cigars? (27:35)
- How influencers’ unboxings circumvented the limitations of promoting cigars and cigar clubs on social media. (33:00)
- Is there tension between brick and mortar cigar shops and monthly cigar subscriptions? (40:55)
- Are there threats to the monthly cigar subscription model? (1:01:45)
- How Privada is building a community through Spirited Smoke. (1:04:30)
