Cigar Tobacco Vs Pipe Tobacco

There is actually a pretty big difference between pipe and cigar smoking. They often get compared to each other as they are luxury products that you don’t inhale, however they couldn’t be more different. 
Pipe tobacco, is usually available loose and is then cut or processed. Whereas Premium cigars are handcrafted from whole leaf tobacco and rolled up to be smoked. The technique used to smoke cigars and a pipe is different too however they both take time and effort.

To enjoy a cigar, you simply need to cut it, light it and smoke away. Pipe smoking requires a bit more maintenance, firstly you need to get a pipe. Most pipes designed for smoking tobacco are made from either Briar root wood, Meerschaum or Corn cob. Briar is the most traditional and common material for making pipes. To read more about the differences between pipe smoking and cigar smoking click here.

Difference in Taste
Cigars are designed to deliver a series of flavours that transition and generally intensify towards the end. The taste of a cigar heavily relies on the type of wrapper, binder and filler leaves that have been selected for the blend. Tasting notes can include cedar, nuts, peppers, coffee beans, hickory, maple, cocoa, and many more. They can also fall into a creamy or spicy spectrum.

Because pipe tobaccos are fine cut, the changes in flavours are less noticeable. You tend to come across two types of tobacco: Aromatic and non-aromatic. Aromatic tobaccos give you some incredible flavours and aromas which tend to be on the sweeter side like cherry, vanilla, coconut and whisky. Non-aromatic tobacco do have flavour but not as pungent, flavours of earth and wood is apparent with these.

Difference in cost
When it comes to cigar smoking all you need is the cigar itself and a good cutter and lighter. It depends on how much you want to spend but you can buy all three for under £30, or go more luxurious and spend over £1000. It is entirely up to you. Whereas to smoke pipe tobacco you will need a pipe and a pipe lighter. However when purchasing a pipe the quality does reflect in the price so the ones under £30 are that price for a reason, but if you spend a bit more, the pipe will last you a very long time. This is beneficial as once you have purchased the pipe, the price of pipe tobacco tends to be cheaper than buying a premium cigar.

Difference in Tobaccos

Cigar Tobacco
Premium cigars consist of a binder, filler and wrapper tobaccos. Many of which are harvested in the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Honduras. Wrapper leaves can be grown in other regions such as: Ecuador, Mexico and the USA. Each cigar is carefully crafted from a recipe of tobaccos chosen by a master cigar-maker known as the master blender. These tobaccos will be aged for long periods of time before and after the cigar is rolled.

Pipe Tobaccos
Pipe tobacco is still tobacco leaves but tend to get cut up into smaller pieces and gets flavour added into it - this is what gives it the incredible aromas from aromatic tobaccos. Not all tobaccos get flavours added to them, some get fermented under extreme pressure to give a very peppery character. Some get fire cured over different woods to create different flavours, to find out more about the different pipe tobacco varieties click here.

As we all know tobacco can be a complicated yet intriguing subject. Despite the fact that all tobacco is still grown from a plant, cigars and pipe tobacco is radically different and shows that you must be careful with which pathway you want to go down. Or smoke both!

Written by Oliver Partington