📩 A Place To Belong

In Todays Letter...

• Tradition

• A Cigar of Their Own

• The Art of the Blend

Dear Cigar Lover,

There is something rather wonderful about finding yourself in a room full of strangers and leaving with a few new friends.

Especially when all it took was a cigar.

This week, my thoughts take me to Home House, tucked away on Portman Square in London's Marylebone.

Behind its rather unassuming Georgian exterior lies a house with almost 250 years of history.

Commissioned in the 1770s by Elizabeth, Countess of Home, a woman known for her extravagant entertaining, the house has welcomed aristocrats, diplomats, artists and countless other characters through its doors.

Its magnificent interiors were shaped by Robert Adam, one of Britain's great architects. For much of the twentieth century, the house was home to the Courtauld Institute of Art, before eventually finding a new life as a private members' club.

And that last chapter is the one that interests me most.

Not because of the exclusivity, the grand staircase or the beautiful rooms.

But because of something much simpler.

People have always wanted somewhere to belong.

A tradition older than the clubs themselves

Long before London's grand members' clubs, cigars were already bringing people together.

The Indigenous peoples of the Americas had used tobacco for centuries before Europeans encountered it in 1492. Tobacco smoking would eventually cross the Atlantic, spreading through Spain and across Europe.

By the nineteenth century, cigars had found a particular home in Britain's social life.

Smoking rooms became fixtures of gentlemen's clubs, where conversations stretched late into the evening, friendships were formed and the affairs of the day were debated.

The cigar became part of the ritual.

And while much has changed in the centuries since, I would argue that one of the finest things about enjoying a cigar has remained exactly the same.

The company.

I have smoked some extraordinary cigars alone. And some rather ordinary ones in extraordinary company.

I can assure you which memories I treasure more.

A Cigar of Their Own

But Home House has taken its appreciation for cigars one step further.

Rather than simply offering members somewhere to enjoy a smoke, the club has created its very own collection of bespoke cigars.

Five cigars, each with a name inspired by the people, personalities and stories that have inhabited the house over its remarkable history.

There is the Lady Portman Petit Corona, the Duke Torpedo, the Earl Grey Figurado, the Ghost Pigtail, and the rather grand Lady Home Double Corona.

It is quite a collection.

And I particularly enjoy the inclusion of the Ghost Pigtail, a nod to the house's resident ghost. After nearly 250 years, I suppose a building is entitled to a few supernatural stories.

Each cigar has been designed with its own distinct flavour profile, offering members a little piece of Home House history to enjoy alongside their favourite drink.

The Art of the Blend

Ever wondered what gives a cigar its distinctive character?

Much of the answer lies in a process called blending.

A master blender combines different tobacco leaves, each selected for its flavour, strength and aroma, to create a particular smoking experience.

Even changing a single leaf can dramatically alter the character of a cigar.

Interestingly, you don't need to own a factory to create your own cigar. Many manufacturers offer private-label production, allowing individuals and clubs to select an existing blend and have cigars produced under their own name.

But creating a truly exceptional blend from scratch?

That can take years of experience.

Perhaps one day we'll have a Cigar Letters blend of our own.

Whether a fine cigar, a grand old house, or the right company, the finest things take time to create, but it all comes down to chemistry.

Until next time.

Yours truly,
The Cigar Lover

Cigar Letters
^{No. 37}