Welcome Back

WE stumble, blinking and shivering, into the New Year.

The mad scramble and endless ennui of the festive break is already a fading dream. The reality of January is a cold, dark and looong tunnel.

It can be a lonely and daunting month, and when things go wrong during these times, they seem twice as hard to deal with, alongside the lack of sunlight and the cold, oppressive weather.

But – just imagine if you lived in Scotland! Or Finland! Or somewhere else dazzlingly high in the northern hemisphere, and take a little solace in the relatively temperate climes most of us live in.

We at Sautter recognise that not everyone feels great all the time – neither, of course, do we. But what is unaltered, no matter what else is going on in the world, is our utter dedication to our principles. When things get tough, stick to the basics. Provide the best possible cigars on the market for the enjoyment of our customers. Life seems a lot simpler when you put things on their simplest terms.

So – our advice to you, if you feel a little wobbly at times, is to strip things back to the bare essentials, focus on what’s really important to you – and allow a good cigar once in a while to centre you, bring peace, allow you to stop and get off the roundabout for the moment – and be able to look ahead with positivity instead of dread.

These are things which are immeasurable, but that doesn’t invalidate them. Cigar lovers know this to be true.

So, what does 2024 hold in relation to cigars? 2023 was a mixed bag; price increase after price increase from Cuba, while still facing crippling shortages; New World cigars making giant strides into the former Cuban market domination; but some fabulous regional and special edition smokes still coming out of Cuba and innovation, invention and quality continuing to reassure New World lovers.

This year, we are not keen to offer predictions, but for the sake of discussion, as things stand – and don’t forget things can change! – we would expect the availability of some lines of Cuban cigars to ease a little. But don’t hold your breath for a return to the good old days. It is the eternal paradox that wonderful limited run or new cigars are still coming out of Cuba, while we can’t get our hands on what is already in the portfolio; we are torn between feeling grateful that great cigars are still being made and angry that the powers that be blithely carry on as if nothing is wrong when we can’t get hold of their basic product.

If you are as rich as Croesus, then your worries diminish considerably. You can always get what you want if you are prepared to pay enough for it.

For the rest of us – the silent majority, if you like – it is a case of watching, waiting, listening to good people for advice, moving in when the time and your budget is right, and above all, enjoying your cigars for what they are; consumables to be enjoyed at perfect moments, to enrich (in a spiritual sense) and enliven your lives and not to be coveted and kept, or used as material for bragging rights.

Cigars are for smoking. Enjoy them with your friends.