Italians on Italians
Beyond Toscano

See a cigar in a whole new light

While it’s true for many that the most enjoyable aspects of the cigar smoking experience are to be found in the taste, aroma and way it makes...
Il Sigaro della Sera
While it’s true for many that the most enjoyable aspects of the cigar smoking experience are to be found in the taste, aroma and way it makes them feel, there have been those who experience cigars, shall we say, a little differently. 
 
Notorious writer and lothario Giacomo Casanova certainly enjoyed Toscano cigars, but he didn’t necessarily focus on the taste. By his own admission, Casanova would court a cigar as he might a fine woman, describing his relationship with his favorite smokes as intimate. 
 
In his tell-all memoir, Histoire de Ma Vie (My Life), Casanova directly compared cigars to women. There was the tender loving caress, where the texture of the leaf compares to the age of a woman’s skin – either fresh, supple and young, or firm and carrying the distinguished marks of experience. 
 
He even went so far as comparing smoking to love-making, celebrating the idea of anticipation in the build up, and singing the praises of a long-lasting smoke. It’s enough to make anyone blush, even by today’s more liberal standards.