Why Do People Smoke Cigars? A Perspective Most Have Never Considered.
Professional Photography by Carography Studios
by Edwin Epperson, Fund Manager of Blue Bay Fund I
Welcome. Before anything else, thank you for taking a seat. I do not rush introductions. My name is Edwin Epperson. I steward capital for conservative, accredited investors who value legacy, conviction, and real-world stewardship before God.
Most people assume cigars are about status, habit, or indulgence. They are not. For me, the question has never been about smoke. It has always been about what kind of man slows down long enough to mean what he says.
If you were sitting across from me right now, I would not begin with business. I would offer you a seat, let the room breathe, and only then ask “Do you smoke cigars”?
That question is never about tobacco. It is about pace. It is about whether a man can slow down long enough to think clearly, listen honestly, and speak with weight. A cigar is not the point. It is the doorway. And the men willing to step through it are often the ones ready for conversations that matter.
Time is the only true luxury — and most men have forgotten how to spend it well.
Why I Speak from Conviction
My perspective does not come from theory or lifestyle marketing. For years I have sat across cigar tables where Scripture, covenant responsibility, capital allocation, and masculine headship are discussed without performance or hurry.
These are not social moments, they are rooms of clarity where men confront what they truly believe before God.
So Edwin, why do you actually smoke cigars?
Cigars, Time, and Capital; What I Refuse to Rush
I do. But not for what most people assume. Not for image. Not for habit. Not for escape.
I smoke cigars because they slow time in a world that rushes truth. They do not disconnect me from reality. They make me more present to it. I grew up watching my father do the same. He was not performing. He lit a cigar the same way he opened Scripture; slowly, deliberately, making room to think before speaking. That formed me.
A cigar, for me, is first an invitation to fellowship. Before business. Before strategy. Before the debate. It is an act of hospitality that slows the room so that what is eternal carries more weight than what is merely urgent.
I steward capital the same way;
no noise, no speculation, only ordered time and generational responsibility.
In a world that rewards noise — stillness is now the highest form of strength.
The Cigar Experience: Selection, Taste, and Pairing
Why I Choose Reformed Cigars.
Conviction over branding — tobacco with a purpose
I reach for Reformed Cigars. Not because of branding. But because conviction matters more to me than flavor alone.
These are cigars named after men like John Calvin and Charles Spurgeon — men who did not just study theology but embodied it when it actually cost something.
When I light one, I am not supporting entertainment. I am supporting missions, discipleship, and gospel work in places most marketing will never go.
Reformed Cigars is not a lifestyle brand. It is a quiet ministry operating from Nicaragua that funds real work in the Kingdom.
They are hand-rolled in Nicaragua. No flavoring. No mass production. Just real tobacco, crafted by people who take the work seriously. It is the kind of cigar that forces you to slow down, whether you planned to or not.
Explore Reformed Cigars: A selection of Reformed Cigars, embodying conviction and craftsmanship. https://reformedcigars.org/
The room always reveals the man — before the man ever speaks.
What Do Cigars Actually Taste Like?
An experience to perceive — not inhale, but discern.
Well, they do not taste like cigarettes.
A proper cigar tastes like earth, leather, trace of black pepper, and sometimes like toasted cacao. The flavor does not attack. It unfolds — the way good conversations do.
For beginners, I would recommend a good Connecticut such as the Spurgeon Connecticut, a John Calvin Golden Habano, or even the Rendencion Connecticut. Easy, smooth, and light on flavor, this cigar, paired with a lighter bourbon, or even a Jack Daniels Old Number 7 is the order of the day.
For those desiring a robust flavor profile, with complex notes, I would recommend the Spurgeon Blue Maduro or the John Calvin Natural. A good pairing for these cigars would be a Gentleman Jack, or a Jack single barrel proof.
What do you pair it with?
Pairing not for flavor, but for the weight of the moment.
I often reach for bourbon; I am a Jack Man by default. Yes, I know, I know, people will say that Jack Daniel's is not a bourbon but a Tennessee Sour Mash Whiskey. Still, it remains my go-to general fellowship drink, paired with a good cigar, such as those from Reformed Cigars.
But for moments that call for reverence, not routine, I pour a Pappy Van Winkle, not for prestige. But specific conversations deserve something that cannot be rushed.
Whether I am enjoying a glass of J.D. or a sophisticated pour of Pappy, a solid pairing of the proper whiskey with the right cigar is key.
Christian Liberty and Cigar Smoking
Not about permission — but about the posture of the soul before God.
The Posture Beneath the Cigar.
I am not inhaling. A cigar is tasted, not drawn into the lungs. It is simply a natural leaf. No chemicals. No addiction. No frantic consumption. Cigars do carry nicotine, yet none of the other chemicals associated with cigarettes.
Charles Spurgeon smoked cigars and famously said, “I intend to smoke a cigar to the glory of God before I go to bed tonight.”
Christian liberty is not about what is legal or religious. It is about what is done before the face of God with a clean conscience. I do not smoke to indulge. I smoke to think, to listen, to sharpen if I may expound upon this thought, especially as it relates to these two issues combined.
Oftentimes, people will try to quote 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 as well as 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 as a justification that smoking is “un-Christian” and even that it is a sin. First, I would encourage you, as a Christian yourself, to read these scriptures in their context.
1 Cor. 3, Paul is writing to the Church in Corinth about their immaturity as it pertains to the Word of God and consuming deeper, spiritual meaning. The Church, by the way, is the Body of Christ. His clarity of their bodies in vs 16-17 comes on the heels of the Church not growing properly spiritually. When he addresses the church in vs 16, the “you” that Paul refers to is not the individual, but the congregation.
People often cite 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 as the most common verse when it comes to living a healthy lifestyle, associating it with being a “good Christian.” However, just one verse prior in 18, Paul explicitly states, “but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.” Go back and read the entire chapter of 1 Corinthians 6. This is the primary theme in this chapter. Recognizing that our bodies are the temple of God, as Paul here points out, is NOT from a health perspective; it's from a sexual perspective.
Here's another verse that immediately closes this argument from others who would judge someone who partakes in cigars or drinks. Acts 10:9-43 Peter, one of the Apostles, receives a vision from God. Peter was a Jew, and Jews have had and still have very strict dietary laws. In the vision, God Himself tells Peter to take up food to eat that he was forbidden to eat under Jewish law. Not only does our diet not have anything to do with our holiness, but under Christian liberties through Christ, we can gladly and free from guilt, enjoy the fine things of this life, such as a good cigar.
PS- Also, for a nail in the coffin towards this argument, read Matthew 11:15 and Mark 7:15. Jesus himself addresses this very concern.
Conviction tastes different when time is not rushed.
If you still think cigars are just smoke, let me show you what I actually see.
A cigar, in the right room, is not entertainment. It is a filter. It reveals who can slow down long enough to speak with conviction. It makes space for conversations about faith, legacy, duty, and eternity that rarely happen in rushed environments.
Some of the most meaningful partnerships I have ever formed did not begin in boardrooms. They began across a cigar.
So I will ask you the same question I ask most men: Do you smoke cigars?
If you do, let’s sit down sometime.
No noise. No posturing. Bourbon. Conviction. And a conversation that actually matters.
Manager’s Note:
“The men I choose to work with are not defined by noise or urgency, but by conviction, ordered time, and the ability to think generationally.
Edwin D. Epperson III.
Edwin D. Epperson III,
Manager & CEO
Soli Deo Gloria
